Parental Absence in Additional Information

Now that the pandemic has subsided, my parents’ work has required them to be absent from home for days or weeks at a time. I estimate at least one parent is gone about 33% (or 10 days) per month.

This has put additional burdens on me in caring for the house and has limited the flexibility in my schedule. This has often forced me to set aside my work - lowering some grades - and prevented me from taking on additional extra-curriculars.

Is this something I should mention in the additional information section? If so, how should I present it?

Yes, explain this in addt’l info….short and just the facts. You should also add Family Responsibilities as an activity in the Activities section with the appropriate estimate of hours each week.

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Thanks a lot, but I was wondering if it would be worth adding that activity if I have other activities that show more impact/leadership?

I’m sure many individuals, regardless of whether their parents are in the house, have chores; the only difference is that I had to undertake these responsibilities more often and for a larger scope of activities. So, I’m not sure if it’s worth listing beyond the additional info section and into the activities.

Also, I suppose there’s the emotional aspect of being isolated for so long that I’m on the edge of including. Given that going to college is all about independence, I’m not sure if saying “I couldn’t excel due to them being gone” is a good thing to advertise.

Yeah, a lot of kids have parents who aren’t around much. I wouldn’t bring it up if it were me.

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Yeah, I wouldn’t say it that way. I would just say that their absence led to increased responsibilities in the home that sometimes hindered your ability to focus fully on your studies or something to that effect. But I wouldn’t delve too much into that - if you simply describe the situation (my parents’ work requires them to be out of town for a third of the month and during their absence I am soley responsible for running the household including preparing all meals, doing laundry, sorting mail and bills, x, y, z…). If you give that sort of description, the AO will be able to fill in the blanks without you sounding like you’re making excuses or unable to function independently. They will understand from your description of the situation.

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It’s up to you what you want to share and how you want to share it. Family responsibilities are compelling Activities to many admissions readers. IMO, being President of some club with a one hour per week commitment is lesser in terms of impact than weekly family responsibilities (to take just one example). It’s up to you how to show it, if you only put it in Addt’l Info, make sure to include how many hours per week you spend on them. Anything you write in that section will take up room that you could use to communicate something else.

I wouldn’t say something like this either, nor would I say these activities impacted your ability to study or do other ECs…I promise you admissions readers get it. Just the facts: I have family responsibilities (can list them but don’t have to e.g., driving siblings, shopping for groceries, cooking meals, doing laundry) that I spend XX hours per week doing.

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I would have the GC talk about your situation to put things more into perspective

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That could be an option too, and if the OP wants to connect family responsibilities to lower grades (which I don’t recommend in many cases), having the HS counselor address that is a must (assuming they are sending an LoR, which many don’t).

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Just curious, but why would not not recommend connecting family responsibilities to grades?

If I don’t include it or present it properly, I just fear that the drop in my grades will be attributed instead to my own lack of motivation, inability to handle course rigor, etc.

this is the reason why your counselor would be the one to address this situation. Unfortunately, many students are not good at articulating this without sounding as if they are making excuses.

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Exactly. Not to mention, many students do have family responsibilities, or jobs, or other time consuming ECs whose grades don’t suffer.

OP, is your HS counselor writing an LoR for you? Have you spoken with them about how to cover this in your app and their LoR?

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Exactly. Not to mention, many students do have family responsibilities, or jobs, or other time consuming ECs whose grades don’t suffer.

Right, so I’m not even sure if my circumstances would really hold weight in the eyes of the AO despite 1/3 of the month still being pretty significant. At the same time, though, it’s probably better to articulate it than for them to think the worst.

Would you know how prominent the grade drop would have to be for it to be worth mentioning?

OP, is your HS counselor writing an LoR for you? Have you spoken with them about how to cover this in your app and their LoR?

I’m actually not a senior, so I’m not writing apps currently and haven’t needed to see my GC. Would it be a good idea to reach out now? How would I do that?

As noted above…many kids have a parent who travels and sometimes extensively for business reasons. Where we live, that is actually very common.

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I don’t know how things work at your HS. What year are you? Have you met your counselor?

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2nd year. We have two counselors and I’ve met with one several times in the past but over other topics. She’s been pretty receptive to my concerns in the past.

If I were an AO, I would roll my eyes if I got a story like that. A lot of kids’ parents are gone a lot. My dad was.

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Ah, I see. Did it not impact your academics or involvement in extracurriculars?

I would bring it up with your counselor when you start talking about college. You are just a sophomore, so you have a long way to go. Do your best to get good grades, and don’t worry that you can’t join as many ECs as you might like. If your family responsibilities are so great that you are getting behind in your school work, you might discuss that with your parents. Good luck.

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