<ol>
<li>URM (Hispanic)</li>
<li>Father abandoned my mother and I.</li>
<li>Mother is mentally disabled (Collects cans)</li>
<li>Took in by my Grandparents and we all live together (6 people living in the same house, at one point it was 8)</li>
<li>Got robbed at gunpoint, by armed robbers (Was a young child)</li>
<li>First in entire family to go to a private school.</li>
<li>^^ Albeit family makes around ~25-34K a year. Only my mother works and father stays home.</li>
</ol>
<p>Don’t want to make this a sob story. I know most of this stuff is NOTHING compared to what some of the robots in this forum experience (death, living in foreign countries, curing cancer etc.)</p>
<p>Just wanted to know if these things will affect/help me in any way. Stanford is my dream.</p>
<p>And yes I’m fine (mentally), IDK what exactly my "mother (I call her by first name, I didn’t know she was my biological mother until years later) has. It’s some sort of learning disability/autism.</p>
<p>URM helps with admissions. I don’t believe the others count as hooks.</p>
<p>^^^^^^ Low Income doesn’t help?</p>
<p>Have you considered Questbridge?</p>
<p>@Bublubu
No, but my first impression of it (am on the website) is that it’s extremely hard to get into.
And does it help in the Stanford admissions?
I’m only a sophomore, can I already get into said program?
Care to go a little more into detail (don’t know much about QuestBridge).</p>
<p>Thanks for your feedback.</p>
<p>Yes, all of those “hooks” could help you in the admissions process, but the one item that you did not mention was a strong academic profile. Having worked in admissions at Ivy and other elite schools for over 25 years, I can tell you that the admissions office receives many applications from students who have compelling stories. The question is not about what has happened in your life, the question is how have these events shaped your life? I know that you have some time before you apply to college, so don’t over-think your life at this point, just live it.</p>
<p>I know you need to have a strong academic background, things like E.C. and things that set you apart from others.</p>
<p>I didn’t mention any because I barely started my Sophomore year, and don’t have anything much to say.</p>
<p>I just wanted to know how much said factors would help me in the admissions process.</p>
<p>And the ways that these events have shaped my life, would it be a good idea to write about them in my essay?</p>
<p>I wish I couldn’t over think about my life, just want to make my parents proud and get a great education, and then get a great job. ^.^</p>
<p>They will definitely give you a compelling essay to write about how your experiences have impacted you for the better. However it’s Stanford, so pretty much no one can count on getting in, regardless of your background/EC’s/grades/scores. Work hard the next few years, and try not to spend too much time obsessing over these sites (it will stress you out) and you will be fine :)</p>