Too "excuse-y?"

WouldYouKindly
Wed, 05 Aug 2015 21:01:33 +0000

I wrote one of my essays about a hardship which was a syndrome I was born with. I chose it because it was one of the most definitive things about me and affected pretty much every aspect of my life. I used the essay as a way to show how I persevered through that medical condition and how it came to be one of the most treasured parts of myself because it taught me determination and compassion even though it kept me from participating in extracurriculars among other things.

Essays about a struggle can shine a lot of light on who you are, but I think that (if you choose to write about one) you should write about the positives and keep anything that could be perceived as a sob story to a bare minimum. My “positive hardship” essay didn’t seem to hurt me as I got into all of the schools I applied to.

I would do some research into the particular subject matter you might write about. I’ve seen a lot of people say that eating disorders and mental illnesses can sometimes raise red flags with schools. This isn’t something I agree with, but I’d look into it. Good luck.