Optional Essays...Unique Circumstances...Should I do those?

[fuzzywuz]

Hey all,

Here is my dilemma. I'm currently working on the Penn app and one of the question is optional. They want to know if there are any unique circumstances to consider on your app.

I was thinking of either talking about the semester that I performed very poorly GPA-wise or skipping it.

I really don't want to draw attention to that grade discrepancy. At the same time, I don't want it to go unaddressed just in case they look at it and just shove my app aside. Besides that single semester of poor grades (3.15 science), I've had a super upward trend since.

Any ideas?

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[ar2388]

was there a legit reaon for the poor grades?

 

[fuzzywuz]

Would this be legit...

I transferred from my first college to an Ivy league school. It meant being away from home the first time in my life. Also, during my first semester there, I took 3 science classes...orgo, physio, health and nutrition.

Does that count? I was struggling to adapt to the intense competition and being away from home because I needed to take care of myself and stuff.

 

[fuzzywuz]

Personally, that isn't an excuse to do poorly. But it was a legit reason (from my perspective) for my poor performance. My GPA dipped from 3.5 down to a 3.0 (frosh to sophomore year) bringing my cGPA down to a ~3.2-3.3

 

[student1799]

I was thinking of either talking about the semester that I performed very poorly GPA-wise or skipping it.

I really don't want to draw attention to that grade discrepancy. At the same time, I don't want it to go unaddressed just in case they look at it and just shove my app aside.

Trust me, they'll notice this no matter what you do, so you might as well offer an explanation--but it had better be convincing. (I.e. no "I had the flu and my grandmother died" stuff. Even if that's what really happened, it's seen as a cliche and no one wants to hear it.)

Briefly explain what went wrong, but concentrate on describing how you dealt with it and what you learned from the experience. (You emerged from this difficult period with even more resolve to excel, blah blah blah.) The idea is to spin this as a character building experience, not just offer excuses as to why you screwed up.

Keep the whole thing pretty short and succinct. Yes, you do need to talk about this period, but if you write TOO much, it will run the risk of overemphasizing it in the minds of those reading your application.

 

[Diksha]

The thing is, "Unique circumstances" are not necessarily negative circumstances. I don't know how this would go down, but you can perhaps give it a try: write about the experience of transferring to an Ivy League, talking about the difference in your social group, the campus culture, the professors, etc. You can briefly mention the GPA in passing; maybe you can say "Even though at first I struggled, I eventually blah blah blah." If you go about it like this, you de-emphasize the negative aspect (your GPA going down) and emphasize the fact that you entered a new challenging environment.

What do you think?

 

[fuzzywuz]

all of these are such good advice...

 

[olivesolivia]

Fill up the space! I say the more you can complete on your app, the better (but I agree with student1799 about not writing too much and keeping it concise). Personally, I think it will make you stand out above those who didn't fill it out because you actually took the time to write another essay (no matter how small)! I think leaving any field blank is a bad idea when you are going up against thousands of other awesomely-qualified applicants!

 

[SarsMO]

Fill up the space! I say the more you can complete on your app, the better (but I agree with student1799 about not writing too much and keeping it concise). Personally, I think it will make you stand out above those who didn't fill it out because you actually took the time to write another essay (no matter how small)! I think leaving any field blank is a bad idea when you are going up against thousands of other awesomely-qualified applicants!

I disagree to an extent. If you have something different/important to say in an optional essay you should. If you don't, you shouldn't bull**** the adcoms. They have SO many essays to read that you might really bore/annoy them with another "I want to attend School X because of A, B and C," optional essay.

I left a lot of secondary essays blank because I didn't have anything to say to answer their questions in a way that would make me appear to be a better applicant to them. Ask yourself, "Does this essay enhance my application? Does it make me unique? Would Adcoms want to hear about this?"

I think a discriminating eye is important!!

