Thoughts on my technical URM status. Forum

[stefanpdt]

I feel that I am surely an Under Represented Minority.

I make good grades at an average undergraduate school, yet we are all looking for that extra scholarship money from our law schools of choice. I have yet to apply to mine.

Firstly, I'm an American citizen. Although, my parents are both immigrants. My mother is Tunisian, and my dad is Scottish. I basically took all of my Tunisian heritage genes (tan skin, brown hair).

Could I represent myself as African-American when selecting a box to check on my LS application? Tunisia is an African country, but with predominately Arabic culture.

[Blessedassurance]

No.

You can check "other" and explain.

[Grizz]

lol no

[stefanpdt]

No.

You can check "other" and explain.

If I have the option to check "other," then that will work for me.

Sometimes my race is extremely hard to distinguish on paper.

[Blessedassurance]

If I have the option to check "other," then that will work for me.

Sometimes my race is extremely hard to distinguish on paper.

You will. They anticipate these things.

Conversely, you could just retake.

[cutecarmel]

Yea check "other".

Its better safe than sorry. After you sign the form saying all your info is truthful, if they find you stretched the truth, you could lose your acceptances and scholarships.

If you have not claimed being African American throughout your life, you shouldn't claim it now.

[bernaldiaz]

Am I missing something? Why can't a student whose mother is an immigrant from Tunisia claim to be African American? That seems a lot more legitimate than a lot of URM claims I've seen.

OP, unless I'm misunderstanding the situation, I would 100% say you are an African American.

[nsbane]

Dude. You're Arab / Scottish. On a side note, an Afrikaner who comes to America is also not considered an African-American, despite being born in an African country.

[nsbane]

Bernaldiaz,

African-American is considered an ethnicity, not a geographic distinction. For example, there are white people in South Africa. When they apply to law school, they are not considered African Americans. Their ethnicity is european.

North Africans, for the most part, are considered of Arab descent. That is their ethnicity. By the same token, despite Russia being on the Asian continent by most maps, they are considered European / caucasian, not Asian.

[cutecarmel]

I think he/she should put other because he's mixed and should highlight both of his roots. Also, Tunisia is like a footstep away from Europe.

African American, to me, is just a "politically correct" way to say black, which an Arab is not. (I consider myself black, not African American, but that's another story for another time.

I do think this poster is a URM (though I'm not exactly sure how I define), I just don't think he is African American.

To be completely honest, I would call LSAC and just ask. I can only give my opinion, but the only thing I no for sure about URMs is that I am one...which doesn't help you very much.

Am I missing something? Why can't a student whose mother is an immigrant from Tunisia claim to be African American? That seems a lot more legitimate than a lot of URM claims I've seen.

OP, unless I'm misunderstanding the situation, I would 100% say you are an African American.

[cutecarmel]

+1

Bernaldiaz,

African-American is considered an ethnicity, not a geographic distinction. For example, there are white people in South Africa. When they apply to law school, they are not considered African Americans. Their ethnicity is european.

North Africans, for the most part, are considered of Arab descent. That is their ethnicity. By the same token, despite Russia being on the Asian continent by most maps, they are considered European / caucasian, not Asian.

[bernaldiaz]

Bernaldiaz,

African-American is considered an ethnicity, not a geographic distinction. For example, there are white people in South Africa. When they apply to law school, they are not considered African Americans. Their ethnicity is european.

North Africans, for the most part, are considered of Arab descent. That is their ethnicity. By the same token, despite Russia being on the Asian continent by most maps, they are considered European / caucasian, not Asian.

Thank you for the explanation. I always made that connection with countries like Egypt, but for some reason I thought of Tunisia as being more "African" if that makes any sense haha.