Last minute questions, clicking submit today! Forum

[Anonymous User]

Personal Statement
1. I deliberately alter the quote I am using by changing one very specific word to a more general interperetation to encompass a broader theme. Is this ok? If so, do I keep the quotes?

Here is the situation
asdfsafsafs minorities dsafsfasfsa vs asdfasfsafas less fortunate sadfasfsa

a. I am aware the meanings are very different, but "less fortunate" fits in the context of the quote and my personal statement. Is this ok? If so, do I keep the quotation marks?


Diversity Statement Question
2. I am an AA URM, immigrant, ESL (all of this is communicated in the demographics section) but nothing about it screams "adversity statement." I wrote a celebratory statement about my unique immigrant upbringing....should I submit this? We started with nothing, and my parents worked their way up into a middle class neighborhood. But I do not have material that TLS considers "diversity(adversity)" worthy. I do not want to submit something that communicates I misunderstood the purpose of a "diversity statement"..thus communicating my ineptitude to pay attention to what is really being asked.


Addendum
LSAT Addendum Question
- Is it appropriate to cite "mental fatigue" due to a lack of sleep as an adequate addendum talking point?
- If so, is it appropriate to list out how many points I missed per section throughout the test, as the trend does show missing more points as the test wore on....(obvious causation correlation issue at hand here)- but just want to know what is appropriate for an addendum?

GPA Addendum Question
Similarly, my GPA has a major upward trend. I was a crappy first year student. I was deep into extra currics but just did not do well in classes. I have no excuse besides not being focused. My GPA was in the 2.0's ...Since my sophomore year, I focused..finished by averaging a 3.7 all throughout. But once again, no hardships - just me being a bad student. I have already written the addendum, but are "not focused" and "immature" appropriate reasons?


Thanks everyone for the help!

As you may be able to tell, it is a lonely island for me. Not a lot of ppl around me have an idea of the complexity and competition of the modern app process- especially with the T-14/job crunch conundrum.

[oshberg28]

Quotations mean that you are re-using the phrase word for word. It would not be appropriate to change a word in the quote to fit your PS. Perhaps you can quote part, leave "less fortunate" out of quotes, then begin the quote again...but it would probably look strange.

Diversity does not necessarily translate to adversity. If you have something in your application that makes you stand out from other applicants, that makes you different from other applicants, that led you to have experiences that are unique, etc. - write a diversity statement. You seem to fit this bill, so write one.

Mental fatigue due to lack of sleep is not addendum-worthy, unless the lack of sleep is due to a medical condition, family emergency, etc...otherwise, they will think your lack of sleep was due to unpreparedness. Don't write an addendum.

You want to be careful about the GPA addendum - I think it could work, but you really have to stress how you got your act together and are not the same person you were when you were a freshman. I might defer to others on this one...it could be risky saying that you were simply "unfocused" and "immature", but at the same time, it does appear that you have a very strong upward trend.