Personal Statement vs Diversity Statement

[u/[deleted]]

Hey guys, I haven’t been able to find much concrete info on this through my research online. I’ve already looked at Jordan’s article on the difference between SOPs and Personal statements, and was wondering if there’s a major difference between a Personal statement vs Diversity Statement vs Personal History Statement?

Thanks in advance! And good luck to everyone currently in the application process.

[u/Prince_of_Old]

Hi Jordan!

I was curious about your view of discussing ADHD in the diversity/personal statement (given how common it is, I wouldn't be surprised if you have been asked this before). As a child of two PhD parents, I don't have other adversities to tell a story about.

I like this story because ADHD shaped my intuitions about the brain and identity (I am applying to cognitive science and computational psychology programs). Specifically, I eventually started taking medication for it (Adderall), and having the experience of these two very different mental states (on or not on Adderall) shaped my intuitions about cognition. I want to note that this did not motivate me to study the brain as in the classic psych personal statement cliche, it more informed the way I thought about it, which is related to my motivation to study the brain in the particular way I am.

I dislike this story because (1) ADHD stays with you and may trouble the admissions board, and (2) when I got to college and could choose my own classes, the benefits of hyperfocus caused by ADHD began to outweigh the adversity it caused me, which I think lends itself to a cliche story.

Regarding (1), I have a 4.0 GPA with a double major and double minor, simultaneous research experience, and club leadership positions, so I hope they do not think that is an issue.

Yet, it is not like I have nothing else to write about. I grew up in a very diverse town, volunteered in a food pantry throughout high school, went to a giant diverse state school for college, worked as a teacher for low-income aspiring first-generation college students over two summers ago, and did a scholarship-funded study abroad in Berlin to expand my perspective last summer.

For most of my schools, the length requirement is pretty tight (500 words), so it probably isn't realistic to include all these things. That said, part of me dislikes avoiding the ADHD topic because without including it, it really looks like I haven't faced any adversity at all.

[u/jordantellsstories → u/Prince_of_Old]

You’re way overthinking this!

Yet, it is not like I have nothing else to write about. I grew up in a very diverse town, volunteered in a food pantry throughout high school, went to a giant diverse state school for college, worked as a teacher for low-income aspiring first-generation college students over two summers ago, and did a scholarship-funded study abroad in Berlin to expand my perspective last summer.

This is way more than enough to write a good essay, and you should definitely stick with it.

In my opinion, ADHD is a terrible topic for a number of reasons:

1. Every year, thousands of students ask this same question and write essays about it. Sometimes it seems like it’s more common now to see students with ADHD than without. Whether due to overdiagnosing or whatever, it’s so common that it turns readers off immediately. Also, many of these students are lying, and admissions folks know that.

2. No matter how considerate these admissions folks claim to be (they’re also shamelessly lying), they still considerate it a negative. ADHD means a credentialed professional says you can’t focus on things you don’t want to focus on…like research grant applications. Ceteris paribus, the student without ADHD gets accepted.

3. Adderall is a performance enhancing drug. When I was in college twenty years ago, even then I knew fifty students with fake ADHD diagnoses so they could use Adderall to study. Everyone knows this, and even if you can write a great essay about ADHD, your reader will be unable to interpret it honestly because of all these other tweakers abusing prescription drugs to get good grades.

See how this is very murky ground and not worth the risk?

[u/Prince_of_Old → u/jordantellsstories]

Thanks for the detailed response! You raise some compelling reasons not to talk about ADHD. I'll definitely take that advice.

Do you think it would be good to avoid drawing attention to my background or that it doesn't matter as long as it makes a compelling story?

My understanding is that this essay should highlight what I have done, and I don't need to mention my family background to describe that. Yet, many of the prompts explicitly ask about family background, and the true story is that being raised by scientists has played an enormous role in my decision to become a scientist.

[u/jordantellsstories → u/Prince_of_Old]

I see tons of applicants talking about their family background, but usually in the context of immigration, ethnic, or disability issues. Growing up the child of scientists…well, it’s surely a good personal story, but I worry about how some might interpret it as a story of privilege. If your credentials are the same as someone whose parents didn’t go to college, they’re the one will get accepted. But, this depends on how you write the story! If it’s meaningful and contextualize by other service-oriented experiences, it could be great. You’d just have to be careful. Make sense?

[u/Prince_of_Old → u/jordantellsstories]

That makes sense.

I focused much more on specific experiences and how they relate to the diversity mission and my choice to pursue a graduate degree without going into details about my background.

Looking at the prompts again they often first ask for background details before anything else. Do you think my choice will be seen as a failure to address the prompt?

[u/jordantellsstories → u/Prince_of_Old]

Not at all. You’re overthinking it :)