Hi! I am a junior in high school and I am going to have to, eventually, start writing my college essays. I moved to the US in the summer of 2019 from Dubai, UAE; and before that, I lived in Cairo, Egypt. My whole life, I went to a French educational system school; however, unfortunately, I had to switch to the American system once i moved to the US. It has been a good experience but it is different than my previous life. So, I was wondering, should I write my essay about this and how I grew from it or not?
Write about something you learned about yourself in the process. The move is a great framing device for that.
…agree with @gardenstategal and adding to take it forward. So, not just ‘this happened, I learned this’, but also 'and from that: I am making x choices / here’s why I would/wouldn’t change back / here’s how what I have learned / become can be applied to other situations / whatever.
The key with using any specific event (family trauma, health issue, personal trauma, funny/scary event- anything) in a college app essay is to remember that it is just a vehicle to add info about yourself.
So, before you start writing think about your overall application: what do the AdComms already know about you from your transcripts, your LoRs, your stats? what’s missing from those- that would add colour or dimension to the overall picture of who would be joining their campus community? Shape your essay so that those elements shine through.
Otherwise, it’s just a fact that you had to cope with- which is more common than you might think (true story: collegekid 1 mentioned that changing schools 3 times in three years across 2 continents between ages 12 and 14 had had challenges and the university interviewer told her that she was not appreciating how privileged she was to have had that experience!)
@gardenstategal and @collegemom3717 thank you!!
It sounds like you have a good idea, as that is a unique experience. However, try not to focus on too many things as the word count is not particularly large on college application essays. Focus on a key event in great detail that shows what you learned and also your personality. Good luck!
My opinion is that the purpose of your admission essay is to show you, your growth, your journey through life and, how you got here. Moving is an evident way to illustrate that you grew or made a change in a certain way. From your story, I can tell that moving has actually been a central theme of your life, so it’s worth including it in the essay. If you encounter difficulties in relevant expression or formulation of thoughts I suggest https://■■■■■■■■■■■■■/ . They are professionals in this sphere and they could show you how to write a well-organized, coherent and, impressive essay.