Hey all! As can be seen in the title, I’m conflicted. I’d say I have 2 things that differentiate me or make me “unique” compared to any other applicant. Early on in high school, my father got into an accident and was unable to work- so I took on the task of being the “man” of the house, despite my traditional Middle Eastern upbringing (it caused controversy among my family members). On the other hand, being the politics nerd I am, I was extremely furious when Gov. Christie (I’m from NJ) said he didn’t want any Syrian refugees in our state. Seeing that we already have well over 300, I co-founded a charity with the sole purpose of aiding refugees and breaking the stigma that they are dangerous. My charity has been successful and gained recognition in many publications, including Huffington post. I feel like writing about working all four years would help explain my 3.6 GPA unweighted (4.3/5 weighted) because while I took difficult classes throughout high school, I generally scored B’s in them because of the time commitment that had to be made for work. On the other hand, being that I intend on applying in gov related fields (international relations or political science) I feel like starting my non-profit shows that I am extremely dedicated in pursuing that which I am passionate about. Should I write about me working to explain my academic setbacks and low test scores, or show that I am passionate? I simply don’t know what colleges would care for more, or what would make for a “good” essay. I apologize for the lengthiness of my question and thank you in advance for your help!
If you can write about being independent without explicitly using the essay to bring up your grades, and instead have a guidance counselor explain the situation in his/her recommendation letter, that would be preferable. But both sound like great topics. Don’t forget that many schools have supplements for which you could always use the other essay (the second topic would be great for explaining your academic and professional interests, while the first could be used in an essay about problem-solving, culture, etc.).