<p>I'm a high school junior looking into top tier schools. I'm male, Hispanic, low income, and a resident of Florida. How would colleges like the ivy leagues and those ranked around the top 20's or 30's react to sympathy on Essays? How could certain circumstances, whether being financial or personal concerning those in my household, be used to my advantage? Could certain situations make up for some minor academic mishaps and possibly increase my chances of acceptance? Which colleges would react best to an applicants hardships?</p>
<p>I’m in the same boat as you. Colleges don’t like hardship per se, but they like to see whether you have overcome these hardships to succeed in your interests and passions. I.e. not that the obstacles have defined you, but that you have done well in spite of them and you’ve learned something new about yourself, etc.</p>
<p>Exactly what Interficio said. I think the QuestBridge website can be a good place to turn for help on how to incorporate your background into your personal statement. In an application you want to describe the aspects of life that defined you, that drive your goals, passion and curiosity. If your family’s circumstances played an important part, then of course talk about it.</p>
<p>I actually applied for the questbridge summer program to either yale or stanford, and I didnt get in. I suppose I should have tweaked my stats a bit. I really believed I had a shot, but I guess its really competitive. I’ll try to fulfill all the requirements for the actual scholarship this month.</p>