Swiss/German/British/American.. what should I use? Forum

[martymcfly1234]

Hey guys, I will be applying to go to law school in the US either this year or next and I was wondering if anyone was wondering if my was born in the USA but moved to England when I was 13 and have lived there since (I am now 21 and am eligible for a British citizenship, but do not have one). I also have a Swiss citizenship through birth on my Mom's side (we also technically have a place of residence there but have never stayed there for more than a week or two at a time). Apparently I am also eligible for a German citizenship again through my Mom's side. So basically I have two active citizenships (American/Swiss), and am eligible for two more (British/German), and have lived in America and Britain for 13 and 8 years respectively.

Does anyone know if any of these things will aid me with getting into law school in the US? For example, would any of the British/German/Swiss be considered an underrepresented minority, etc?

Thanks

[danidancer]

For example, would any of the British/German/Swiss be considered an underrated minority, etc?

Lol.

[martymcfly1234]

For example, would any of the British/German/Swiss be considered an underrated minority, etc?

Lol.

I knew I would get some of that haha... I know none of those are underrepresented in the same sense as things like Mexican. However, I have heard that many law schools in the US like colorful backgrounds in applicants, or to say that as a university they have students representing 40 or 50 or 60 different nationalities. I'm just trying to capitalize on any possible advantage I can get.

[jmhendri]

zomg no, extreme whiteness does not get you URM points.

I can't imagine your citizen ship issues will imapct anything except maybe your PS, assuming you can mold it into something interesting that speaks to a broad global perspective.

Edit: Nothing except Mexican and Black can be useful for a URM bump.

[osmlpz]

LOL. Underrated

[jks289]

Obviously no URM bump. But you could still write an interesting diversity statement. Nothing that will really change the numbers but something that could round out an interesting application.

[sumus romani]

I'm pretty sure that you are the whitest person in the history of the world--perhaps the ubermensch at last

You sound like an interesting person and I bet that you can write a great PS and DS with your life-experiences. My hunch is that schools will be less likely to waitlist you. But you won't get a numbers-bump because of your background. gl

[Justiceinbrothel]

Hey guys, I will be applying to go to law school in the US either this year or next and I was wondering if anyone was wondering if my was born in the USA but moved to England when I was 13 and have lived there since (I am now 21 and am eligible for a British citizenship, but do not have one). I also have a Swiss citizenship through birth on my Mom's side (we also technically have a place of residence there but have never stayed there for more than a week or two at a time). Apparently I am also eligible for a German citizenship again through my Mom's side. So basically I have two active citizenships (American/Swiss), and am eligible for two more (British/German), and have lived in America and Britain for 13 and 8 years respectively.

Does anyone know if any of these things will aid me with getting into law school in the US? For example, would any of the British/German/Swiss be considered an underrepresented minority, etc?

Thanks

Untill naturalized or certificate of citizenship issued from any country (England, Swiss, Germany) you remain US Citizen if you have your US Birth Certificate.

[ArmyVet07]

Hey guys, I will be applying to go to law school in the US either this year or next and I was wondering if anyone was wondering if my was born in the USA but moved to England when I was 13 and have lived there since (I am now 21 and am eligible for a British citizenship, but do not have one). I also have a Swiss citizenship through birth on my Mom's side (we also technically have a place of residence there but have never stayed there for more than a week or two at a time). Apparently I am also eligible for a German citizenship again through my Mom's side. So basically I have two active citizenships (American/Swiss), and am eligible for two more (British/German), and have lived in America and Britain for 13 and 8 years respectively.

Does anyone know if any of these things will aid me with getting into law school in the US? For example, would any of the British/German/Swiss be considered an underrepresented minority, etc?

Thanks

Untill naturalized or certificate of citizenship issued from any country (England, Swiss, Germany) you remain US Citizen if you have your US Birth Certificate.

The US allows dual citizenship. so becoming a citizen of another country does not automatically result in the loss of US citizenship. There are certain actions that many result in loss of US citizenship (e.g. formally renouncing one's citizenship before a US official or serving in another country's military) if ther are performed with the intent of giving up citenship.

http://www.richw.org/dualcit/law.html#LossCit

Also, I suggest that the OP investigate whether he/she is truly eligible for German citizenship through his/her mother. I am assuming that his her mother is a Swiss citizen and that the OP was born prior to 1 January 1992, because before that date Switzerland (unlike the US) did not allow dual citizenship. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Swiss_citizenship
Unless the OP's mother was actually a German citizen and not simply an ethnic German (i.e. descended from Germans), I believe it is unlikely that the OP could acquire German citizenship through her. There are only limited circumstances where it is possible to acquire German citizenship simply by being an ethnic German, and this route is mainly for ethnic Germans in Eastern Europe and the former Soviet Union. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/German_cit ... _of_return

[martymcfly1234]

My Mom is a German citizen, and for me to become one I do not have to live/work there for a given amount of years or anything like that. It is simply a matter of signing on the dotted line. Also I was born in 1988 and I have always had a dual citizenship and have used both my American and Swiss passports on different occasions depending on where I was traveling, so I'm not sure the "before that date [1 January 1992] Switzerland (unlike the US) did not allow dual citizenship," is entirely accurate. But anyway, I have no intention of acquiring any more citizenships at this point unless it has some clear benefit, which looks unlikely as I think having lived in England for 8 years will put across a strong point on my diversity/personal statement whether I have the citizenship or not, and I think the effects of getting a German one will be similarly negligible.

[estevanrey]

URM? really

[romothesavior]

I am a part of the underrated majority. White men can't jump, but we sure can lawyer it up!

