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My child is a junior in HS and is considering applying to an ivy-league school (Brown) ED this fall. SAT I 1480, 800 SAT II writing, in top 10% at small school, taking hardest schedule there, good ECs. She is also an American Indian. I have some questions -- first, obviously, does anyone have any thoughts on her chances, assuming good essays and recs? Second, she is interested in majoring in Classics (has taken a lot of Latin) -- any advice on whether/how to approach the Classics dept at Brown? what should she say if she calls/e-mails them? Third, she is registered with her tribe and has done some volunteer work with them, but other than her tribal membership is there any other documentation of American Indian heritage or connections to the tribe the college will ask for? Thanks for any and all help!!

By Res ipsa on Thursday, April 25, 2002 - 01:47 pm: Edit

Some of the top schools have admissions officers whose focus is to recruit URMs. You should contact Brown's and ask for specifics because it probably varies from school to school. Good luck.

By StressedOut on Friday, April 26, 2002 - 12:38 pm: Edit

You know, I've never understood how people go about contacting minority admissions officers. Should she just call and say Hi, I'm an American Indian student interested in applying to your school? Shouldn't she have some specific questions, and if so, what should they be? Sorry if these seem like ignorant questions, I just don't understand what exactly a potential applicant discusses, and what reason she would give for calling the minority adcom specifically.

By Res ipsa on Friday, April 26, 2002 - 03:58 pm: Edit

I think they're very reasonable questions. I would first check the website to see if there is anyone in a position specializing in URM recruitment. If not, call and ask the receptionsit. If there's none, ask to speak to the representative assigned to your region. Pose your question pretty much as you've done here, "other than her tribal membership is there any other documentation of American Indian heritage or connections to the tribe" you will expect? I anticipate a straightforward reply with detailed instructions and hope that you'll post about the exchange and outcome here.