"Under Represented Law Student Forum" Forum

[bk1]

I know this isn't a big deal, but I was bored between PT's and this got me to thinking. Does anybody else feel that this subforum is improperly named?

It seems like too narrow a name. To me, there is a dichotomy between URM (which I see as a term defined by LSAC/law schools) and minority (as it is defined more broadly and of course not necessarily ethnic). This forum is aimed at minorities in general, as anyone can write a DS, discuss minority-centric topics like school programs, etc, and not specifically just African, Mexican, and Puerto Rican American interests.

While the question "Am I a URM?" is applicable to minorities, and they will find that sort of answer here, the forum more broadly is about minorities in general and I think the name should show that. I don't care and honestly it won't make any difference what the hell it is named, but it may clear up some confusion as some people who read threads in here may assume because of that that URM applies more broadly (we all know not everyone reads the stickies).

As I said, I'm pretty damn bored and <3 semantics.

[Always Credited]

I know this isn't a big deal, but I was bored between PT's and this got me to thinking. Does anybody else feel that this subforum is improperly named?

It seems like too narrow a name. To me, there is a dichotomy between URM (which I see as a term defined by LSAC/law schools) and minority (as it is defined more broadly and of course not necessarily ethnic). This forum is aimed at minorities in general, as anyone can write a DS, discuss minority-centric topics like school programs, etc, and not specifically just African, Mexican, and Puerto Rican American interests.

While the question "Am I a URM?" is applicable to minorities, and they will find that sort of answer here, the forum more broadly is about minorities in general and I think the name should show that. I don't care and honestly it won't make any difference what the hell it is named, but it may clear up some confusion as some people who read threads in here may assume because of that that URM applies more broadly (we all know not everyone reads the stickies).

As I said, I'm pretty damn bored and <3 semantics.

Asians are a minority, but not a URM. Can they post here?

[vanwinkle]

I actually agree with OP's sentiment. Perhaps it would be more effective to entitle this the "Non Traditional Law Student Forum" so it would feel more welcome to various types of non-trads and not be a constant source of URM/AA debate.

[quishiclocus]

Maybe something along the lines of "minorities and other non-traditional law students" or something, yeah. I don't think this area should be defined purely in terms of who gets a supposed "boost" to admissions, but I do think the name doesn't fit entirely, as I was a little confused originally between the description of the forum and what I learned URM actually meant and which groups were really categorized under that heading.

[bk1]

Asians are a minority, but not a URM. Can they post here?

Shit, if they can't then I already broke a rule!

Maybe something along the lines of "minorities and other non-traditional law students" or something, yeah. I don't think this area should be defined purely in terms of who gets a supposed "boost" to admissions, but I do think the name doesn't fit entirely, as I was a little confused originally between the description of the forum and what I learned URM actually meant and which groups were really categorized under that heading.

I like that name. And I agree with vanwinkle as well. Changing the name may push the focus away from the AA debate (because it is centered on the URM concept) as well as being more open to people who find out that they are not URM's yet are still minorities or non-trads or whatever.

[r2b2ct]

To be honest, I've never had the impression that the current name implies that this forum is only about boost-receiving URMs. I don't think "under represented" alone implies race/ethnicity, but I do see that it is similar in wording to "URM". I actually think the terms "minority" and "non-traditional" seem narrower and more leading, but I might be wrong.

Maybe if they expanded the description under the title there would be less confusion.

[creatinganalt]

Do you think that minority concerns might end up getting crowded out though? Like if all of the 'having a baby in 1L threads' moved to this board.

[vanwinkle]

Do you think that minority concerns might end up getting crowded out though? Like if all of the 'having a baby in 1L threads' moved to this board.

It's not like there's all that much legitimate discussion in the forum now. I think there's room for a lot more discussion here without it crowding anyone out.

[MTal]

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[vanwinkle]

Heh. Eheheheheh. EHEHEHEEEHEHEH. hahahahahaha. aaaaaHAHAHAHAA!!!

I liked you better before you became the Joker.

[trialjunky]

Do you think that minority concerns might end up getting crowded out though? Like if all of the 'having a baby in 1L threads' moved to this board.

It's not like there's all that much legitimate discussion in the forum now. I think there's room for a lot more discussion here without it crowding anyone out.

Agreed, there needs to be more post in this forum...it tends to fade away into obscurity a lot.

[Nola]

Does anybody know if being from Central America (Honduras) qualifies as URM?

[vanwinkle]

Does anybody know if being from Central America (Honduras) qualifies as URM?

You may put down that you are Hispanic, and some schools may treat you as a URM as a result. Hispanics other than those from Mexican and Puerto Rican are treated inconsistently by schools, so it's hard to say for certain; it will vary from school to school what kind of response you get. But yes, you will likely get some boost at some schools.

[Nola]

Is it safe to say that if on the schools application it just generally references "Hispanic" that school considers Central Americans as URMs?

For example: Northwestern

[Nola]

Is there any way to know what schools weight URM in certain ways? Is there statistical data showing demographic information coupled with GPA/LSAT with acceptance rates?

[vanwinkle]

Is it safe to say that if on the schools application it just generally references "Hispanic" that school considers Central Americans as URMs?

For example: Northwestern

It seems more likely that if they only ask if you're "Hispanic" that they'll weight you equally to other Hispanics of different nationalities. Because URM is about increasing diversity, it will help you to write a Diversity Statement about your unique experiences being hondureña.

Is there any way to know what schools weight URM in certain ways? Is there statistical data showing demographic information coupled with GPA/LSAT with acceptance rates?

Sadly I don't know of any specific such information. I'd recommend starting a new thread and asking for results from Hispanics of different nationalities on how their cycles went.

[billyez]

Is there any way to know what schools weight URM in certain ways? Is there statistical data showing demographic information coupled with GPA/LSAT with acceptance rates?

Besides what vanwinkle stated, Law School Numbers is pretty much what I used to gauge this.