<p>Aight, so I'm planning to write an essay about my hardships, as a low-income student. Some facts: my dad is retired and does not work, my mom does not speak English, my dad has poor health, so I have to take care of him, and help my mom in social situations. I also tutor my sister in school to help her get good grades. </p>
<p>Is there anyway for me to incorporate all this in one story? One that can show my struggles in my life, as well as how they have helped me accomplish my goals?</p>
<p>EDIT: Specifically, how can I distinguish myself from other low-income smart math/science Asians? Any clue? thanks…</p>
<p>The topic sounds like it has some potential, as long as you expertly avoid crossing the line into sob story territory. The only way you will be able to distinguish yourself from other Asians in similar situations (unless you have some really interesting escape mechanism) will be to have a powerful voice in your essays, that entices the adcoms without completely sounding completely overwrought. Just make sure that you are actually responding to a prompt, or that it is your choice essay.</p>
<p>You have to work <em>really</em> hard to not sound like you are whining. The best way to do that is instead of focusing on the actual hardships themselves, talk about what you learned from them and take an optimistic, forward-looking approach. The essay should not sound like “Oh, Harvard, look at what I’ve had to suffer, I am clearly oppressed and therefore you should brighten my life and let me in” but should be “I have had some not-so-great stuff happen to me but this is what I learned from it. It made me a better person, more capable of struggling and succeeding in college. Let me show you how: example, example, example.”</p>
<p>I for one think the angle of translating for your mother is fascinating. Middle-class American me doesn’t know anything about that experience, and likely your middle-class American admissions committee won’t either – paint a picture for them. Give them an anecdote about a social scene – maybe a funny story about a misunderstanding in a grocery store you had to negotiate or something similar to that. You could then use that as a jumping-off point to illustrate how having a mother who does not speak any English has had an impact on your worldview.</p>
<p>(Tutoring your sister doesn’t really…help. Most older siblings help their younger siblings in school, so I wouldn’t write about that.)</p>
<p>Nice ideas, I love it. Thanks!</p>
<p>argh im in the same situation kinda of if anyone can help me aswell??</p>
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