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Hello! I wanted some opinions on how to approach this. I am a white female with a 168/3.45.

For most of my life, I've had a moderate to severe stutter (an ADA-labeled disability). I have documentation of this, and the severe nature of it has made a big impact on my life.

I have been thinking about writing a diversity statement. Is this something that I should just address in my normal personal statement? Or since it is recognized by the ADA, should I write a separate statement. I have documentation (evaluations, therapy, etc).

Will this have any impact on admissions, or are schools only looking for more traditional URMs? For some of the schools I'm looking at, it would be good to have something extra (George Washington, Cornell, Minnesota, etc)

Thanks!

This is something I'm interested in as I also suffer from a mild to severe stutter. I think anything that classifies as a legitimate disability can swing the balance in your favour but I'm not sure, and since it's a relatively uncommon condition, I doubt there is much documentation behind any assertions that may be made here.

Personally I would include it in a separate diversity statement.

For admission purposes, you will be a white female with a 3.45 / 168. If it's down to you and another white female with a 3.45 / 168, it will might help you out.

Other than that, no, it won't do much.

Like any topic for a diversity statement, this could swing either direction. It's ultimately going to be a matter of how you describe it as both a constraint and an opportunity, what you've gained from it or how it's colored your life.

In and of itself, having a stutter tells them nothing about you. Perhaps, by virtue of your stutter, you're inclined to advocate for those similarly situated or something to that effect. Just be mindful of the "why" when you're writing about the "what".

miamiman wrote:Like any topic for a diversity statement, this could swing either direction. It's ultimately going to be a matter of how you describe it as both a constraint and an opportunity, what you've gained from it or how it's colored your life.

In and of itself, having a stutter tells them nothing about you. Perhaps, by virtue of your stutter, you're inclined to advocate for those similarly situated or something to that effect. Just be mindful of the "why" when you're writing about the "what".

+ o-o-o on- one

sophia.olive wrote:

miamiman wrote:Like any topic for a diversity statement, this could swing either direction. It's ultimately going to be a matter of how you describe it as both a constraint and an opportunity, what you've gained from it or how it's colored your life.

In and of itself, having a stutter tells them nothing about you. Perhaps, by virtue of your stutter, you're inclined to advocate for those similarly situated or something to that effect. Just be mindful of the "why" when you're writing about the "what".

+ o-o-o on- one

110

sophia.olive wrote:

miamiman wrote:Like any topic for a diversity statement, this could swing either direction. It's ultimately going to be a matter of how you describe it as both a constraint and an opportunity, what you've gained from it or how it's colored your life.

In and of itself, having a stutter tells them nothing about you. Perhaps, by virtue of your stutter, you're inclined to advocate for those similarly situated or something to that effect. Just be mindful of the "why" when you're writing about the "what".

+ o-o-o on- one

i tried not to laugh