"External Factors"

<p>Pomona's supplement has a section with the following prompt:</p>

<p>If information related to the two questions below has already been submitted via The Common Application, you do not need to provide the information again.
Is there a broader context in which we should consider your performance and involvements? Are there any external factors we should consider (e.g. family situation, work, sibling childcare responsibilities or other personal circumstances)?</p>

<p>Is this just the usual question talking about special circumstances that may have impacted grades, or can it be extended a bit further?</p>

<p>My older brother was diagnosed with epilepsy a few years back. It didn't have any impact on my grades or anything, but it did spark my interest in science. Would it be worth mentioning the context it puts my EC's in here? I already mentioned it in the CommonApp long as well as the Pomona essay itself, so I feel like it might be too repetitive to stick it in there. But if I don't and I was supposed to, would they be a bit suspicious/curious?</p>

<p>No, you’re fine. You don’t need to reiterate anything. This is just one more chance for someone who has a challenging family situation and didn’t want to say anything in the common application, which gets sent to all the schools.</p>