<p>My FTM transgender son is a rising senior. He has a legal boy's name and has socially transitioned in his high school. I want to hear experiences from other transgender students (and their parents) who have gone through the college admission process how they dealt with the college application. </p>
<p>Below are some specific questions:</p>
<ol>
<li><p>My son will be referred as 'he' pronoun in his essay and the letters of recommendation for the college application. However, his application, SAT and the transcript will still show 'F' as gender marking. What is the best way to describe the reason for mis-match in the common application or in the form filled out by the guidance counselor? What did you write on your application?</p></li>
<li><p>He will discuss about his transgender experience in the essay as it played key role defining who he is right now. Did you mention anything about your transgender experience? If so, how did you weave your transgender experience in your essay? </p></li>
</ol>
<p>I would really apppreciate if you can provide any other recommendation to my son based on your past experience!</p>
<p>Thanks in advance for your reply. Feel free to send me a private message.</p>
<p>So lemme get this straight, your child was biologically born a female and transitioned into a male? The gender slot on the application should read “F” because it implies a biological perspective of gender, and all the essays should use masculine identity, since in writing, its more of a social identification. I think. I dont know, thats kind of a weird situation to be perfectly honest.</p>
<p>If your son is addressing the fact that he is transgender then I doubt admissions will care about the pronoun mix ups. I wouldn’t worry too much about that. However if your son decides not to discuss being transgender then I would just try to stay consistent and attempt to fix whatever may not match. Also, if your son is now biologically a female then I would write female on the application.</p>
<p>He can address it in the additional information section of the common app (under Writing, where it says “Please upload a document here if you wish to provide details of circumstances or qualifications not reflected in the application.”)
Just a brief note, maybe something like, “I am transgender; although some legal forms may refer to me as female, I am a man and my peers and teachers are respectful of my identity. For this reason, male pronouns are used in my essays and letters of recommendation.”</p>
<p>There’s actually mention of this issue on the common app – in the Applicant section, if you click the question mark next to the “female or male” options, it says:
“Federal guidelines mandate that we collect data on the legal sex of all applicants. Please report the sex currently listed on your birth certificate. If you wish to provide more details regarding your sex or gender identity, you are welcome to do so in the Additional Information section.”</p>
<p>I think if your son does use this experience as his essay topic, then that will clear up any confusion. If it’s not mentioned in the essay then it would be appropriate to mention this situation in the “Additional Information” section, but I doubt it will be a big deal. Being transgender is uncommon, but your son won’t be their first transgender applicant and the admissions office will figure it out.</p>
<p>We have a dear family friend who is a FTM transgender college student. He has not made any legal changes. He is very happily adjusting to college life. He chose to write about his experience in his main essay. His idea, and it certainly seems to have worked this way, was that the kind of school he wanted and where he would feel most supported would likely be the school(s) that accepted him with full disclusure. That was certainly what ended up happening and he had a tough decision choosing among some great colleges with scholarship offers, while also finding that those where he was not offered acceptance ended up being less ideal campuses for any LGBTQ(andA) students.
Your son is very lucky to have supportive parents. Sadly, that is not always the case. As a tidbit that you mind find helpful while navigating the world of gender vs sex, the places where you son is listed as female are where his “sex” is asked for. “Sex” refers to the biological and physiological characteristics that define men and women, whereas “Gender” refers to the socially constructed roles, behaviors, and characteristics that society considers appropriate for men vs women.
You are a wonderful ally for your son and I wish him the best of luck as he embarks on the college journey.</p>
<p>Thank you all for your replies and encouraging words. </p>
<p>My son found an interesting article on ‘Gender’ choice for common application. [Broad</a> Recognition ?Just Check ?Female??: Trans Women and Smith College Admissions , by Sarah Giovanniello](<a href=“HugeDomains.com”>HugeDomains.com)</p>
<p>It sounds like ‘Female or Male’ help text in the common application is to be used as guidance, not the mandate.</p>