Personal Statement HELP!!!

[statement]

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So I'm starting to write my personal statement, but I have a delicate situation here.

I did a double major in college: Psychology and Egineering. I did psyc first, finished it, then started engineering classes.

Now before I started college I had encoutered some very serious problems in my personal life which were beyond my control. Seriously - I could write a book. These problems continued throughout college, and while I was doing my psych classes I suffered from depresssion, which DEF effected my academic performance.

I wouldn't say that I am inherently a depressed person, rather my depression was a natural reaction to the situations I had and was still dealing with.

Around the time I started Engineering I also started seeing a therapist, and for the first time in my life I began facing my troubles head on. Coupled with the healthy environment I found among my peers and professors in the Engineering dept, I suddenly became emotionally healthy and developed a very independant and ambitious attitude.

So how does all this figure into my dental school application?

Well my cumulative GPA is 2.937
My Pre-Eng GPA is 2.561
My Post Eng GPA is 3.317

I did all the calculations and am still awaiting results of my last semester which ended this week.

So I am trying to write my personal statement, and I don't know what is considered too personal. I'd like to explain the "dark period" of my life as I have now come to call it. But I don't know how much detail to provide.

Should I actually say the events, as disturbing and personal as they may be?

Or should I simply sum it all up as "extenuating circumstances" or something of the sort?

I'm so confused about this!!! 😕

 

[SirShagaLot]

So I'm starting to write my personal statement, but I have a delicate situation here.

I did a double major in college: Psychology and Egineering. I did psyc first, finished it, then started engineering classes.

Now before I started college I had encoutered some very serious problems in my personal life which were beyond my control. Seriously - I could write a book. These problems continued throughout college, and while I was doing my psych classes I suffered from depresssion, which DEF effected my academic performance.

I wouldn't say that I am inherently a depressed person, rather my depression was a natural reaction to the situations I had and was still dealing with.

Around the time I started Engineering I also started seeing a therapist, and for the first time in my life I began facing my troubles head on. Coupled with the healthy environment I found among my peers and professors in the Engineering dept, I suddenly became emotionally healthy and developed a very independant and ambitious attitude.

So how does all this figure into my dental school application?

Well my cumulative GPA is 2.937
My Pre-Eng GPA is 2.561
My Post Eng GPA is 3.317

I did all the calculations and am still awaiting results of my last semester which ended this week.

So I am trying to write my personal statement, and I don't know what is considered too personal. I'd like to explain the "dark period" of my life as I have now come to call it. But I don't know how much detail to provide.

Should I actually say the events, as disturbing and personal as they may be?

Or should I simply sum it all up as "extenuating circumstances" or something of the sort?

I'm so confused about this!!! 😕

Im not sure what to tell u, in the end its all about how u say it. I can really relate to ur situation...i had a similar situation revolving around the death of 4 people very close to me....this did not occur all at once, it occured over the course of 4 years...consequently the 4 years i was in college. I never mentioned this in my personal statement, but i did talk about it in my interview when my grades were questioned and it was not a good situation, i think the adcomms thought i was looking for their pitty but i wasn't...i just simply explained the facts, regardless of what they thought, i was being entirely honest...anyways, it was the ****tiest interview ever...quite frankly, i dont reccomend mentioning it unless u asked why ur grades fluctuated so much...i def. wouldn't directly mention it on ur personal statement..mabye like u said, unusual circumstances or something like that....i dont know..good luck.
😎

 

[golfmontpoker]

Im not sure what to tell u, in the end its all about how u say it. I can really relate to ur situation...i had a similar situation revolving around the death of 4 people very close to me....this did not occur all at once, it occured over the course of 4 years...consequently the 4 years i was in college. I never mentioned this in my personal statement, but i did talk about it in my interview when my grades were questioned and it was not a good situation, i think the adcomms thought i was looking for their pitty but i wasn't...i just simply explained the facts, regardless of what they thought, i was being entirely honest...anyways, it was the ****tiest interview ever...quite frankly, i dont reccomend mentioning it unless u asked why ur grades fluctuated so much...i def. wouldn't directly mention it on ur personal statement..mabye like u said, unusual circumstances or something like that....i dont know..good luck.
😎

I dont know, i would definately mention it. Just in a sentence or 2, no more then that... Dont make your entire PS revolve around it, just mention it

 

[SirShagaLot]

As u can tell by the length of this thread, it's something no one really wants to talk about (or they can't relate). This kind of stuff is sensitive, thats why I found for my self its best not to mention........u roll with ur own flow though, i'm just putting my 2 cents in.

😎

 

[mellowt]

Thats a hard decision to decide. Seems to me that after undergrad, any personal hardship you might have faced seems like an excuse to some ad com or interviewers. This is probably because they can't relate to your experiences as most people would probably have a hard time doing.

If you decide to discuss it, I say you discuss it with confidence and no embellishment or sign of the problem lingering. It'll show them that you went through a tough time but that you became a stronger and more intelligent individual for it. Just my two cents too.

 

[SirShagaLot]

Thats a hard decision to decide. Seems to me that after undergrad, any personal hardship you might have faced seems like an excuse to some ad com or interviewers. This is probably because they can't relate to your experiences as most people would probably have a hard time doing.

If you decide to discuss it, I say you discuss it with confidence and no embellishment or sign of the problem lingering. It'll show them that you went through a tough time but that you became a stronger and more intelligent individual for it. Just my two cents too.

exactly, thats a tuff statement 😎

 

[DMD-2-B]

exactly, thats a tuff statement 😎

i dont think they need specifics! just be a little vague. they'll be keen enough to understand that it's probably a delicate matter and since it seems like you are being sincere, that too will probably come across.

if you lay it all out on the table, you run the risk of appearing like you are making excuses, still unresolved, or overly intense emotionally. these are very ambiguous areas, which you wanna stay clear of!

 

[martinelli]

To the OP, I would avoid mentioning it unless you have nothing else to talk about in your PS. Your PS is your chance to tell the adcom how you became interested in dentistry and not a good place to relay your past personal hardships. The thing with adcom is that they will empathize if those hardships were socially and economically related (something that you usually don't have control over) but when they are emotional, adcoms will most likely dismiss them as excuses. Sorry to be so blunt but I think you will come off as a better candidate if you focus more on your interest in dentistry.

 

[speedy3816]

just try to focus your ps mostly on WHY it is that you want to pursue dentistry as a career... sorry that i cant relate very much or offer to much advice. good luck!

speedy

 

[speedy3816]

To the OP, I would avoid mentioning it unless you have nothing else to talk about in your PS. Your PS is your chance to tell the adcom how you became interested in dentistry and not a good place to relay your past personal hardships. The thing with adcom is that they will empathize if those hardships were socially and economically related (something that you usually don't have control over) but when they are emotional, adcoms will most likely dismiss them as excuses. Sorry to be so blunt but I think you will come off as a better candidate if you focus more on your interest in dentistry.

i just saw this after i posted...

good post

 

[CatsLover]

I definitely wouldn't talk about the topic of depression to the ad.com because unfortunately, there will be bias and pre-judgment about how such a mental state can interfere with your academic performance. It would be better to talk about "how" you "overcome" your hardship and conquer the obstacles in your path rather than focusing on the emotional part of the situation. Best of luck to you!

 

[phremius]

I personally wouldn't mention depression. I would discuss difficult circumstances thereof but any personal/private emotions i'd keep to myself. But that's just me.