Diversity Essay Topic

[starlite911]

I've done some research into old threads on this topic, but I was curious as to which would lead to a better diversity essay, although I know a lot of that has to do with how I spin it.

1). Experience as a patient--I have a chronic medical condition, which I mention in passing in my PS. Nothing too serious, but it has allowed me to interact with health care from a variety of different providers and specialities first hand, which is probably not super common.

2). Experience with Catholicism--I grew up in a Catholic family and have attended Catholic school my entire life, but I am socially liberal and was involved with extracurriculars supporting such causes. I know being Catholic in a Catholic setting is basically the opposite of diversity, but given my different beliefs, I thought this could be an interesting viewpoint to address.

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[ndafife]

A diversity essay should show how you can interact with other cultures. Your first one is definitely not a diversity essay. So you have to spin the 2nd then

 

[starlite911]

From the different prompts I've seen, diversity essays can really be divided into 2 subsets:

1). What makes you diverse or what you "bring to the university" and
2). Your interaction with diverse groups of people.

For this particular question, I was leaning more towards the former topic.

 

[AvacadosAtLaw]

From the different prompts I've seen, diversity essays can really be divided into 2 subsets:

1). What makes you diverse or what you "bring to the university" and
2). Your interaction with diverse groups of people.

For this particular question, I was leaning more towards the former topic.

I agree with you. I don't really know what the first responder is talking about, but most diversity essays that I know of end up falling into the category of what makes you interesting/what different viewpoint could you bring to the university. Not everyone has the chance to interact with other cultures or come from an ethnically diverse background. I think either of your topics could work. The second one may be a little more difficult because a lot of people come from a religous background. You will have to make sure you address how Catholicism has shaped you and helped you foster qualities that will be useful in med school.

 

[NeuResurgens]

Med schools realize that most applicants can't say they're a charity founder from Africa who was raised in an immigrant community. Diversity can apply to your ethnicity, your experiences with other cultures/ethnicities, other viewpoints, etc.

 

[starlite911]

Thanks for the advice! I'm trying to think about diversity more broadly, but it's difficult at times to discern what is special about my combination of experiences

 

[starlite911]

I agree with you. I don't really know what the first responder is talking about, but most diversity essays that I know of end up falling into the category of what makes you interesting/what different viewpoint could you bring to the university. Not everyone has the chance to interact with other cultures or come from an ethnically diverse background. I think either of your topics could work. The second one may be a little more difficult because a lot of people come from a religous background. You will have to make sure you address how Catholicism has shaped you and helped you foster qualities that will be useful in med school.

As far as the second topic goes, my Catholic upbringing is often at odds with my liberal social beliefs. So if I chose this topic, I was going to use it to explain how the combination of these two things has allowed me to see the merits of both sides of sensitive issues and view problems from multiple perspectives, which I believe is useful in medical school and many other fields, for that matter.

 

[Goro]

This is good
1). Experience as a patient--I have a chronic medical condition, which I mention in passing in my PS. Nothing too serious, but it has allowed me to interact with health care from a variety of different providers and specialities first hand, which is probably not super common.


This is like saying you're diverse because you have a pulse. You can do better. Try this: what would your friends say are the three most interesting things about you? If you can't answer that, delete your app from your computer.

2). Experience with Catholicism--I grew up in a Catholic family and have attended Catholic school my entire life, but I am socially liberal and was involved with extracurriculars supporting such causes. I know being Catholic in a Catholic setting is basically the opposite of diversity, but given my different beliefs, I thought this could be an interesting viewpoint to address.

 

[starlite911]

This is good
1). Experience as a patient--I have a chronic medical condition, which I mention in passing in my PS. Nothing too serious, but it has allowed me to interact with health care from a variety of different providers and specialities first hand, which is probably not super common.


This is like saying you're diverse because you have a pulse. You can do better. Try this: what would your friends say are the three most interesting things about you? If you can't answer that, delete your app from your computer.

2). Experience with Catholicism--I grew up in a Catholic family and have attended Catholic school my entire life, but I am socially liberal and was involved with extracurriculars supporting such causes. I know being Catholic in a Catholic setting is basically the opposite of diversity, but given my different beliefs, I thought this could be an interesting viewpoint to address.

Thank you for the feedback! Originally, I was trying to work the second to demonstrate how I have learned to see things from multiple viewpoints and that opinions aren't necessarily right or wrong, just different. However, I can see how that might come across as too much of a stretch.

Most of my friends think that my research is interesting or my relationship with my mother, but the former seems commonplace and the latter isn't something I would necessarily want to discuss during an interview. I'll try and write something up around the first topic!