When crafting application essays – whether for graduate school, business school, or any other competitive program – applicants often focus on highlighting their accomplishments. And it’s easy to understand why. Most candidates are eager to share their significant achievements, such as leading a groundbreaking project, making a meaningful impact through research, or spearheading a successful community initiative.
While these accomplishments are no doubt important, many initial drafts of application essays are missing a critical component: obstacles. In this post, we’ll explore why addressing obstacles head on in your essays can significantly strengthen your application and provide valuable insights for the adcom into who you are as a candidate.
Here are three reasons discussing obstacles can elevate your application.
But too often, when asked to discuss their accomplishments, applicants selectively and completely forget the things that got in their way en route to their achievement. When they experience this kind of amnesia, they are shortchanging themselves. Triumphing over the hurdles they encountered might have been just as difficult as executing all the anticipated elements of their plans – and is therefore worth sharing.
Obstacles are an inevitable part of life and an essential part of your story. By sharing how you have overcome challenges, you not only enhance the depth of your application but also give the adcoms a clearer sense of your ability to thrive under pressure, adapt to change, and keep moving forward.
This article was originally posted on blog.accepted.com
While these accomplishments are no doubt important, many initial drafts of application essays are missing a critical component: obstacles. In this post, we’ll explore why addressing obstacles head on in your essays can significantly strengthen your application and provide valuable insights for the adcom into who you are as a candidate.
Here are three reasons discussing obstacles can elevate your application.
1. Showing that you have overcome obstacles demonstrates your problem-solving ability.
We all frequently encounter obstacles: the traffic detour, an incompetent customer service representative, a disagreement with your partner, the approval you expected on a project unexpectedly turning into a no. Every single person faces challenges, but people deal with them in wildly varying ways. Those who are more successful in life come out on top because they understand that obstacles are to be expected. They learn how to navigate them with patience, creativity, and a problem-solving attitude, and by – to borrow a phrase – “keeping calm and carrying on.”But too often, when asked to discuss their accomplishments, applicants selectively and completely forget the things that got in their way en route to their achievement. When they experience this kind of amnesia, they are shortchanging themselves. Triumphing over the hurdles they encountered might have been just as difficult as executing all the anticipated elements of their plans – and is therefore worth sharing.
2. Discussing obstacles makes you more relatable and shows your full potential.
Key obstacles in your essays and explaining how you negotiated them can showcase your ability to overcome the unexpected. This will assure the adcoms that you can capably execute a well-defined plan, even when you encounter unexpected bumps in the road. Moreover, it shows the school how you spring into action when the chips are down. This facilitates a fuller understanding of who you are as an individual – and as someone the school would like to have in its next class.Obstacles are an inevitable part of life and an essential part of your story. By sharing how you have overcome challenges, you not only enhance the depth of your application but also give the adcoms a clearer sense of your ability to thrive under pressure, adapt to change, and keep moving forward.
This article was originally posted on blog.accepted.com
