I have ITP, so I was thinking for my common app to write about major events in which this affected my life. When I cut my finger and bled profusely, when I couldn’t be a goalie in soccer due to the worry of brain bleeding, and possibly when I had to get my wisdom teeth removed instead of writing about me cutting my finger because when i got my wisdom teeth removed I had to go to the hospital 2 whole days to get platelet infusions. I’m going into Biology/Biomed/Biotech depending on the college, so I’ll try to later focus of how through struggling with this disease it made me intrigued about Biology because I want to learn why cells do what they do, etc. Is this a good idea, if I can make it connect my story to biology? I will try somehow to make it seem like I conquered ITP, and try to show my persistence, which I think is a trait colleges may like. Is it okay if I write about this, or should I change my topic?
Definitely write about it, but do so in a positive “this is what I have learned about myself while going through all this” way. Stay positive, use it to show how strong and resilient you are, how you can tackle anything after going through all this, and how it motivated your future career and it can be a very powerful essay. Good luck!
Sounds fine. Just be sure to stay away from any type of “woe is me” sentiment and focus on how your condition made you a stronger person, how it impacts your future goals etc.
Start with an outline or draft and see how it goes. How well it is written will matter.
I am going to take a slightly different position.
AO’s read a lot of “This medical problem shaped my life which is why I am going into medicine” essays.
Frankly, the specifics of that medical problem don’t really matter in the context of a college application. What matters is what you did with it- then and now. What matters is what it shows about you.
A sentence or two along the lines of ‘the ITP diagnosis meant years of hospital visits for otherwise trivial issues, meant giving up the sport I loved, meant always having to …’ etc. is all you need to give up to the facts of the situation. Then it’s straight on to whatever tack you take (‘in the early days I reacted X; now Y years later, I am in Z place. I have / am doing / next step are…’
Yes, persistence is a very valuable trait, but how have you used it beyond coping with a reality that you really didn’t have much choice in?
The strongest point in your post is “… intrigued about Biology because I want to learn why cells do what they do…”. Can you link your ‘persistence’ to your intrigue? For example, have you been doing research in cell biology? Did you do take an extra class online to learn more?
Remember that your essay is valuable real estate, whose purpose is to have an AO thinking ‘yes, this is exactly the kind of student we want to have on our campus’.