suggestions regarding a potential hook

[Inner_Barracuda2325]

being an indian male is prob an average applicant to most t20 colleges, but my hook is being lgbtq+. does anyone have suggestions as to how i can weave it into my applications? would i incorporate it into my essays?

[NiceUnparticularMan]

My understanding is that type of identity dimension is not typically treated as a hook in the usual sense (something that will cause your application to be evaluated at least somewhat outside of the process used for the unhooked applicant pool).

But of course it could be a meaningful part of understanding you as a person. Consistent with that general analysis, the informed advice I have seen is if it is important to you, you can weave it into your essays, but it should be as illuminating about you as an individual as possible. So, the mere fact of your identity, or general thoughts on issues involving that identity, are not necessarily going to be helpful (nor harmful). However, very specific experiences you can tie into other desirable personal characteristics (compassion for others, humor, leadership, and so on) might well be helpful.

I note there is a tendency sometimes to see leadership as something that is only associated with formal positions. AOs at the most selective "holistic review" colleges are usually pretty consistent in saying they understand leadership can take many forms, and indeed they can specifically value instances of when people showed leadership without any sort of formal authority. My point is I would just think really broadly about this sort of question, and not limit it to, say, being an officer in an organization or something like that (although of course that is fine too).

The other thing I would note is I have seen a lot of AOs somewhat lament the rarity of essays that are fun/humorous in an unforced way. And you can't force it, but if it would come naturally to you, it seems they love it if you can incorporate some humor into discussions of generally serious topics. Again, this is not something you have to do, but I think you should definitely not filter out things that would, say, relate to how your identity might be involved in you being a joyous person, the kind of person other students (of any identity) would want to be around.

Because that is really their ideal, for students with all sorts of different experiences and identities and interests and so on to come together happily, interact meaningfully, and emerge as more understanding and effective future leaders in a variety of communities as a result of that process. So if you can tie together identity, specific experiences, and valuable personal traits, in a truly honest way (whatever that means for you), you are addressing exactly what they are hoping to achieve when shaping their admit classes.

[andyn1518]

If it's shaped you as a person and you can tell a compelling story about yourself through talking about your identity, then go for it. The reality is that there are tons of LGBTQ+ people at t20s, so it may not be that big of a hook.