<p>Don’t listen to him. Colleges admit students they think will graduate. Based on your past, you’re too unreliable and they will gladly accept someone else without your problems instead. Come up with an excuse for your poor grades in 9th and 10th grade. You’re trying to get into college, not win an honesty award. Remember, a good lie is better than a bad truth.</p>
<p>to Teenspirit…</p>
<p>Yeah, anyone can crash and burn in college. I’m inclined to believe that many users that are >2 years sober are actually more likely to stay away from the environment. It is the fact that one drop of alcohol changes my progress, and so the abstinance is huge. I know kids who sip beers, and before they know it they’re knee deep in drugs.</p>
<p>IDK, I just have trouble with the idea of someone who used drugs being more susceptible.</p>
<p>It’s like getting in a car-accident without a seat belt and living… from that point on, your gonna wear a dang seatbelt. Thats how I feel about my use, but I’ve inferred from the aforementioned reasons that I should avoid that topic</p>
<p>I still cant decide if I want to use the school and my progress though, would it seem cliche?</p>
<p>I’d advise against making this your essay topic. I know you really want to do it. I think that’s part of the problem. </p>
<p>As many others have said, the main essay is your chance to show how you stand out. Choosing to write about your struggle with addiction says a lot about you; mostly, it says that even though you are clean, that you are now successful and hoping for a bright future, you’re still harping on about your addiction, what a struggle it was, yadda yadda yadda. This does not show that you have moved on. It shows quite clearly that you still have a monkey on your back. Since they’re going to find out about your addiction anyway, this essay should be a chance to show them that you aren’t just “the drug kid.”</p>
<p>That may not be who you actually are as a person, but to an average admissions officer it will sure seem that way.</p>
<p>Sorry, but that’s not true no matter how false your reality is. Don’t play it like your addiction made you stronger. Sorry, but like any mental illness, it’s a weakness. You wouldn’t tell them you’re bipolar, clinically depressed, or schizophrenic because people with mental illnesses are more likely to break. Most people haven’t studied AA (they don’t think you have a disease that only God can cure) and like mental health professionals, they believe that addiction is a mental illness (specifically OCD).</p>
<p>You’ve already made excuses for your addiction, but someone without your disease/disorder would be less likely to make your mistakes in the same situation. Your addiction, no matter who you blame it on, is your disease/disorder fault and I can guarantee that no college will accept you if you tell them you’re more likely to crack under pressure.</p>
<p>I hate being so blunt, but you are a fool if you play the mental illness card. Only a physical illness can accomplish what you’re trying to do. Remember, there are kids with major physical problems who managed to fight through the pain and get good grades. They look like the strong ones, because they studied despite the card that was dealt to them. You look like you messed up and have an excuse to justify it.</p>
<p>Mr. Jesus has it right. Use the essay to showcase something ELSE about yourself. Your addiction is not the only thing that defines you. You may need to explain the grades and the change of schools and do that separately. Use the essay to showcase what else about you is really interesting. Don’t make the addiction the only thing that defines you. Give them other reasons to accept you despite that you are a recovering substance abuser.</p>
<p>I read some other posts by you (OP) on other threads. In one post, you say you are applying to major in Applied Math and in another post, you are going for Engineering. In any case, perhaps you can share about a passion for math and what you have done to pursue that or what intrigues you or who has influenced you, etc. </p>
<p>Also, you have a checkered academic background based on what you have shared to date. I think you need to build a realistic set of colleges. You are going after Ivies and schools like Johns Hopkins. Those with stellar records and nothing “negative” in their background still will have difficult odds getting into such schools. I think you should set some realistic sights in your college selection because you have some flags in your past and you are coming from a special school. You should have colleges on your list that are realistic and where you would not be at the bottom of the heap of applicants. It is hard enough to get into elite colleges when you have a stellar background and stats. Your odds are slimmer and you should build a list of realistic schools. When a college is accepting 15% of applicants, for example, you have to stand out in a big way and a college has to have a reason to pick you over the other amazing applicants and not find a reason to deny you. Think through why you should be chosen for a school like Brown or Cornell (on your list) over someone who has a much better record. I’d be concerned about your list, though I haven’t seen the entire list but every school you have mentioned thus far are extreme reaches.</p>
<p>Also to the OP, since you attend a special school for struggling teens, they are used to assisting graduates in college admissions and how to handle all of this. I suggest you get a lot of guidance from them as to how to go about selecting colleges and what to put on applications and how to handle the essays. They deal with kids from your school who opt to go to college and since it is a special situation, they should be well equipped to guide you appropriately as they have done it with other kids before.</p>
<p>yes i suppose so, thanks…</p>
<p>I figure that using the drug topic as an essay to a major reach school couldn’t hurt. Should I assume so? I plan on applying to Brown, which is a big reach, and I figure that they are a school that really wants unique people, and maybe I would grab their attention…</p>
<p>ANy feedback on this?</p>
<p>Some other [private] possibilities:
Bucknell
Villanova
Union [NY]
Lafayette
Trinity U.
