<p>Hello.</p>
<p>I only have 2 questions regarding the personal statements:</p>
<p>1.) If you had a poor GPA for a specific year, would it be a good idea to subtly explain the reason for this in your personal statements to make your application stronger?</p>
<p>2.) I noticed that everyone is using the usual essay format (intro, body[3], conclusion)... is this the norm?</p>
<p>Thanks.</p>
<p>1) If that's the only thing you have to write about, then go ahead, but if it was freshmen or sophomore year, and your grades have gone up significantly since then, then they should see that and realize that you have grown as a student and will probably make a good assumption from that. So no, it is not necessary to write and 'subtly' explain a year of bad grades.</p>
<p>2) This is the norm because it works. If you have another format that works, use it. There are no absolutes in personal essays, except that they must be about you.</p>
<p>I think that using the additional information section of the application to do this might be a good idea. Don't make excuses. Just give additional insight into what was going on?</p>