 

[Retsage]

Fill up the space! I say the more you can complete on your app, the better (but I agree with student1799 about not writing too much and keeping it concise). Personally, I think it will make you stand out above those who didn't fill it out because you actually took the time to write another essay (no matter how small)! I think leaving any field blank is a bad idea when you are going up against thousands of other awesomely-qualified applicants!

Lol. Oh yes, I'm sure filling out sections pointlessly will make you a standout star. Especially after the adcoms have read 1000 other applications and are exhausted by the rather grueling process. It's definitely in your best interests to annoy them and waste their time.

 

[fuzzywuz]

Thanks for the input. I will consult with my adviser tomorrow.

Thanks all!

 

[Jolie South]

IMO, I wouldn't put that on there.

drawing attention to the negative parts of your app in general isn't a good idea. a lot of people have these situations arise. as long as you got out of it and ended up with an ok gpa, i don't really see a need for explanation.

if you have anything else that's interesting or unique about you, mention it.

 

[JoJo23497]

I feel you definitely should explain your poor performance during that semester/quarter.

Here are some quotes from real med school Adcom's from my Barron's Med School Essays book:

"If there is a hole or gap that appears in another part of the application, we will look to the statement to provide an explanation. If one is not provided, we start guessing. Anything the candidate provides is bound to be better than what we hypothesize in its absence."

"Explaining a bad grade or even a bad semester can be done with finesse. I would never give staying away from that as blanket advice. But, please, just don't whine while you're doing it."

"Using the essay to make excuses for your overall poor record isn't a good way to get ahead. We don't need to hear about the professor who "had a problem with you," or how your organic chemistry professor "wasn't from America." These types of statements speak volumes about a person's character."

Those essays are really good to put a positive spin on your character, like other ppl have already mentioned. I'm still answering as many optional essay questions about unique circumstances as I can, even though I don't come from a disadvantaged background or anything. Read the post about the non-disadvantaged, white girl in the Washington University in St. Louis thread who used these essays to describe her experiences in Africa in overcoming tough obstacles.

While most other people left the *optional essay* blank, I feel that she used it to her advantage to show another facet of her character.

Hope that helps,

Cheers!

 

[fuzzywuz]

Hey everybody,

Thanks for the great input. I spoke with the main premed advisor of my school yesterday and here is what I got.

Basically, I asked her the same question I asked you guys. Prior to giving me an answer, she wanted me to explain my situation. I told her my grades by year and by semester, and my academic history (including my transfer year).

Her response to me was that I should NOT use the space to elaborate on the grade discrepancy. In fact, she told me my grade is quite typical. As a transfer student to the school, it is quite common for the GPA to take a dip. She went on by saying that my later semesters showed drastic improvements. If the adcom looked at my AMCAS, they would be able to spot what went wrong. Her final message was that I should elaborate my negatives unless it was REALLY REALLY bad..

Anyway, I hope this helps. I got my answer and really appreciate all of your inputs!

 

[pianola]

I had your exact same dilemma, but I think it depends on a few things:

(1) How did you do in the other academic semester that year? If you did well the other semester, then just forget about the bad semester.
(2) What was the breakdown of your 3.15? -- if there are Cs, you might wish to try explaining them, otherwise, I'd probably let it go.
(3) How convincing/effective is your explanation? I'd say switching schools isn't a great one, since many of us (myself included) moved 3500 miles away to start our undergraduate institution at the ripe old age of 18. Not that it wasn't difficult for me -- it most definitely was. But I'm just saying, the explanation isn't exactly "unique." Also, schools will be able to tell from your transcripts that your year was continued at another institution.
(4) Just realize, in the end, one bad semester isn't going to hurt you THAT much. A bad year will possibly do so, but a bad semester most definitely will not hurt you.

Overall, I would avoid calling attention to it if I were you. If asked directly about it, simply explain what happened and try to emphasize what you have learned from the experience. I get the feeling many schools may not like 'over-explainers' if you know what I mean...

Good luck. I'm sure you'll be fine no matter what you decide. But that's just my take on the matter. A 3.15 isn't so bad if it's only one semester.