How do you deal with health issues on your application?
Posted: Tue Sep 08, 2009 1:21 pm
Hi all,
First thanks for taking the time to read this. I've always had pretty good, but not super exceptional grades, a 3.8 gpa physics & general gpa until the spring semester of my Junior year I got diagnosed with a fairly serious medical condition.
I ended up dropping or incompleting all of my classes last spring semester. I am making up an upper division physics & grad physics course and should have them completed by the time applications are due. But I actually failed a German class that summer because I was too busy/distracted dealing with my health issues to drop it. I'm trying to do a retroactive withdrawal from that class due to my health reasons but am not too hopeful.
My health also had a big toll on my research, my adviser and I were hoping that I would have published results before I turned my applications in but that didn't end up happening. However, I should at the very least have a poster presented on the subject at the APS DPP meeting, if not a paper submitted for peer review, by then.
I was just wondering how I should address this on my applications. I'm unsure how much I should mention where I expected to be with my research, I don't want to sound whiny. I'm pretty sure my adviser will put it in his recommendation letter. Should I also try and mention it? Or just make sure that he does in his letter?
I'm also undecided how to approach my how my gpa was affected. Should I try and talk myself up and seem proud of the classes that did complete? Or should I try and apologize for my short comings, and ask that they only judge my tumor-free semesters?
Thanks!
First thanks for taking the time to read this. I've always had pretty good, but not super exceptional grades, a 3.8 gpa physics & general gpa until the spring semester of my Junior year I got diagnosed with a fairly serious medical condition.
I ended up dropping or incompleting all of my classes last spring semester. I am making up an upper division physics & grad physics course and should have them completed by the time applications are due. But I actually failed a German class that summer because I was too busy/distracted dealing with my health issues to drop it. I'm trying to do a retroactive withdrawal from that class due to my health reasons but am not too hopeful.
My health also had a big toll on my research, my adviser and I were hoping that I would have published results before I turned my applications in but that didn't end up happening. However, I should at the very least have a poster presented on the subject at the APS DPP meeting, if not a paper submitted for peer review, by then.
I was just wondering how I should address this on my applications. I'm unsure how much I should mention where I expected to be with my research, I don't want to sound whiny. I'm pretty sure my adviser will put it in his recommendation letter. Should I also try and mention it? Or just make sure that he does in his letter?
I'm also undecided how to approach my how my gpa was affected. Should I try and talk myself up and seem proud of the classes that did complete? Or should I try and apologize for my short comings, and ask that they only judge my tumor-free semesters?
Thanks!