Personal History Statement

[Chenelsea3]

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One of my programs asks for a "Personal History" statement about how you've overcome obstacles to get where you are. I am not quite sure how to go about this given that I fortunately haven't had any significant obstacles to overcome. I'm a white, lower middle class female, the same as about 70% of psychology PhDs. Neither I nor anyone in my family suffers from any serious illness or disability. I worked to put myself through college, but who didn't? I don't know how to answer this without sounding like I feel sorry for myself, or like I'm fishing for something
Any advice?

 

[mll03]

Even the most average middle class person is going to have had some kind of experience that molded them and led them on the path that they decided to pursue. I have lots of issues that make answering those kinds of questions easy, but you seem to be addressing it the wrong way. Why did are you going into psychology? Were there any decisions you made in life that altered the path you are on?

And no, not everyone works their way through college, although that isn't necessarily an obstacle. Unless every door has opened for you immediately without any kind of effort then you have had obstacles to get over. It does not necessarily have to be a woe is me essay, I have something similar and it is more so a this is who I am and why.

 

[applebottom]

If you're referring to Berkeley, the prompt also asks you to discuss experiences that helped you understand the barriers faced by others, how you've worked to make higher education more accessible to underserved populations, your leadership or research experience with underserved populations, etc. Since I, like you, am lucky to have not faced a whole lot of obstacles, I focused primarily on these parts of the prompt. Best of luck!

 

[jenn1015]

I have to write something similar for UCSB:

Please describe any aspects of your personal background, accomplishments, or achievements that you feel are important in evaluating your application for graduate study. For example, please describe if you have experienced economic challenges in achieving higher education, such as being financially responsible for family members or dependents, having to work significant hours during undergraduate schooling or coming from a family background of limited income. Please describe if you have any unusual or varied life experiences that might contribute to the diversity of the graduate group, such as fluency in other languages, experience living in bicultural communities...


Same for me: I'm white, middle class, worked through college but not in order to attend...

I've traveled a lot- been to China, volunteered for a mo in New Zealand, and toured Europe- but it's not like I taught English in Africa or South Korea.

I did have a few pretty traumatic experiences growing up, but I'm having a hard time figuring out how to spin this w/o sounding too 'woe is me'.

Suggestions?