<p>You are either not getting it or you only hear what you want to hear. It is in all likelihood regardless of the school that you apply to, that you are *not a freshman * which mean you will have to apply as a transfer student.</p>
<p>Instead of looking for ways to cirumvent the system, just simply tell your story in your personal statement. Don't tell it as a woe is me but from a perspective of what the experience has taught you and how it has shaped you into the person that you are. </p>
<p>You can also look into schools for adult education because they tend to be more flexible toward students who have had breaks in their education. Columbia/ NYU both have a school of general studies, harvard has an extension school, Penn has a school college for adults.</p>