The title pretty much says it all. Does anyone know anyone who went through extreme odds and ended up at a top 10 university? Like, they were homeless, parents were drug addicts, they were abused, parents dying and family members homeless too etc.
How much do you think colleges weight a drastic story of adversity like this? Not just something small.
I know one with a bad story that includes some of your list, that went to Caltech but for grad school so the story was not part of the application.
Bump. How many people for each university’s applicant pool (Yale, Harvard, etc.) do you think have these extreme circumstances? Hundreds, ten-thirty, a couple, etc?
A few people 2-3 probably
@qpqpqp I’m one of them, which is why I’m asking, of course.
Maybe not what you’re looking for, but I knew a Ph.D. Candidate at H who had lived on the road for many years previously. I knew a grad student at another major university who was homeless and lived in his office, unknown to the school. These guys probably point to the eccentricities of some grad students more than a rags to riches thing.
Not personally, but there was an article on the Washington Post about college essays - and one girl wrote about being homeless. I don’t remember the specifics about the essay, but she got into Yale, I think.
There was an article on the Crimson about a girl who got in after being homeless for a big part of her high school years I think. I’ll look for it.
Edit: Not the story I was thinking of but here’s another http://www.jeannineamber.com/uploads/cgblog/id22/homeless_to_harvard.pdf
Here’s the story I was thinking of http://www.businessinsider.com/most-impressive-harvard-students-2012-11#dawn-loggins-overcame-abandonment-and-homelessness-and-still-made-straight-as-10
Not homeless, but from a very disadvantaged situation:
http://www.sacbee.com/news/local/education/article2577688.html
For starters, write an amazing essay about it. Not just a good one. Write the best thing they’ve ever seen. Most colleges, especially top ones, are not charity cases, so you can’t expect your history to play a part unless you are also a fantastic candidate in all the other ways. Maybe then it will help you stand out from the crowd.
I think there are hundreds of applicants from disadvantaged back grounds and this does factor into the admissions decision.
I hope to fall into the category you’ve described and will post back when I hear back from the colleges.
I second what he said ^^ I worked very hard to convey my struggles in my essays. I ended up submitting them to an outside writing competition with tens of thousands of submissions every year and I placed at the highest level of recognition for my essays, which I hope is an indicator that I did a good job. Fingers crossed for March.
deleted so as not to come off as an troll
Here is one: Not quite top 10, but impressive nonetheless, homeless to Georgetown: http://www.washingtonpost.com/local/anacostia-high-school-valedictorian-saysshe-is-ready-to-get-on-with-everything/2014/06/11/c76bdcc8-f1be-11e3-9ebc-2ee6f81ed217_story.html
I helped a student last year who did have her parent die age 8, then the grandmother die (and that was living in rough circumstances) at 14 and then was in foster care. This was a strong student. Got a couple of top 20 offers and is at one. Also got a lot of rejections, and couple of W/L.
I have no idea what percentage apply. Questbridge was set up to expose low income and students with hardships of the possibilities of going to colleges they might not have considered possible for them.