Hi there,
I’m writing my application for a masters in computer science as was wondering if I could get some advice as to what to include in my personal statement. Sorry if this is a bit verbose, but I kind of want to paint the whole picture.
From early 20s until late 20s I worked as a systems administrator and then started my own computer repair business. I burned out a bit on computers (this was less about computers, more about running my own business), got a degree in history and then joined the military in a technical role which rekindled my passion in computers and started programming in my free time. I now want to reenter the computer field and start with a masters in computer science.
I started at community college and took part-time classes here and there over 6 years starting in my early 20s while working full-time. Over that time I had 6 Ws out of 27 classes and one F with an ending GPA of 3.5.
I transferred from a community college and in the first semester at university I had 1 W out of 5 classes and next semester 3 Ws out of 5 classes. I made this up by taking 4 classes in the summer and then had 1 W out of 5 classes in the fall, which I made up in winter, then no more Ws for 3 more semesters. This whole time my GPA never went below 3.5 and ended up graduating with a 3.7.
During community college I wasn’t that committed and just taking part-time class because that’s what I thought I should do, but my attention was elsewhere. At university I was working and struggled to manage my time correctly while keeping my grades at a level I wanted.
So with these blemishes I’m a bit worried that it shows I over commit, lack of direction, etc, but I also have a lot of good things I can include like personal programming projects, leading large technical teams in the military, running my own business, etc. Should I include the better things in my personal statement or explanations of some of the blemishes (I only have 1 page to write it in)?