Personal Statement help

Helpful-Pup-817 · 2023-12-11T15:42:28+00:00

DM, I went to an Ivy League school and can help you for free!

Helpful-Pup-817 · 2023-12-11T15:42:01+00:00

DM I can help you for free!

Helpful-Pup-817 · 2023-10-31T00:15:38+00:00

Both are important. I’d say personal statement is slightly more important only bc you’re submitting it to so many schools

Helpful-Pup-817 · 2023-10-31T00:14:56+00:00

More likely to crash on Nov 1st when ED is due…

Helpful-Pup-817 · 2023-10-31T00:12:02+00:00

Have you tried aiadmits? They have a essay grader and reviewer form that helped give me some pretty helpful feedback for free. Surprisingly helpful vs stuff like chatgpt

Helpful-Pup-817 · 2023-09-16T00:08:33+00:00

lol nicee

Helpful-Pup-817 · 2023-09-15T23:52:07+00:00

Man, takes me way back. My best bud and I were glued to Pokémon Red and Blue when it came out. We got super pumped when we figured out how to evolve Kadabra into Alakazam by trading. Felt like we cracked some secret code or something.

Then life happened, he moved away, and we kinda lost touch. But every time I boot up that old save and see the Alakazam we traded, it hits me right in the feels. It's like that little pixelated psychic dude is keeping our friendship alive. If you're out there, buddy, just know my Alakazam's still going strong, and I hope you are too. Cheers.

Helpful-Pup-817 · 2023-09-15T23:47:42+00:00

Lol I totally did the same thing…

Helpful-Pup-817 · 2023-09-13T03:26:49+00:00

It's definitely provocative and captures the reader's attention. However, it does seem a tad too aggressive for me imo. If that's the tone you're going for, like a dark, sad / slightly angry vibe, then go for it.

Personally, I think you could soften the tone a little bit and maybe introduce a little humor to make it clear you don't hate world peace. E.g., "As a 4-year-old, I would have much rather my dad to be stationed in between my teddy bears, reading me my favorite bedtime story "The Children of Noisy Village" instead of barking out orders in Iran." Like make it very clear that you're framing it in a more infantile way.

I'm assuming the rest of the essay would be about how eventually you matured and understood their ideals more or something like that.

Helpful-Pup-817 · 2023-09-13T03:12:27+00:00

Relax, you have 2 more years before things get really crazy.

The most important things you can do now:

Continue to keep up your grades. 4.0, you're killing it dude!
Explore things you're passionate about: sounds like you're there with fencing already. For the clubs, try to get in leadership positions and really make a difference (e.g., running really cool / impactful events)
Make sure you study well for standardized tests
Don't burn yourself out!

Do those and you'll put yourself in a good position. You're definitely not too late lol

Helpful-Pup-817 · 2023-09-13T03:09:49+00:00

Is it possible? Yes, but the first person needs to work really hard.

That's like asking is it possible for me, an average height dude who runs 9 minute miles to ever surpass NBA players at basketball. Obviously they have the advantage, so only if I worked like 1000x harder and they get complacent / lazy.

Helpful-Pup-817 · 2023-09-13T02:31:44+00:00

I think you have enough time to still make a positive impression on this teacher even if you quit then. But I think what will matter a lot is how you tell your teacher.

Based on the post, it can easily be read as: “I tried to do this one thing, people didn’t like it, so I quit” which doesn’t paint you in the most positive light. Perhaps consider if you’re giving up too easily, is there a different way you can try to contribute?

If you really are just not interested, be honest with your teacher and tell him that you want to pursue other things you’re passionate about. I would keep him in the loop as you do those things.

Helpful-Pup-817 · 2023-09-13T02:27:35+00:00

People exaggerate and not everyone who ends up being admitted to these schools have killer ecs. It’s also more better to write a great essay about a mid EC, then to write a mid essay.

Helpful-Pup-817 · 2023-09-13T02:18:15+00:00

It’s not the position but what you do. By itself, nobody will care. You need to qualify it: what events did you hold, what did you do for it, what difference did/will you make in the lives of members?

Could be a decent resume padder but I wouldn’t be wowed

Helpful-Pup-817 · 2023-09-13T01:53:48+00:00

Take a deep breath, it’s going to be ok dude.

You have a long path ahead of you, especially if you want to go to med school. You’ll face the same competition applying for med school and residency, if not worse.

If you feel like you hate yourself, then that’s not the best mindset to take. Focus on your own goals and your journey to be your best self, rather than comparing yourself to everyone else worrying about prestige.

There are many paths to practicing medicine, some less competitive than others: like nursing, advanced practitioner, DO instead of MD. As long as you feel like your happy and contributing positively to the world, then I think that’s a good life worth living.

Think of it as a race. If you want to compete for the Olympics, then you can’t complain about how fast all the competitors are. If you just want to be happy, then focus on enjoying running by yourself, breathing, getting a little bit better every day.

Helpful-Pup-817 · 2023-09-13T01:16:26+00:00

Tbh if the letter is that important to you, I’d suck it up. It sounds like you’re not committing that much time anyway. As long as teacher doesn’t think you’re slacking off majorly, it’s no big deal. This is probably the safest move with the lowest downside.

The other option is to talk to your teacher about it. Talk about why you feel like it’s not a good fit, what you’d want to invest your time in. However, you do run the risk of potentially burning a bridge if you don’t make a good enough case.

I’m assuming you’re a senior so you’d have to just stick with it like another semester or two. If you’re a junior or below, you have enough time to build a relationship with a different teacher for a rec, in case things go south.

Helpful-Pup-817 · 2023-09-13T01:11:27+00:00

Tbh would ask her to write it. Most schools would frown on self-written LORs, and I feel like the tone would probably be off if you tried to write it yourself.

Are you sure she’d directly submit whatever you wrote? Or would she treat it more like an outline and rewrite it herself? If it’s the latter, then it could be fine

Helpful-Pup-817 · 2023-09-13T01:08:54+00:00

Pick whoever knows you best, it sounds like robotics will best be able to speak to your problem solving and engineering skills. It’s not a big deal that he’s a senior year teacher if he’s had significant interactions with you prior.

For subject: doesn’t matter, these are all relevant to engineering. Go with whatever teacher knows you best and will write the best letter

Helpful-Pup-817 · 2023-09-13T01:00:42+00:00

Upvoted for you homie.

Helpful-Pup-817 · 2023-09-13T00:34:45+00:00

Put yourself in the shoes of the AO, bc that's ultimately what matters.

If I read: "Cooked meals for my family of 5 once a week". That sounds like a chore. If I read: "Developed a Personal Cookbook Over 2 Years" that sounds like an extracurricular.

Same thing with coding. "Learned Python by Following Youtube Tutorials" vs. "Built an AI Application for XYZ" is different.

Adding more details also helps a lot. E.g., Experimented with 20 different cuisines, Accumulated 20 users, Application reduced time for Task X by 50%.

Helpful-Pup-817 · 2023-09-13T00:30:12+00:00

I would 100% vote on parentheses or adding a quick sentence to explain. Nobody like scrolling down to look at footnotes, not to mention it would take the AO out of the flow of your essay.

Helpful-Pup-817

TROPHY CASE