<p>I'm 17yr old right now and have dropped out of high school. Yes, I withdrew during my junior year because of my long and honestly annoying battle with depression. I was already falling in and out of school during my freshman and sophomore years so I took myself out to home school for the past year or so. Now I'm attending community college with an honors GED (not sure if the "honors" part counts) in hopes of transferring over to MIT.</p>
<p>I'm not perfect, I haven't been able to participate in any competitions. But I'm passionate. I know how to connect with people through words and I have some unusual tastes in sports. I've been in an archery club for about a year now and formed my own club at the high school before I left. I also created a science club and co president-ed an animation club. I also play violin. But I've never entered in any competitions with anything.</p>
<p>I took rigorous classes in high school and my counselors know me quite well since I'm always at the counseling center for either my depression or scheduling (for more classes or adjusting). My high school teachers would definitely give me excellent evaluations, since many consider me as a favorite due to my troubled history oddly paired with my fiery passion.</p>
<p>Am I unique in a good way? Or a bad way? I traveled an unfortunate path, but I'm going in the right direction. Will MIT see my ability to endure as the highlight or my faltering strengths and inability to stay consistent? What should I say about this in essays or interviews?</p>
<p>It’s impossible to predict what admissions officers might think about your application. It certainly does not hurt to apply. Though being unique is a plus, failing grades and low scores will not help you. If you want to know if it’s worth it to apply to MIT, check our their admissions website and look at their statistics for admitted students.</p>
<p>If your depression is getting in the way of you handling a high school work load, you will not be able to handle an MIT work load. That is probably what admissions will see right now, and they won’t accept you.</p>
<p>Though if they see that you’ve been able to handle your depression enough to handle a tough workload, that can change. You mentioned that you were attending community college - are you taking a full courseload, or is this a one-or-two class(es) at a time thing?</p>
<p>MIT tends to concentrate and magnify instability and depression. People who were only mildly depressed in high school can have serious problems here. If you’ve found a way to manage your depression, as Piper said, the fact that you’ve already faced and conquered it can be a plus. If, on the other hand, your depression still gets in the way of your life, MIT might not be the best atmosphere for you (not just because of the workload). I think you should apply–if you’re admitted that’s a sign that you can be happy here–but I think your first priority should be your health and happiness.</p>
<p>I had good grades in high school, before I pulled out. I withdrew to take a time out and work on my depression before going back into school (college) this year. I’m a full time student taking the highest level courses available to freshmen at my community college.</p>
<p>There’s been some great points mentioned, about how MIT amplifies depression. This is something I’ve considered and makes me a bit hesitant about applying to MIT, but from what I’ve experienced I can either take a full load or nothing. To me, doing something “halfway” is a whole lot worse than being overloaded with work. I think my depression will be fine when paired next to intense work.</p>
<p>^ Well, that does sound like you have your depression under some sense of control. It seems worth applying. If you do get into MIT, just make sure to keep a Plan B. I think a lot of students here who think about taking time off only wait until they’re forced to to do so, because they have no Plan B. Since you might be at higher risk for depression issues, it’s worth thinking about.</p>
<p>Though, frankly, the all-or-nothing attitude is one that can be very harmful to you at MIT. Don’t kill yourself over a courseload just because you don’t want to lightload. And for the love of god, don’t let other students convince you that a “full load” is above 48 units per term/president of various groups/on a sports team/etc, because the effects of that terrible attitude will only be worse.</p>
<p>just the fact that they have a retention rate of (I think I saw 97%), tells me that might work against you. Do you have to disclose an illness??? If diagnosed, cant that be a private matter, that you could site only as an illness requiring that you withdraw and get a GED studying from home.
just a thought…good luck to you.</p>