Do colleges like "sob stories"?

AroundHere
Thu, 23 Mar 2017 16:41:24 +0000

Definitely never, ever a “sob story.” A college essay should be a “feel good story.”

You want the reader to say “wow, I want to meet that kid!” not “oh, poor kid, he’s had such a hard life…”

Note that “wow, I want to meet that kid” means showing that you have intelligence, personality, positive character traits, etc. It’s not incompatible with having had to overcome a difficulty, but a sob story is never a requirement. In fact, it can be a hurdle to overcome where the sob story makes it harder to show what colleges are really looking for.

If your dad’s conditions have caused you to have lower grades, it should be mentioned briefly in the counselor’s letter (preferred) or in the additional information section (if your counselor doesn’t write letters or doesn’t personalize them much). They do not have to be part of an entire essay.