Personal “narrative.” A tale meant to illustrate attributes, not a memoir, per se. But agree, it’s something most kids have never done before. It’s risky to go in cold, assume that you’re going to master it.
It’s not cheating to discuss it, to go beyond the rote, somewhat formulaic writing experiences in high school (or put a nicer way, the lessons in ‘structured’ writing that hs tries to train kids in.) That can be a good thing. If a counselor can clue a kid in, fine by me.