Yes, you can talk about anxiety in your college essay if it is relevant to the prompt and provides insight into your personal experiences and character. However, it is important to approach the topic in a thoughtful and constructive manner.
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Yes, it is possible to write about anxiety in your college essay, but it is essential to approach the topic in a thoughtful and constructive manner. If the topic relates to the prompt and offers insight into your personal experiences and character, it can be a valuable way to share your story with admissions officers.
Discussing anxiety in a college essay requires a certain degree of emotional intelligence and careful consideration of how you’ll discuss the topic in relation to the prompts. You want to make sure that your essay doesn’t come across as overly negative or self-pitying. Instead, focus on the ways your experience with anxiety shaped your character and influenced your life choices.
As writer Roxane Gay puts it, “When you can’t face the fear, you have to learn to walk with it, to move with it, to let it move you.” Writing a college essay about anxiety can provide an opportunity to show admissions officers how you’ve learned to live with and grow from the challenges you’ve faced.
Here are some facts and ideas to keep in mind when discussing anxiety in your college essay:
- It’s important to have a support system when dealing with anxiety. Talk about the ways you’ve sought out help, whether that’s through therapy, medication, or other means.
- Discuss how you’ve learned to manage your anxiety. This could be through exercise, mindfulness, or other coping techniques.
- Show the ways in which anxiety has affected your life, but avoid letting it overshadow your accomplishments and positive experiences.
- Be honest and authentic in your writing. Writing a college essay about anxiety can be a way to demonstrate emotional intelligence and self-awareness.
Table:
| Do’s | Don’ts |
|---|---|
| Talk about how anxiety has shaped your character | Come across as overly negative or self-pitying |
| Share how you’ve sought out help | Ignore the ways anxiety has affected your life |
| Discuss coping techniques you’ve learned | Let anxiety overshadow your accomplishments |
| Demonstrate emotional intelligence and self-awareness | Gloss over the topic or treat it superficially |
Video response
Joy from Coos talks about whether it is appropriate to mention mental illness or other extenuating circumstances in college applications to explain grades. She suggests acknowledging these situations and explaining their impact on grades, as admissions readers are trained to take them into account. It is important to reflect on how you overcame these obstacles rather than just using them as an excuse, and admissions officials will not prevent you from getting into the college you want because of it.
Some additional responses to your inquiry
Conventional wisdom would caution students against discussing mental health issues in their applications. College essay consultants have discouraged students choosing it as a topic in the past. However, we also encourage students to be bold, speak their truth, and stand out from the crowd.
Recently, I’ve noticed a concerning uptick in the number of students asking whether it’s appropriate for them to write about mental health issues, most frequently ADD and/or anxiety, in their college applications. So the short answer: don’t do it. The slightly longer version:
Recently, I’ve noticed a concerning uptick in the number of students asking whether it’s appropriate for them to write about mental health issues, most frequently ADD and/or anxiety, in their college applications. So the short answer: don’t do it. The slightly longer version:
Anxiety does not. So, if you talk about anxiety in your Common App essay, you’re missing an opportunity to show the admissions committee who you really are. That’s the whole point.
sorry, but do not recommend that topic. depression and anxiety are common health conditions (not to make light of your health condition, but super common), and it could make you seem fragile and/or self absorbed and not mature if you pick that topic.
Surely you will be interested in these topics
Is it OK to write a college essay about anxiety? Recently, I’ve noticed a concerning uptick in the number of students asking whether it’s appropriate for them to write about mental health issues, most frequently ADD and/or anxiety, in their college applications. So the short answer: don’t do it.
Beside above, Is it OK to write about mental health in college essays? The reply will be: Mental health history or a disability might be an integral part of who a student is, but that doesn’t necessarily make it relevant to a college application. Keep in mind that it is actually illegal for colleges to ask for these types of details about your life because it can be considered discrimination.
Besides, Is it OK to talk about depression in a college essay? The response is: It is okay to write about mental illness and Depression in your college essay as long as it proves that you’re a suitable student. Thus, you should be asking yourself, “how does my experience with mental illness or Depression make me a strong candidate?”
Is it okay to talk about trauma in a college essay?
Sometimes you need to be able to explain the circumstances in your life — and colleges want to know about any hardships you’ve had. They want to understand the context of your application, so don’t worry about thinking you’re asking the colleges to feel sorry for you (we hear kids say that all the time).
Can anxiety be discussed in an essay?
In all the time I did college admissions work, I had exactly one student successfully discuss anxiety in an essay. It was, however, introduced in the context of a family tragedy that had profoundly shaped the student’s life; given that background, the discussion seemed natural and matter of fact rather than overdramatized.
In this manner, Is anxiety common in college?
The response is: It’s common. Anxiety in college is very common. According to the American College Health Association Fall 2018 National College Health Assessment, 63% of college students in the US felt overwhelming anxiety in the past year. In the same survey, 23% reported being diagnosed or treated by a mental health professional for anxiety in the past year.
Similarly, Should you write about mental health issues in college applications? Recently, I’ve noticed a concerning uptick in the number of students asking whether it’s appropriate for them to write about mental health issues, most frequently ADD and/or anxiety, in their college applications. So the short answer: don’t do it.
Subsequently, How do you deal with anxiety in college? Approach, don’t avoid. College is challenging and many students cope by avoiding stressors (skipping class, staying in bed all day). However, we know that avoidance tends to make anxiety worse over time. Instead, practice taking small steps to approach anxiety-provoking situations.
In this way, Can anxiety be discussed in an essay?
In all the time I did college admissions work, I had exactly one student successfully discuss anxiety in an essay. It was, however, introduced in the context of a family tragedy that had profoundly shaped the student’s life; given that background, the discussion seemed natural and matter of fact rather than overdramatized.
Also question is, Is anxiety common in college? It’s common. Anxiety in college is very common. According to the American College Health Association Fall 2018 National College Health Assessment, 63% of college students in the US felt overwhelming anxiety in the past year. In the same survey, 23% reported being diagnosed or treated by a mental health professional for anxiety in the past year.
Furthermore, Should you write about mental health issues in college applications?
Recently, I’ve noticed a concerning uptick in the number of students asking whether it’s appropriate for them to write about mental health issues, most frequently ADD and/or anxiety, in their college applications. So the short answer: don’t do it.
How do you deal with anxiety in college?
Answer to this: Approach, don’t avoid. College is challenging and many students cope by avoiding stressors (skipping class, staying in bed all day). However, we know that avoidance tends to make anxiety worse over time. Instead, practice taking small steps to approach anxiety-provoking situations.