Race/ethnicity

[Bounty]

Ok i have a sort of a random question.
I am Middle Eastern (born here, so middle eastern-american)and I never know what to put when i fill out race/ethnicity questions. Sometimes I put other, sometimes I put white depending on my mood. Do any of you have the same problem?
I dont know what to put for AMCAS. I know it doesnt really matter since I am not a URM but I just wanted to be as accurate as possible. I checked that I was fluent in Persian so it's not like i am trying to "hide" it or anything.
Thank
B

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[Ceez]

•••quote:•••Originally posted by Bounty:
•Ok i have a sort of a random question.
I am Middle Eastern (born here, so middle eastern-american)and I never know what to put when i fill out race/ethnicity questions. Sometimes I put other, sometimes I put white depending on my mood. Do any of you have the same problem?
I dont know what to put for AMCAS. I know it doesnt really matter since I am not a URM but I just wanted to be as accurate as possible. I checked that I was fluent in Persian so it's not like i am trying to "hide" it or anything.
Thank
B•••••Do you mind explaining why you call yourself white sometimes? My boss is also Persian and when he told me that he grew up around nothing but white people in Iran, I was very confused.

 

[RLMD]

I dont know exactly what categories there are but since you are not white, I wouldnt put that. If other is the only thing that fits, just put that. I guess no one would be surprised...

 

[Bounty]

I dont know if I can give a good explanation but I have been told that technically Persians are caucasian because of history etc. In some parts of Iran, people look very white, blond and blue-eyed. Its bizarre.
I remember a while ago, I was filling out some form and I saw "White (including middle eastern)" as one of the categories. Its funny that some ethnicities have a million different subcategories but there is nothing like that for middle easterns ever.

 

[BlackPuma]

•••quote:•••Originally posted by RLMD:
•I dont know exactly what categories there are but since you are not white, I wouldnt put that. If other is the only thing that fits, just put that. I guess no one would be surprised...•••••ok god not this kind of post again....

we've established that persians are caucasions because they are indo-european....so go ahead and put down white......I'm persian, and I always put down white....

 

[RLMD]

hmmmm, didnt know persians were considered caucasian. Well, learn something new everyday...

 

[Bounty]

watcha,
do you put white for race AND ethnicity?

 

[Luv Nietzsche]

Yes, Persians are considered caucasian & white.

 

[BlackPuma]

•••quote:•••Originally posted by Bounty:
•watcha,
do you put white for race AND ethnicity?•••••ethnicity I sometimes put persian...but in all reality, if ur applying to med school....ur better of claiming ur "white", placing down persian won't help ur application one bit...so it really boils down to personal preference...if u do put down persian..then they might ask u what is persian, where u from? blah blah...and u don't want to deal with that ****...

we aren't really white "anglo saxon" so not part of the majority, nor the typical minority groups.....

 

[Bounty]

Are they allowed to ask us where we are from in an interview? I guess people do regardless of whether it is "legal" or not. I just know a guy who was really not treated well at one of the schools he interviewed at when they asked him where he was from. He was from Iraq and judging by another post i saw - I think it was Dr. BlueDevil?

 

[SeeGulz]

•••quote:••• ur better of claiming ur "white", placing down persian won't help ur application one bit... ••••Really? I would have thought that "persian", or at least "other," would help the application in regards to maintaining the diversity of the student body. Perhaps it varies from school to school or region to region, but in DC at least (where I went to college and hope to go to med school) diversity seems to smiled upon.

 

[entropy]

I think the best thing to do is put "white".

Under languages, say that you speak Persian/ Farsi.

 

[DrBlueDevil]

right...you put down white. I was born in Iraq, and I've been told (by my advisor and by I saw on the AMCAS app when I applied last year) that the government considers middle easteners "white". Whatever...it's what I put...

 

[Bounty]

Dr Blue Devil
I sent you a PM.
B

 

[Noeljan]

Hi there
Best friends of my family are from Yemen, they have always put down white and instructed to do so. Good luck