OIE section help!!

[marykatemkay]

by no means did i grow up underserved or experiencing things like food or housing insecurity. my dad saved early for my tuition + a handful of academic scholarships meant i didn't have to worry about that, but my family did experience financial strain (health problems, deaths in the family during pandemic) when i started college so i had to work a few part-time jobs throughout the 4 years to finance my cost of living. my aunt also passed about a month before my mcat which was... tough to put it simply.

would it be appropriate to talk about these events in the OIE section or is it just going to come off as looking for pity points? ik some schools have secondaries that would allow me to mention these things, so i'm a bit hesitant

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[Mr.Smile12]

Metaphor

The Weather on Your Application Journey - SDN

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[LindaAccepted]

by no means did i grow up underserved or experiencing things like food or housing insecurity. my dad saved early for my tuition + a handful of academic scholarships meant i didn't have to worry about that, but my family did experience financial strain (health problems, deaths in the family during pandemic) when i started college so i had to work a few part-time jobs throughout the 4 years to finance my cost of living. my aunt also passed about a month before my mcat which was... tough to put it simply.

would it be appropriate to talk about these events in the OIE section or is it just going to come off as looking for pity points? ik some schools have secondaries that would allow me to mention these things, so i'm a bit hesitant

It depends what you say. How did these experiences impact you other than forcing you to have some part-time jobs while in college.

 

[marykatemkay]

It depends what you say. How did these experiences impact you other than forcing you to have some part-time jobs while in college.

I was going to write about how it decreased how many hours I had in the day for sleep and coursework. I was pressured to keep my spending within the limits of what I was earning, which meant couponing and sacrificing social events. For my aunt's passing, I had to take care of my brother while my parents were in Korea, while studying for the MCAT and working full-time. So i was going to use these to discuss how I developed discipline and gained the confidence in myself to stay resilient during challenging situations.