Bradley
Miami [Ohio]</p>
<p>People have told me that writing about drug addiction will only prevent you from being accepted into the college of yours choice. I was going to write about my times as a drug dealer but I knew that this would only jeopardize my chances because they don’t want students were used to be hooked on or used to deal with drugs. I made a post about this before. Read their comments.</p>
<p>My wife works at Brown, interfacing with a variety of students. All kinds of kids there from all over the world. High student satisfaction rate. Applied math is strong, I hear.</p>
<p>I belong to an AA group right near Brown.</p>
<p>I’m sure you would grab their attention, but I won’t stray from my previous comments.</p>
<p>I’m wondering if you can apply your passion about this to an analogous situation from an earlier age and build your essay from that. And finish up by saying how this experience set the tone for handling future challenges, both large and small.</p>
<p>Believe me, I understand the passion.</p>
<p>I hate to say it, but the above people are right. The optimal decisions college admissions make are quick, impersonal, and often times based on misjudgments. College admissions aren’t wise magistrates who take the time to try to gain a perfect understanding of you. </p>
<p>Maybe you can write about how after you overcame your drug addiction you dedicated much of your time volunteering for an anti-drug organization. Otherwise, you will give a negative first impression.</p>
<p>In a way, thinking about writing this essay is a variant on the same risk-taking behavior that substance abuse entails. Do not do it. You can write about overcoming adversity and learning to be responsible, or perhaps you can think of a specific activity at the alternative school that was life changing for you. But do not write about being a recovering addict. Bad, bad, bad decision.</p>
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</p>
<p>Yes, it could hurt. It is already very long odds to get into Brown for anyone. It is even more so for you for a myriad of reasons. So, it is already risky odds. By writing about overcoming drug addiction, you are adding even more risk. The idea is not to make it riskier than it already is. The idea is to give them reasons to admit you, not to reject you. Yes, Brown wants unique people (I am quite familiar with the school as my daughter went there). They are looking for kids who will have something to contribute to the school. Show them qualities that you can contribute and add to their campus and not things that cause them concern about your ability to survive there (which is also a very open school requiring lots of independence and you come from a background that might be of concern in that setting and you’ve been attending an ultra strict school and so on). Do you want to give them reasons for your standing out in ways of concerning them or in ways that may benefit their campus life? Show what outstanding qualities you have (and I’m sure you have 'em) that will contribute to Brown. Don’t dwell on substance abuse or have that define you or your application. Do you want them to give your app the shorthand “drug kid” or “???”</p>
<p>I want to reiterate that they will already know about the “issues” you have as you’ll have to include a statement for the irregularities in your transcript and the transfer to a school for troubled teens. So, all this will be known by that statement (which is where you should demonstrate how you have turned your life around). So, use the regular essay on the app to showcase something ELSE. Do you want EVERY piece to showcase “recovered addict”? It is already a part of the application elsewhere. Now go on to define yourself in other ways. You are more than this one aspect.</p>
<p>OP, I thought you might be interested in this Q and A with College Confidential’s Ask the Dean, who is a colleague of mine. She has been an independent college counselor but also an admissions officer at a selective private college. As you will be a graduate of the kind of school addressed in this Ask the Dean query, you should read this closely.</p>
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</p>
<p>The “Dean’s” answer is informative overall. As well, please note in her example of her former advisee, that two schools that rejected her are known for attracting motivated students who can work independently. Brown is exactly that kind of school.</p>
<p>Came across this article and it reminded me of this thread.</p>
<p>[People</a> can overcome their addictions, but not quickly, UCLA psychologist says](<a href=“http://www.physorg.com/news203152178.html]People”>People can overcome their addictions, but not quickly, UCLA psychologist says)</p>
<p>It wasn’t the subject of the research that I thought was relevant to OP, but the researcher himself that reminded me of “potential future OP”.</p>
<p>Well I’ve decided that I am going to send it to one major reach school. I have to say that I simply disagree with what has been said. It seems “logical” to not write about it, but I have heard of some successful incidents if done the right way.</p>
<p>I wont write it to an “in range” school because it could mess me over, but to be honest, I don’t think it would be a huge detriment.</p>
<p>Note that Brown has a Dean for Issues of Chemical Dependency:
[Issues</a> of Chemical Dependency](<a href=“http://www.brown.edu/Administration/Dean_of_the_College/ac_support/chemical_dependency.php]Issues”>http://www.brown.edu/Administration/Dean_of_the_College/ac_support/chemical_dependency.php)</p>
<p>I am normally in favor of bringing humanity and insight to an essay. I did so on my law school application. </p>
<p>However, when it comes to substance abuse, if they wouldn’t know otherwise, DO NOT DO IT. </p>
<p>There’s a technique used by lawyers when they know that something unfavorable about their client will come to light – you bring it up first, to take the wind out of the other side’s sails. Because you know that the Court will know anyhow, so you cast it in a favorable light. But I would never get up there and intentionally reveal such negative information without a clear benefit. </p>
<p>No matter what people say about getting help, bias exists. When I was almost done with law school, they passed out articles about people who had failed the character and fitness assessment because they had been treated for depression. If you had ever been to counseling, you had to reveal it, and why. If you had ever been arrested, not even convicted, you had to reveal it and why. There is absolutely a higher standard to meet than normal when you enter the professions. You never know where you will want to be. You can not unring a bell once you ring it.</p>
<p>It’s obvious you’re an addict, because you’re irresponsible enough to waste money on an application to a reach school and write a stupid essay that guarantees yet another failure in your life. You’re not even going to be looked at, because drug addicts are looked down upon be EVERYONE. I don’t care how wise and great you think you are (classic AA snob), or how you’ve been tricked into your addiction making you stronger, but the fact is that you have a mental illness (or disease if you’re in AA) that makes you weaker than normal people. Many people don’t even know the mental illness link and will just look at you as an irresponsible loser.</p>
<p>Sorry, but not only did your addiction ruin your grades for two years, if you write about it, it’s going to ruin your chances of getting into college. Good colleges want the cream of the crop with perfect records, people with leadership attentional. Drug addicts are the bottom of the barrel to them and because you’re likely to crash and burn (far more than people with coping skills), they won’t want you. When they read that essay, they’re going to stop and throw out your application. It doesn’t matter how much you try to rationalize it, your addiction is a risk to their high graduation rate.</p>