I've finished my AMCAS application and am ready to send it in...almost. I'm conflicted over whether or not I should write the disadvantaged student essay.
To make a long story relatively short, my parents divorced when I was five, and my dad subsequently became absent from my life until 11th grade-ish. My mom developed alcoholism after the divorce and became very volatile (and incredibly abusive, but I'm not sure if I should mention that); she did not receive a formal education, and she was constantly getting fired from her random jobs as a bartender or waitress (working very late nights or not coming home at all). Frequently unemployed, basically; I had to move around several times because we were continuously unable to afford our home. I have a little sister (only 2.5 years younger than me) who I essentially raised because of our parents' absence. All of this was the case throughout my childhood, and in high school, I worked two part-time jobs in addition to school/extracurriculars to help pay for bills. My mom kicked me out several times for periods ranging from days to months as an indirect result of her alcoholism (we constantly fought because as I said, she was abusive, and I stood up for myself more as I got older). I would stay with friends/in my car/at my grandparents'/at my dad's (towards senior year when we reconnected).
TLDR: parents divorced when I was 5, abusive/alcoholic mom, absentee dad, worked two jobs in high school to help with bills, moved around a lot because of mom's job instability, and was kicked out several times (all prior to age 18).
On one hand, I have not highlighted any of this anywhere else in my application, and I really think it's worth bringing attention to. There were so many times where: I didn't sleep the night before an exam because of my mom's drunken stupor, my class time was interrupted because I had to be interviewed by DCF during school, I couldn't focus on homework or a test because I was preoccupied with where I was going to sleep that night, and I couldn't attend school functions/participate in many events in high school because my work schedule limited my time.
On the other hand, I do NOT want to play any sort of pity card. I have two parents and a supportive family network. I always had food to eat and I always had somewhere to sleep (even if it was my car; I had a car). I am incredibly grateful to have been able to attend university despite these circumstances, but it is worth noting that the only reason I was able to do so was because I received the Pell Grant and a full academic scholarship (I was also limited to in-state schools due to finance, I'll say that). I also hesitate to write the essay because my situation didn't really continue to affect me in college. While there are of course bad times, especially when visiting home, I have my own apartment and simply don't subject myself to it anymore.
I was just under the impression that ADCOMs didn't really want to hear anything about high school, so I'm conflicted. And again, while I certainly felt disadvantaged in high school, college has been an extremely different situation.
I've seen amazing advice from @LizzyM and @Goro and would so very much appreciate some guidance! Thank you for reading this very long post.
To make a long story relatively short, my parents divorced when I was five, and my dad subsequently became absent from my life until 11th grade-ish. My mom developed alcoholism after the divorce and became very volatile (and incredibly abusive, but I'm not sure if I should mention that); she did not receive a formal education, and she was constantly getting fired from her random jobs as a bartender or waitress (working very late nights or not coming home at all). Frequently unemployed, basically; I had to move around several times because we were continuously unable to afford our home. I have a little sister (only 2.5 years younger than me) who I essentially raised because of our parents' absence. All of this was the case throughout my childhood, and in high school, I worked two part-time jobs in addition to school/extracurriculars to help pay for bills. My mom kicked me out several times for periods ranging from days to months as an indirect result of her alcoholism (we constantly fought because as I said, she was abusive, and I stood up for myself more as I got older). I would stay with friends/in my car/at my grandparents'/at my dad's (towards senior year when we reconnected).
TLDR: parents divorced when I was 5, abusive/alcoholic mom, absentee dad, worked two jobs in high school to help with bills, moved around a lot because of mom's job instability, and was kicked out several times (all prior to age 18).
On one hand, I have not highlighted any of this anywhere else in my application, and I really think it's worth bringing attention to. There were so many times where: I didn't sleep the night before an exam because of my mom's drunken stupor, my class time was interrupted because I had to be interviewed by DCF during school, I couldn't focus on homework or a test because I was preoccupied with where I was going to sleep that night, and I couldn't attend school functions/participate in many events in high school because my work schedule limited my time.
On the other hand, I do NOT want to play any sort of pity card. I have two parents and a supportive family network. I always had food to eat and I always had somewhere to sleep (even if it was my car; I had a car). I am incredibly grateful to have been able to attend university despite these circumstances, but it is worth noting that the only reason I was able to do so was because I received the Pell Grant and a full academic scholarship (I was also limited to in-state schools due to finance, I'll say that). I also hesitate to write the essay because my situation didn't really continue to affect me in college. While there are of course bad times, especially when visiting home, I have my own apartment and simply don't subject myself to it anymore.
I was just under the impression that ADCOMs didn't really want to hear anything about high school, so I'm conflicted. And again, while I certainly felt disadvantaged in high school, college has been an extremely different situation.
I've seen amazing advice from @LizzyM and @Goro and would so very much appreciate some guidance! Thank you for reading this very long post.
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