Disadvantaged essay

[D and D]

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Hi all-

I have been done with my app for a couple of weeks now, but have yet to submit because I keep on going back to my disadvantaged essay.

For me this essay (paragraph really) is the spot to mention environmental, educational, and economic disadvantages I grew up with, and this post is not to ask whether or not I am disadvantaged - I have already decided to click yes and after telling others my story most wonder why I would even question it.

My real problem is expressing these pieces of my upbringing in a way that doesn't sound like a sob story. The character limit is so small that I can't really elaborate on much, I feel like I'm just listing horrible things in my life... did anyone who wrote a disadvantaged essay feel like they got their story across without violins playing in the background??

 

[FSAP]

I had the same problem. Just talked about general things, no personal stories of people getting shot on my street.

 

[Lacheln]

So, so, so many people wonder about this, and it makes me kind of sad. Facts != a sob story. They don't give you room for a narrative, and from the feedback I received they are not looking for one. Just explain the facts and leave the interpretation to them.

 

[Ilovewater]

In my essay, I talked about hardships growing up. I don't think it sounded like a whiny sob story. People who proofread my essay actually really liked that paragraph. You just have to write the facts...how those experiences affect you and what you have become due to those events. Don't write in a way that sounds like you are asking for pity if you know what I mean. Hope that helps!

 

[Sandey]

I mentioned the disadvantages and hardships and how they drove me to medicine and what I learned from them and how they shape my desire to be a doctor. i diddnt dwell on the instances, just a quick mention and what i learned. Hope that helps.

 

[AdemTD]

I basically just bullet pointed 3 things that I feel make me disadvantaged with a very brief description. My personal statement further illustrates my disadvantaged status.

 

[D and D]

Thanks everyone for your replies, it's reassuring to hear that other people had the same difficulties but were still able to write a good essay. I'll continue working on mine.

 

[D and D]

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[WhizoMD]

I continue adding and then deleting the fact that I was in a gang... I don't have room to explain how I turned around, and I'm not sure if it's ok to just state something like that with no explanation.

if you don't have a criminal record, I don't think you should mention it. Since being in a gang almost always implies illegal activity, you'd essentially be outing yourself without having to.

 

[FeatherPen]

Okay, so medical schools want to offer special opportunities to those with disadvantaged backgrounds.

Although these policies stem from altruism, you must remember that there is a bottom line being met. This "bottom line" is met by hard facts that are provided elsewhere on your application (income, location of upbringing, household situation, etc.).

You earned this opportunity day-by-day as you grew up. You have nothing that you need to prove to the adcoms that is not evidenced elsewhere. It is true that being in a gang makes you that much more unique. It speaks to the desperation of your past situation. While it displays evidence of misconduct, causing their imaginations to run wild, your membership to a gang doesn't translate to meeting their bottom line.

As you think about whether or not your essay is a sob story, remember why you are writing your essay. You have made it to the point where you are applying for medical school. Let the violins play if that is your story. No one will accuse you of trying to make people feel sorry for you.

 

[LizzyM]

Okay, so medical schools want to offer special opportunities to those with disadvantaged backgrounds.

As I understand it, schools are trying to give some consideration to the background which some students brought to college. Not everyone had the SAT prep, summer camp, Leadership Forum, world travel, music and dance lessons, sailing lessons, tennis lessons, private tutors, and ample opporunities to learn about careers in law, medicine, etc from family and neighbors. Some students made it to college despite parents with no prior college experience themselves and schools where the guidance counselors had minimal experience with students aspiring to attend 4 year colleges.

When a student with that "disadvantage" makes it to and through a four-year college program, a medical school wants to take into account that the student may not have hit the ground running, may have had a rocky start, may have had to work harder in the classroom to catch up with students who went to more academically challenging high schools, and to work outside of the classroom to be able to afford college.