Struggling with Standard Asian Diversity

[xialmos]

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Hey everyone, I know this has been tried and tired (and I've looked at other threads!), but I'm still struggling quite a bit with this essay.
I'm your standard 1st generation asian–parents immigrated, and we live in a very diverse area (suburb near LA). We weren't disadvantaged in any sorts.

I know diversity essays aren't just based off ethnicity, but in this case, I don't know what else to do. Maybe I should do a spin? I'm Cambodian, and my family is actually a mix of several different religions/cultures from different parts of asia. This has given me a really good perspective on cultures, etc.. In college, I double-majored and was a research madman, so I didn't have much time for other "interesting" extracurriculars or going abroad besides the standard cookie-cutter pre-med bunch.

I also tutored and TA'd quite a bit..but who hasn't?

I know Goro says "what is unique about you" – I don't know how I could even tie these back to medicine. I honestly have the standard set of hobbies...Sure, I read, play piano and guitar, but how would that contribute to the diversity of the medical school I will be attending? I've also collected and repair fountain pens for past 10 years. Cool, I guess..

If anyone could just point me in the right direction, I would really appreciate it.

 

[LizzyM]

In 15+ years I've never seen an applicant who was a collector and repairer or fountain pens. It doesn't have to tie back into medicine but if you have the patience and fine motor coordination, eye for detail and knowledge of fluid mechanics to pull that off, then you've got to have some skills that will come in handy in clinical settings. I do think that it is what makes you "cool". @Goro

 

[hopscotch123]

It's okay to not consider yourself disadvantaged or culturally unique when compared to the rest of the application pool. For the diversity essay specifically, try writing about your exposure to diverse groups and/or disadvantaged populations and what insights you've gained from this. Medical schools want to know you can thrive when placed in different environments and when treating different patient populations. So maybe start there.

 

[AnonPanda1]

Hey everyone, I know this has been tried and tired (and I've looked at other threads!), but I'm still struggling quite a bit with this essay.
I'm your standard 1st generation asian–parents immigrated, and we live in a very diverse area (suburb near LA). We weren't disadvantaged in any sorts.

I know diversity essays aren't just based off ethnicity, but in this case, I don't know what else to do. Maybe I should do a spin? I'm Cambodian, and my family is actually a mix of several different religions/cultures from different parts of asia. This has given me a really good perspective on cultures, etc.. In college, I double-majored and was a research madman, so I didn't have much time for other "interesting" extracurriculars or going abroad besides the standard cookie-cutter pre-med bunch.

I also tutored and TA'd quite a bit..but who hasn't?

I know Goro says "what is unique about you" – I don't know how I could even tie these back to medicine. I honestly have the standard set of hobbies...Sure, I read, play piano and guitar, but how would that contribute to the diversity of the medical school I will be attending? I've also collected and repair fountain pens for past 10 years. Cool, I guess..

If anyone could just point me in the right direction, I would really appreciate it.

I collect and repair fountain pens too! I put it on my AMCAS and I don't think I did too bad this cycle. You'll be fine 🙂

 

[kb1900]

Don’t know why everyone thinks this question is all about ethnicity! It’s not!

I briefly mentioned being 1st generation but it was never central to my diversity essays