[drdolittle]

However, I have heard that many law schools in the US like colorful backgrounds in applicants

Colorful backgrounds, yes, in the literal sense of the word (i.e. vs. white), but being white you offer little toward ethnic diversity and it seems you've led a life of privilege jet setting through and living in the richest parts of Europe, so no, I wouldn't expect much of a boost. I might even hold you to a higher standard...

[YCrevolution]

..

[cr073137]

I disagree with most ppl here. While you might not get an URM boost, you will probably get an Int'l student boost, smaller, but still something. I would say that having a nationality that is not common in law school (I would think Swiss), might help you stand out a little more. It wont make that much of a difference tho.

Adcoms like diversity, not just of race, but also of culture, experiences and nationalities. Some schools are known for liking international students, Columbia being one of them.

[drdolittle]

you will probably get an Int'l student boost, smaller, but still something.

I doubt it. True international students do not hold US citizenship.

[ArmyVet07]

My Mom is a German citizen, and for me to become one I do not have to live/work there for a given amount of years or anything like that. It is simply a matter of signing on the dotted line. Also I was born in 1988 and I have always had a dual citizenship and have used both my American and Swiss passports on different occasions depending on where I was traveling, so I'm not sure the "before that date [1 January 1992] Switzerland (unlike the US) did not allow dual citizenship," is entirely accurate. But anyway, I have no intention of acquiring any more citizenships at this point unless it has some clear benefit, which looks unlikely as I think having lived in England for 8 years will put across a strong point on my diversity/personal statement whether I have the citizenship or not, and I think the effects of getting a German one will be similarly negligible.

I read through the Swiss nationality law a bit hastily. It seems that it does and did (even prior to 1 January 1992) allow for dual citizenship acquired at birth, but prior to that date voluntarily acquiring multiple citizenship was not permitted (i.e. one would have to give up either Swiss citizenship or the citizenship of the other country.).

[neimanmarxist]

I disagree with most ppl here. While you might not get an URM boost, you will probably get an Int'l student boost, smaller, but still something. I would say that having a nationality that is not common in law school (I would think Swiss), might help you stand out a little more. It wont make that much of a difference tho.

Adcoms like diversity, not just of race, but also of culture, experiences and nationalities. Some schools are known for liking international students, Columbia being one of them.

Int'l student here. Frankly I don't think there's an international student boost unless you have some unusual story to tell , preferably one that involves hardship. Living in a lot of countries just isn't enough to make you interesting anymore.

under-rated minority

[neimanmarxist]

you will probably get an Int'l student boost, smaller, but still something.

I doubt it. True international students do not hold US citizenship.

since when are you making the rules? lots of int'l students are U.S. citizens.

[drdolittle]

you will probably get an Int'l student boost, smaller, but still something.

I doubt it. True international students do not hold US citizenship.

since when are you making the rules? lots of int'l students are U.S. citizens.

Of course I'm not making the rules, funny you would say that actually, considering your post. But as far as I know, international students are defined by the fact that they require visas to attend, so obviously US citizens would not count. From what I've heard/seen at least with undergrad admissions, even a green card holder foreign national would not be counted as truly "international." Virtually every bit of info on college and law school webpages for international students revolves around the reqs for F-1 & other visa classification, etc...This has nothing to do with how you identify yourself, and everything to do with how schools define & classify applicants. It's a bit similar to URM classification in this regard, again, as far as I know. But, sorry, you simply claiming I'm wrong does not convince me otherwise without some evidence...

[utopian_grrl]

I've been to all of these countries and I'd be hard pressed to label you an URM. There's hardly an English language barrier or mass hardship in those countries. I'd rank you somewhere beween a Scandinavian and a Canadian in turns of URM.

But I agree with other posters. Your international background could be a good PS topic.

[bk1]

I've been to all of these countries and I'd be hard pressed to label you an URM. There's hardly an English language barrier or mass hardship in those countries. I'd rank you somewhere beween a Scandinavian and a Canadian in turns of URM.

lolwut

[utopian_grrl]

]

I've been to all of these countries and I'd be hard pressed to label you an URM. There's hardly an English language barrier or mass hardship in those countries. I'd rank you somewhere beween a Scandinavian and a Canadian in turns of URM.

lolwut

*terms of URM.

Well, Canada is just a simpler (hence smarter?) America. Scandinavia has to be one of the whitest places on earth. Nice people, but seriously looking for an URM there is nearly like searching for Waldo...15 hrs walking/riding around Copenhagen = 14 black people (only 5 who looked under 30) and maybe 9 Asians - I counted.

But, many Americans are from German or British decent yet identify as white Americans, so there's no automatic URM there (same can be said about Scandinavians). And Switzerland is a mix of languages, cultures and ex-pats (many British). In major cities like Geneva or Zurich you'd be hard pressed to find an actual born and raised Swiss citizen. And most likely, because of the somewhat restrictive naturalization policies in Switzerland, those citizens are most likely white.

I guess to simplify - international does not equate to URM. This is especially true in America because we are a relatively young country. While we have a nationality, we built our citizenry with voluntary immigrants and slaves don't have an American heritage. That's why categories like African-American, Italian-American, Irish-American and Mexican-American still exist with people who have been here for many generations.

So the OP is a Swiss-German-British American. On the census he could just check white.

[hypothalamus]

lolwut[/quote]

Well, Canada is just a simpler (hence smarter?) America. Scandinavia has to be one of the whitest places on earth. Nice people, but seriously looking for an URM there is nearly like searching for Waldo...15 hrs walking/riding around Copenhagen = 14 black people (only 5 who looked under 30) and maybe 9 Asians - I counted.
[/quote]


I had never seen a black person live until I first visited the US when I was 17... Many of my friends at home still haven't.