In this article, author Annie Nguyen describes her personal encounters with the "Model Minority Myth" as a young Vietnamese American in a doctoral program. This myth assumes that all Asian Americans are inherently smart and high achieving, which is problematic when in fact there are many Asian American individuals who perform poorly. Since its emergence in the mid-1960s, scholars and researchers have studied and written expansively about the Model Minority Myth. Asian Americans are viewed as one cohesive unit that is successful and hardworking and points to the belief that racism no longer an obstacle to success (Pang, Han, & Pang, 2011). This image of the model minority is greatly supported by research and data comparing achievement and attainment levels of Asian Americans to other racial groups. However, the data in these studies often aggregate Asian Americans under one large pan-ethnic umbrella ignoring the fact that a wide variance in levels of educational attainment occurs among different Asian ethnic groups (Lee, 1996; Ngo & Lee, 2007). The Model Minority Myth advances the view that Asian Americans have successfully assimilated into mainstream society (Pang et al., 2011). In addition, the stereotype produces a trend of discrimination and prejudice that acts as a barrier for Asian Americans students to overcome in schools and society in order to have their needs met (Lee, 1996; Lew, 2006; Pang, 1990; Pang & Cheng, 1998). This is characterized by teachers and school agents overlooking Asian American students due to their biased views and beliefs that these students are all high performing and do not need support such as tutoring (Chang & Sue, 2003). The Model Minority Myth also pits Asian Americans against other students of color and reinforces the messages that student equality in society is achievable through hard work and individual merit (Pang, 1990). Herein Nguyen discusses Vietnamese Americans in relation to their immigration history, her personal experiences with the Model Minority Myth throughout high school and college, and the impact stereotypes and assumptions about Asian Americans had on her academic years and overall self-perception.