thank you Forum

[Anonymous User]

thanks everyone

[AlanShore]

No.

[BillPackets]

It sounds like you have the material to write a genuinely compelling PS based on actual occurrences. You should definitely lose the whole drug kingpin/idolizing yourself as a 10 year old frank Lucas and use your experiences to your advantage.

[dowu]

Holy shit that's bad

[t-14orbust]

.

[swampman]

The personal statement is there to tell the adcomm about who you are. I learned:

- You grew up poor, had a tough life and had a child at a relatively young age (good things to share!)
- You think being a drug dealer is a valid and legitimate career choice, but your grades are good and your family has a lot of legal problems so you think being a lawyer would be cool. (These are very bad things to share)

[John Everyman]

It sounds like you have the material to write a genuinely compelling PS based on actual occurrences. You should definitely lose the whole drug kingpin/idolizing yourself as a 10 year old frank Lucas and use your experiences to your advantage.

Pretty sure this guy just took someone else's PS and added those sections. If you read it without those parts it makes good sense, even concludes reasonably well.

[radikal_eyes]

I had learned from personal observation, whether it was on television or in real life, flashy is what got you caught. I was the opposite of flashy. I was the youngest of five boys raised by a single mother. I wore 2 inch thick glasses that took up half of my face. I wore hand-me-down clothes and usually walked with my head down. I helped run my grandmother’s neighborhood candy store. I was the most unassuming of characters. I was more Frank Lucas than Scarface.

[John Everyman]

Two weeks after my mother’s 14th birthday, she gave birth to her first child. Four months after her 16th birthday, she gave birth to her third child. When she was twenty-five years old, she gave birth to me, her fifth son. She never graduated high school and she never went to college. Since I was about five years old, my mother raised five boys on her own. While my mother’s lifestyle choices should have had some sort of a negative impact on my life, they never did. In fact, it was only recently I found out my mother never graduated high school. Although most of my childhood was spent in homes and apartments that were too small for our family, I never felt like we did not have enough. My whole life, my mother has worked. She overcame her shortcomings to become successful in her chosen field. My mother is an incredible woman, and having the opportunity to learn from her has always been the most important driving force in my life. I learned that no matter the circumstances and challenges, I could be successful.

It was helping my grandmother sell candy out of our house that originally taught me the idea of supply and demand. Every day, hundreds of people from the neighborhood would flock in and out of our home to purchase their favorite items. We lived in what, at the time, was un-affectionately recognized as one of the poorest suburbs in the United States, but we would make money hand over fist selling candy. There were plenty of other options around the neighborhood, but we always had the best selection. But, whenever we ran out of something, people would always find another way to get what they were looking for. Whether or not we had the supply, the demand was always there.

I lived in a neighborhood where we had to boil our water to get out all of the rust and metals in order to use it for cooking. Every time you ran hot water, the entire house smelled like boiled eggs. The water was dirty and rusty and if you used it to wash white clothes, it would turn them yellow or brown. Whenever I would go to other neighborhoods, they could tell I was from Ford Heights because my white socks were always dingy brown or yellow. I always hated wearing white clothes because of it. In order to avoid this embarrassment, we would go shopping with my grandmother for mostly colored clothes. We always hated going shopping with my grandmother, though, because we knew what that entailed; a trip to the Salvation Army to purchase other people’s unwanted merchandise.

When I was fourteen years old, my mother sent me to boarding school. It was not just any boarding school, but a military academy. A traditional military prep school complete with 4a.m. wake –ups and work details. Coming from the south side of Chicago, my mother could have sent me to Bulgaria and I would not have felt more out of place. It was so much of a cultural change people could not even understand my English. Once I figured out how to negotiate the challenges I was facing, and people could actually understand me when I spoke, I persevered. I graduated from one of the most prestigious secondary schools in the country.

When I was twenty-one years old, my son was born. I had not been successfully enrolled in school for almost two years and had limited opportunities as far as a career path. It was one of the most challenging times of my life. Four months after he was born, we lost our home in a fire. I remember sitting in a hotel room trying to figure out my next move. I had been treading water for so long that I had lost my way. I thought about the challenges we faced growing up and how much my mother sacrificed for us. Eventually, I found my way back into school and I was able to be successful. I was also able to discern what career I felt was best for me.

My entire life has been about responding to challenges and I can say with confidence that I learned from one of the best, my mother. Law school is the next challenge. It will most likely be the toughest one yet. And that is why I know that I will succeed.

[Attax]

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