<p>Hi CC!
So I'm working on my essay, and I wanted some input on a specific topic. After highschool, I left my house to persude a career as an exotic dancer. I did this for about three or so years and everything was going fine; I wasn't super rich but I was lving on my own at least. Well after the recession: the club closed down, I lost my job, and ended up on the streets. I did many things I regret and shall continue to regret for the rest of my life. After a year, I moved back in with my mother and she has been taking care of me while I am going to school. Should I put this in my paper?</p>
<p>You should totally put it in your personal Statement. Although I can’t say I know what you went through, I think that writing about it would increase your chances of getting in. According to one of my teachers, most of the P.S are written the same using the same story about how great you are ect… and so it would be different.
And Different is good… I think :)</p>
<p>I’m stealing this idea! jk</p>
<p>I think that story is a great way to show how you overcame unusual circumstances and gained a lot of life experience. Showing your dedication to come back from all of that and to pursue a UC education is a pretty great personal statement in my opinion.</p>
<p>Which UC are you applying to?</p>
<p>Wow! Thank you to those who replied and thank you for being so nice!
When I first started going to school, I would tell people that I used to be a stripper and for some reason people always seem to look down upon me; it was like they were shunning me almost. So of course, when I decided to post on here I was expecting some cruel jokes, but it seems like everyone on here is pretty nice.
@collegeis4losers and Berkeley Thanks! I wish I could give you guys a big kiss on the cheek right now 
I like that I come off as different, but I’m kinda struggling at writing it; I do not want to come off like I was a harlot to the people reading it. I’m applying to UCLA, UCSD, and UCI as an English major.</p>
<p>No Problem. You seem to come off as a person that has had a taken a rough path before finding your way (that being college). The people that are going to be reading your paper will probabaly be able to see this, so I doubt you’ll come off as a harlot :). On a side note everyone here is really nice, so never hesitate to ask! If somebody knows the answer to your question, I’m sure they will help.</p>
<p>a. stripping doesnt mean you have “gained a lot of life experience” as berkeleyorbust seems to think. lol men, i dont think they can help it.
b. it seems like you were forced out of stripping by the club shutting down, not that you decided you could do something better with your life, and decided to leave. so if i was you, i wouldnt mention the club closing down.
c. do talk about what you have gained, if anything. if you play your cards right, i seriously think you could write an inspiring essay.</p>
<p>“stripping” on its own wasn’t my point. If that was so, an acceptable essay would be “I used to be a stripper, but now I am an English major LOL!!” and she would get in.</p>
<p>The fact that she pursued a working life, no matter what it was, after high school and lived on her own and supported herself, and fell on hard times when losing her job and her high income. It doesn’t matter how she lost the job, whether the club closed or not. This lead to her being on the streets, and ultimately found a way to turn her life around and get into school and do well enough to apply to UCLA, UCSD and UCI. She didn’t stay on the streets and things could have gone down a much uglier road, but they didn’t because she is now a UC candidate. </p>
<p>Most people just either didn’t go to a 4 year after high school, stayed living at home and went to CC to save money, and most UC applicants do not have a story like that to explain their absence from education. The personal statement is suppose to help the admissions officers understand who you are and what kind of world you have come from.</p>
<p>So redoplease just posted one of the most ignorant responses I have ever seen on this board. You were pretty condescending to someone asking a legit question because they were a stripper, and dismissed all the feedback I gave her because you assumed things about me because I am a male responding to a “stripper.” </p>
<p>Whatever, haters gonna hate.</p>
<p>Hey guys! Remember we’re here trying to help this person,and it’s not our place to judge her because of her past. That being said, I’m going to have to agree with Berkeley, just disregard redo’s post. It doesn’t matter what career she pursuded, and it doesn’t matter that she lost her job instead of quitting on her own. The fact that she turned her life around, and decided to go to school is enough leeway for it to be an inspiring topic.</p>
<p>i definitely wasnt hating, i did point out how if she wrote it well enough it could be seen as an INSPIRING essay. does that sound like im a hater at all, berkeleyorbust? sucker.
and OP, my OPINION still stands…i think you should skip over the club closing down!
guys, if she didnt want all different kinds of advice, she wouldnt have made this thread, so :P</p>
<p>I think @redoplease suggestion of exempting the club closing down has some validity to it. The question that needs to be ask is, would the OP had left the business if it wasn’t for the club closing down? Would she still be in the business if the industry/club was booming? All these questions of course can only be answered by the OP.</p>
<p>However, by stating the club closed down, it portrays the OP’s reason for going back to school as a necessity<a href=“because%20she%20was%20forced%20to%20leave%20since%20the%20club%20closed”>/U</a> rather than her own willingness to leave and pursue school.</p>
<p>Just as @collegeis4losers stated, we are here to help. By no means am I judging the OP. I commemorate her for trying to go back to school, however, this is also a message board. There is no reason why users cannot agree or disagree, respectfully of course.</p>
<p>Hi everyone,
I want to express my gratefulness to those who replied.@redoplease and MitchAPalooza thank you for the advice,and yes the reason I posted on here was to get all sorts of different feedback.</p>
<p>@MitchAPalooza Going to college was the best thing that has happened me and I regret not doing it right away.I hated my mom growing up, so I made it a mission to move out of my moms house, after I turned 18; it was a big mistake. Besides dancing I got into some other obscene stuff on the side; I had been trying to do some amateur pornography and get into an escort service as well. After losing my job as a dancer I tried to get into porn full-time and let me tell you that industry can either make you money or end up screwing you. (pun intended :D) Well lets just say I was working but not making enough money from it, so I ended up getting evicted from my apartment and had to find other means of supporting myself. Prositution is a scary, and ugly path. Luckily my mother, who is without a doubt my super hero, came looking for me; I didn’t own a cell phone and she had to ask around for days just to find me. She took care of me as if I was an innocent little baby and as if nothing had ever happened between the two of us. She clothed me, fed me, made me attend school; I was in heaven. It really opened my eyes and with the help of an amazing english prof, I somehow made it through 3 semesters at my CC and am on my way to a university next fall maybe.</p>
<p>Wow I just put out my whole sob stroy :/. Am I going to get in trouble for this lol?</p>
<p>a really great story girl, and no, we LOVE life stories around here. after youve written your essay maybe come back here for some help/critique/whatever the hell. atleast you have something WORTH writing about…unlike me x_____X</p>
<p>p.s. MOMS ROCK.</p>
<p>Hi Heather! Thanks for the private message and friend request. Great story, you should look at thepinkcross.org( don’t ask me where I got this from lol.); its a website with many stories just like yours! You should post your story on there, and help many girls just like yourself.
Anyway feel free to ask me (or anyone else on collegeconfidential) for help if you ever have a question or a problem.</p>
<p>I don’t have much feedback, but I just want to say that this sample of your story was already captivating. The content is perfect, it gives us a 3-dimensional image of who you are, what you’ve been through and how you progressed as a person. Moreover, always write from your heart and what sounds most natural to you, because those are the most compelling stories! :-)</p>
<p>Thank you for the advice.</p>
<p>I was kind of wondering the same thing, same concept but adding drugs/prostitution into the mix, just because it’s illegal. I know I’ve made some pretty drastic changes but I wasnt sure if maybe it’d still be looked down upon.</p>
<p>Yeah I’m thinking about leaving out the drugs, prostitution, and my DUIs for the same reason. Wow, I can’t believe someone else is in the same boat with me!</p>