<p>Well my question is this:
Can I talk about depression on my personal statement? It has been 15 months since I felt the symptoms of the disease (which lasted some 2 years) so I think it might be possible to show colleges that I am not a mental health risk. Basically, it is THE reason that I did not do that well in high school. I think my success now shows that I have overcome an extremely difficult challenge and should be seen as positive in evaluating me. My college stats and ecs are excellent as are my high school test scores (or at least good enough) but my high school gpa and (to some extent) ec's are not up to snuff for transferring to HYS. I am worried that even mentioning depression might place me in the automatic risk category, and when yale has 700 qualified applicants to choose from, would they choose the one they deem a risk? Basically, I see the experience as either +10 pts or -10 pts to my application, and not mentioning it as -8 pts due to unexplained crummy high school years (talking 3.4 or 3.5 gpa uw).</p>
<p>i think that colleges all love to hear stories of overcoming adversity. i think that if you are careful about how you portray it....it can certainly be to your benefit. i wouldn't focus so much on it as an excuse for past failures...but perhaps how it has sensitized you to see things differently - in other words...been a growing experience. It might also be good if you could talk about how it might be helping you to help others.<br>
To be honest, i am the mother of a highly depressed son who has just started at a top 25 university...and i only wish that someone who has made it through to the other side, might find a way to encourage him.</p>
<p>Thanks for the honest opinion. Do you think volunteering at a campus depression hotline might be helpful in creating my profile? It sounds like it might be very rewarding for me, just a question of how much free time I have (not much).</p>
<p>i certainly think it might be a good ec for you. perhaps contact your schools counselling office - and see what you might be able to help with. you could prove to be a valuable asset for them. best of luck to you !!</p>
<p>Does anyone else have an opinion on depression on my application? maybe a slightly (or very) different take on my profile? </p>
<p>Does it look bad to add another Extra curricular to this list (one related to mental health):
jazz combo leader/singer
4 hr/week helping grammar schoolers read
literary magazine poetry reader
member of 2 other clubs (one fairly active - playing pool lol).</p>
<p>I think that you should focus your application on what you've been doing in college that makes you an excellent candidate for admission. I don't think that you should describe your h.s. experiences with depression. Even if you were planning to describe a positive h.s. experience, I'd suggest that you focus on what you've been doing in college because I think that Yale will be far more interested in your college activities and performance than your h.s. ones.</p>
<p>If Yale is like Harvard when it comes to transfers, what gets people in is having the good luck to have attributes that the adcoms feel are needed to round out the class. My impression is that grades are not the deciding factor. Having an unusual talent or being able to add regional or SES diversity are the types of things that can make a difference.</p>
<p>I'm applying for Freshman admissions to a couple places (I'm a senior in HS), and I wrote my personal statement about my experience with an eating disorder. I'm on Prozac now, and should be increasing my dosage soon because I'm slipping back...but the essay doesn't dwell on the bad stuff. I figured, this is a huge part of who I am, and if I focus on the positive outcomes I can write a good, heartfelt essay on it.</p>
<p>The issue is that you're looking to transfer. What year are you in college? Like the above people said, it might not be good to talk about your high school experiences. If the essay is directed more towards how you've grown in college. Presumably, depression was still on your mind a lot because you were working to overcome it. In the end, it's your call. Transfering to HYS will be highly competative (no duh) and you'll want to write the best essay you can. If this is the topic you can write best about, go for it.</p>
<p>Yeah, fair or not, the colleges have a right not to want mentally ill people. I'd stay away from describing anything that sounds like it could reoccur as a problem. (Plz don't think I'm being insensitive, b/c I know how depression goes. It's just that I also know depressed people can have trouble getting beyond themselves, which makes it hard to contribute to the community like all the highly selective schools want.) Being active, energetic and an optimist are far more attractive traits on an application.</p>
<p>Hey thanks for all the opinions...
I am trying to get some kind of history research going on, I have a meeting with my advisor on Friday to look into it...my profile is basically an extraordinary interest in learning (all things) and an especially high level ability (and career focus) in ancient history.</p>