| Every business owner that applies for SBA 8a | | | | 2. Service disabled veterans |
| certification must prepare a disadvantage | | | | 3. Non-designated minorities - persons with origins |
| narrative as part of their application. How do you | | | | from countries not recognized as "designated". |
| determine which type of narrative to prepare? | | | | Some examples could include: Turkey, Palestine, |
| Here are some tips to determining which narrative | | | | Middle Eastern countries. Which narrative do other |
| you need to prepare. | | | | group members prepare? Since members of |
| Eligible applicants for SBA 8a certification fit into | | | | other groups are not considered socially |
| two categories: designated groups or other. | | | | disadvantaged by the SBA, they are responsible |
| Designated groups are US citizens who are | | | | for preparing both social and economic |
| currently comprised of these five minority | | | | disadvantage narratives. |
| categories: | | | | What types of information does the social |
| | | | disadvantage narrative contain? Your social |
| 1. Black Americans | | | | narrative should include incidents of personal and |
| 2. Hispanic Americans | | | | professional discrimination and harassment from |
| 3. Native Americans (include:American Indians, | | | | Personal Experiences, Education, Career and |
| Eskimos, Aleuts, and Native Hawaiians) | | | | Business History. |
| 4. Asian Pacific Americans (persons with origins | | | | What types of information does the economic |
| from Japan, China, the Philippines, Vietnam, Korea, | | | | disadvantage narrative contain? Your economic |
| Samoa, Guam, U.S. Trust Territory of the Pacific | | | | narrative should include incidents of personal and |
| Islands [Republic of Palau], Commonwealth of the | | | | professional discrimination and harassment from |
| Northern Mariana Islands, Laos, Cambodia | | | | Education, Career and Business History. |
| [Kampuchea], Taiwan; Burma, Thailand, Malaysia, | | | | Another important aspect is to only include |
| Indonesia, Singapore, Brunei, Republic of the | | | | incidents that have occurred in the US. For |
| Marshall Islands, Federated States of Micronesia, | | | | example if you were born and educated in a |
| Macao, Hong Kong, Fiji, Tonga, Kiribati, Tuvalu, or | | | | foreign country, the SBA 8a Review Team does |
| Nauru | | | | not take into account these incidents. |
| 5. Subcontinent Asian Americans (persons with | | | | When the SBA expects you to deliver both a |
| origins from India, Pakistan, Bangladesh, Sri Lanka, | | | | social and economic narrative, however it does |
| Bhutan, the Maldives Islands or Nepal) Which | | | | not have to be two documents. You can prepare |
| narrative do designated group members prepare? | | | | one document that addresses both requirements. |
| Since members of designated groups are | | | | How long should the narrative be? Your narrative |
| considered socially disadvantaged by the SBA, | | | | should reflect as many related incidents that you |
| they are responsible for only submitting economic | | | | have experienced. Our client narratives are |
| narratives. | | | | typically five to nine pages long, however this |
| Other groups are US citizens who could be: | | | | past year, we delivered a 20-page narrative. This |
| | | | was the exception, not the rule. Narrative length |
| 1. Women | | | | really depends upon your experiences. |