Mental illness? - disclose or not? Forum

[mephistofeles]

I am posting for my a close relative and a dear friend. She goes to a lower-Ivy League school (not HYP), and throughout college, she has suffered from depression and anxiety. She is perhaps one of the most brilliant people I have met, as shown by her score 178 on the lsat. And her GPA is 3.66, which is a little subpar for the schools she intends to apply to.

While by the look of it, there is perhaps no problem with that GPA. But she has a semester that is absolutely atrocious, like a 1.2 GPA and failed two classes - that is when she became hospitalized for depression. She took the subsequent semester off for her health. As you can imagine, all other semesters had been straight As. Since this is relatively recent in her academic career (it is her junior year), she should probably write an addendum about that period of time and the gap in her education.

However, we are not a little worried that if she discloses her history of mental illness, it would have an adverse effect on her application. The law schools would perhaps not doubt her academic abilities when she is functioning - but what if she is not functioning properly?

Do any of you have any experience with such issues? Any advice is appreciated.

Her dream school would be Harvard Law, but she is happy to attend any T6 school with or without money.

[ad34964n]

Just keep in mind that it's all about phrasing. I would say if they are able to paint it in a positive light, show growth, and indicate that it has been under control for a considerable period, it might even help rather than hurt - especially given the LSAT.

[CanadianWolf]

Unlikely to help. Likely to hurt her chances of admission because of the fear of suicide. This has been a hot issue among undergraduate schools.

Why law school ? Any interest in the medical field ? Mental health counseling & treatment ? It could help support her interest & commitment to these fields.

Disclosure will be expected.

[CanadianWolf]

Maybe her condition can be disclosed in a personal statement which shows a desire to practice in an area of law designed to help those suffering due to no fault of their own.

Also, with a 178 LSAT score & a 3.66 GPA, consider applying to all T-14 law schools in order to increase chances of admission with a substantial scholarship. It would be unwise, in my opinion, to just apply to the top 6 law schools.

[scone]

Maybe her condition can be disclosed in a personal statement which shows a desire to practice in an area of law designed to help those suffering due to no fault of their own.

Given the proportion of lawyers with mental health issues, it does not seem too ridiculous to imagine that someone might prefer to centre their legal career around something other than past illnesses.

Anyway - it is quite possible that a majority of law students have trouble with their mental health in law school. It is also clear that, in many cases, students do not seek professional support. This is far more worrying for law schools than students who do already have a support network and a history of doing the responsible thing and seeking treatment, as it is these student who are suicide risks.

If your friend can provide evidence that she has a) responded well to treatment and been successful in her academic endeavours post-hospitalisation, and b) that she will seek help promptly through the appropriate channels should she have another episode, and has the support network to make it successful, then there should be no problem from the schools' perspective (except for implicit bias, perhaps).

As it is, your friend has a very good chance at CCN due to her excellent LSAT. I see no reason, if the above criteria are met in an addendum, that this should not be considered as any other illness by HYS and go some way to excusing the semester of really bad grades.

[fats provolone]

is it asexuality?

[carmensandiego]

is it asexuality?

You're going to hell.

[CanadianWolf]

@ scone: If you think that a majority of law students have mental health issues during law school, I think that you are confusing stress with the much more serious issues faced by the student detailed in the original post in this thread. Being hospitalized for depression & anxiety is a very serious matter. Also, I think that you fail to appreciate the significance of the fact that ths was a fairly recent hospitalization.

[scone]

@ scone: If you think that a majority of law students have mental health issues during law school, I think that you are confusing stress with the much more serious issues faced by the student detailed in the original post in this thread. Being hospitalized for depression & anxiety is a very serious matter. Also, I think that you fail to appreciate the significance of the fact that ths was a fairly recent hospitalization.

http://abovethelaw.com/2015/01/if-youre ... depressed/

I don't dispute that being hospitalised for mental health issues is a serious matter. Thankfully, it is treatable, and it is perfectly possible to live a full and healthy life after such an illness. The OP's friend just needs to prove that this applies to her.

However, I agree that it is significant that this was a relatively recent hospitalisation, and it would certainly be better if the OP's friend put some time between it and her (I'm assuming that she's KJD). However, I think evidence that she knows to seek help through the right channels should (one would expect) make up for that, at least to an extent.

[mephistofeles]

Maybe her condition can be disclosed in a personal statement which shows a desire to practice in an area of law designed to help those suffering due to no fault of their own.

Also, with a 178 LSAT score & a 3.66 GPA, consider applying to all T-14 law schools in order to increase chances of admission with a substantial scholarship. It would be unwise, in my opinion, to just apply to the top 6 law schools.

Yes, thanks for the advice! I think she will blanket T-14, as opposed to only applying to the T6 schools.
She has no desire to practice in areas related to mental health, and her PS is on an entirely different matter - I think she is good writing what she is writing.

I am worried that the schools would think that she is "crazy" as people sometimes label people struggling with mental health, and that would significantly hurt her chances. And she cannot prove that she has been stable and functioning for a "considerable" period of time, since the whole episode was really recent.

[mephistofeles]

@ scone: If you think that a majority of law students have mental health issues during law school, I think that you are confusing stress with the much more serious issues faced by the student detailed in the original post in this thread. Being hospitalized for depression & anxiety is a very serious matter. Also, I think that you fail to appreciate the significance of the fact that ths was a fairly recent hospitalization.

http://abovethelaw.com/2015/01/if-youre ... depressed/

I don't dispute that being hospitalised for mental health issues is a serious matter. Thankfully, it is treatable, and it is perfectly possible to live a full and healthy life after such an illness. The OP's friend just needs to prove that this applies to her.

However, I agree that it is significant that this was a relatively recent hospitalisation, and it would certainly be better if the OP's friend put some time between it and her (I'm assuming that she's KJD). However, I think evidence that she knows to seek help through the right channels should (one would expect) make up for that, at least to an extent.

Thanks for the encouragement, and I will pass this on to her! I have no doubt that she will go on to live a fulfilling life despite this episode. However, as it is right now...I think she does have the problem of being labeled as a mental health patient by the schools if she decides to disclose.

[GoneSouth]

Curious as to what other people think, but do you think she has to disclose that it was a mental health issue? Can't she just say that she had a serious health issue that required hospitalization and leave it at that? Are schools really going to come back prying into the details?

[mephistofeles]

Curious as to what other people think, but do you think she has to disclose that it was a mental health issue? Can't she just say that she had a serious health issue that required hospitalization and leave it at that? Are schools really going to come back prying into the details?

Yes. I have been recommending her to disclose it as "a serious health issue that resulted in hospitalisation" without actually noting what it is. We have got mixed answers from fellow applicants and professors for that. Some people tell us that we must disclose.

Some people told me that if she is diagnosed and treated again for the same illness later during law school, she will have to disclose it to the bar. And they will review her app again. I am worried if that will be the case.

[A. Nony Mouse]

Even if it doesn't recur, she may have to disclose it to the bar - it will depend on what kind of information a given state asks for.

[landshoes]

I think there is a third way here, which is for her to take some time to work between undergrad and law school. The best way to show that she has a long history of being stable is to demonstrate for a few years that she is stable.