Discussing Sensitive Topic (Abuse/Grooming) in Common App Essay

8wolves
Sun, 01 Aug 2021 23:17:32 +0000

Was just wondering how taboo it might be to bring up an experience (from 9th grade) involving grooming and sexual abuse in my common app essay.

The essay itself isn’t about that particular experience; it’s about my novel (the reasoning for writing it, the process, and of course, how it’s affected me as a person – positively). The plot of my novel involves grief, mental health in general, and trauma to an extent, so it’s difficult for me not to mention my personal experience that inspired my work. That said, I would really hate to come off as wanting “pity points” or overly sappy.

And even if I only mention it briefly, will the mere topic immediately irk admissions counselors or make them think I’m not qualified?

Even mentioning the plot of my novel worries me now, since I’ve heard that college admissions counselors might think a student won’t be able to handle university if they bring up mental health issues.