Any do’s/don’ts to put on personal statements for transfers?! (I.e., I’ve had someone advise me not to talk about depression/anxiety, whereas I’ve had someone say that it’s something you should talk about).
Anything would help!
Read all the pinned posts in the college essay forum, particularly the one entitled Essay Tips to Consider. You will get your answers there.
In a nutshell, whoever told you to write about depression didn’t give you the best advice.
Personal statements for transfers should be more objective for the most part. You don’t need to have your whole life planned out but you should have a decent understanding of how you’ll be able to use the desired university’s resources to further yourself in your current major. Be specific, mention projects that the university’s faculty have been working on, and how you can see yourself a part of it all.
I wouldn’t revolve my entire personal statement about depression and/or anxiety, but maybe as a footnote to a larger picture by, for example, associating your overcoming of those difficult times to your maturity in dealing with stressful and challenging situations, many of which you’ll encounter at another college.
Just throwing in my two cents: generally, if you’re going to discuss serious internal/external conflict, you should always give the problem a resolution, or a definitive conclusion. Mentioning a serious topic like depression, and leaving it unresolved and open-ended will rub admissions officers the wrong way.