Middle Eastern, counted as Caucasian on applications Forum

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King of the North

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Middle Eastern, counted as Caucasian on applications

Post by King of the North » Wed Oct 04, 2017 11:29 am

Hey everyone. To keep it short, I am Middle Eastern and we are categorized as Caucasian for the purposes of applying to law school. My question is, will I be able to get some diversity leeway if I have a diversity statement that is centered around my background (i.e. I wasn't born here, I help out kids in my community, I'm always involved blah blah). I'm hoping this will help me show myself as diverse. Thanks for the help.

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usaorbust

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Re: Middle Eastern, counted as Caucasian on applications

Post by usaorbust » Wed Oct 04, 2017 11:35 am

I'd encourage you to write a diversity statement. I think law schools appreciate the diversity and the perspective of the individual as opposed to what category a person is lumped into: this can be seen by UVA's class profile where they include middle easterners as people of color even though they may be lumped in with Caucasians.

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Mullens

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Re: Middle Eastern, counted as Caucasian on applications

Post by Mullens » Wed Oct 04, 2017 12:28 pm

My sense that if you get any diversity boost for admissions it will be marginal. Anecdotally, my middle eastern friends greatly outperformed their numbers on scholarships (but not really admissions).

Law firms will consider you diverse and that can be a boost in legal hiring.

King of the North

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Re: Middle Eastern, counted as Caucasian on applications

Post by King of the North » Wed Oct 04, 2017 12:30 pm

Thanks. That's encouraging.

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