<p>I think I might right my essay about the time when I had leukemia as a child and how the experience has changed me into the individual I am today. Is talking about the fact that i was sick as a child too sappy? i don't want this to be a sob story.. cancer is just a part of my life and the essay asks to tell about your life...</p>
<p>Should i just avoid this because it's touchy?</p>
<p>you don't want them to pity you.... you want to sound strong... like add leukemia in the ending of another essay:</p>
<p>so what i had cancer, leukemia and was plagued by anthrax, i live a happy life with my family and soon hope to share my stories with my future classmates at (Harvard/Yale/Princeton/IIT/watever you want)</p>
<p>If you write about leukemia, don't do so by saying "I had leukemia as a child and the experience changed me into the individual I am today" (I know you won't, that was just for the post, but bear with me). It would be great to use vivid imagery:</p>
<p>"I lay in the white room, uvs in my arm and medicines in my system. I reach to touch my head--my hair is gone...."
"My classmates mill around me, muttering about how high their pile of homework reaches. How little they know how lucky they are just to be alive...."</p>
<p>I think it could work if you maintain mature syntax and point of view.</p>
<p>General wisdom says that you don't really want to talk about childhood experiences--you want to talk about high school experiences. They need to get a clear idea of you and your personality and accomplishments and passions <em>now</em>. I'd say there is risk in saying that your childhood leukemia is the most important thing for the college to know about you as an applicant. Or the thing that most defines you. Even though, of course, it was a big deal.</p>
<p>Of course, an essay can be about anything at all. It's all in the writing.</p>
<p>yeah.. i wasn't sure whether to focus the essay on it or not.. but i'm leaning towards not focusing my essay on that experience. because, like bettia said it happened when i was 6, i'm almost 18 now and A LOT has happened since then that's more pertinent to my success at college. but i think it's just somethign that sets me apart and shoudl be mentioned. The essay is for University of Chicago and it basically asks to tell about your life how you see it.</p>
<p>I knew I should have looked at the new prompts at the Chicago sendoff party we attended last Sunday. What is the exact prompt, Masha?</p>
<p>Masha, UChicago essays are a really great opportunity to take a unique and different approach. You could really go to town and turn this cancer thing or your life inside out--let them see where your mind wanders and how it works. The one thing you really don't want to do is a conventional essay for them.</p>
<p>They are also not too particular about length. My son's was a little over 1300 words. As long as you can keep the reader's interest, it seems to be ok.</p>
<p>i think a great idea would be to write about something else, but sort of inobtrusively insert a quick sentence about your leukemia. For example, if you were writing about overcoming a fear of heights: "As the bridge swayed, my hands clutched the side and a raw fear coursed through me, an inescapable fear of death I had felt only once before as a child battling leukemia."</p>