UC Personal Statement--Describe the world you come from - for example, your family, community or school - and tell us how your world has shaped your dreams and aspirations.
I have been pursuing sports at a high level since I was 8 years old. I will write about this in my personal statement and the support from my family to help shape this dream BUT should I discuss my lack of stellar grades due to this pursuit? I was told by the college coach that I will probably not get in on my first attempt but may get in on appeal..will an explanation in my statement help clarify my grades or should I just let the pursuit of my dream speak for itself?
Thanks
i think you should mention a little bit about why your grades were affected, but don't turn it into a big thing, and don't just randomly pop the fact in there either. since the prompt didn't really ask you about your grades, just mainly focus on how you come about choosing your goal.
Very Rough First Draft with No Conclusion--Am i going in the right direction?
Thanks
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I am a competitive tennis player; I have been playing in tournaments since I was 8 years old. One of my earliest memories is that of my grandfather throwing wiffle balls at me while I batted them non-stop with a small plastic bat, I could barely stand and he would play with me for what seemed like hours on end. I was so fortunate to have someone spend the time with me to help develop my hand-eye coordination at such a young age. By the time I was 4 years old, he had me out on the tennis court hitting balls with a wooden tennis racquet that was bigger than I was. Then sadly, my grandfather died but he instilled in me the love of sport and competition, he truly inspired me to continue to pursue my dream of being a tennis player.
Since then, I have spent thousands of hours training and playing in tournaments, I spend most weekends traveling to tennis tournaments, not a day goes by when I don't think of how proud my grandfather would be of my accomplishments. I have worked very hard to get where I am, sometime to the detriment of friends and family but my aspirations have brought me where I am today. My parents have supported me in this endeavor and allowed for me to train and travel despite the sacrifice to our family, I am truly grateful for this opportunity.
The confidence I have developed through sports has helped me in other aspects of my life. While in first semester 10th grade, I was in an independent study program, living away from home at a tennis academy and traveling extensively. Among the courses I was taking were Algebra 2 and Chemistry, I thought I was doing OK but I had never received any grades so I was not sure how I was doing until I decided to go back to regular school in the second semester. It because apparent that these courses were not ones which someone could not teach themselves and I ended up barely passing one and failing the other. Instead of being dejected I pulled from my confidence I learned on the tennis court and I made it a mission to improve those grades the next school year. Not only did I get A's and B's when I repeated these courses but I developed a true passion for Chemistry, I am now enrolled in AP Chemistry and hope to major in Chemistry in college.
You could explain that you value sports as much as academic achievement and therefore you are a complete individual unlike other applicants.
You could omit the failing part.It can only hurt your chances of getting a place.Anyway thats your call.Good luck with your application
I think you would do well emphasizing the balance of your life. When you retook the courses, you passed. That will please them. You are also a successful athlete. That is something which is an accomplishment too. You are an accomplished person, and I can tell you, that isn't all that common. Play up the highlights like that, and don't mention anything they didn't specifically ask for. If later they ask, tell the truth. but you don't have to tell everything up front. Focus on the balance.
Should I put it more like having some "problems" in school as opposed to failing or should I just omit that part altogether?
If it were me, I'd just omit. If they want to know about it, they'll ask. As I said, it's just a matter of balance.