In this episode I sat down with TED speaker Tina Yong to talk about why students don’t have to write about trauma in a college essay to stand out—and what they can do instead.
We discussed, among other things:
- Tina’s experience as an immigrant/racialized person feeling the pressure to turn her personal story into a personal statement with a linear, digestible plot—and how she realized how damaging this could be damaging to students of color
- How Tina believes this is more a systemic issue
- The recent Supreme Court ruling and how it can be okay to talk about race in the college application, with certain caveats
- An example personal statement that mentions race but speaks specifically to qualities of character and unique abilities the author would bring to a college campus
- Other ways students can share their identities in ways that allow them to take ownership of their story
- Practical exercises students might use to talk about their different identities in their application—identities that include but aren’t limited to race
- Supplemental essay prompts that ask specifically about challenges
- Specific advice from Tina for students and for counselors
Play-by-Play
- 0:00 - Intro
- 3:45 - Who is Tina Yong?
- 4:04 - Ethan and Tina’s backstory
- 7:08 - ICYMI: recap of Tina’s TedX Talk about her experience as an immigrant applying to US universities
- 9:44 - What inspired Tina to speak on trauma in college essays?
- 11:11 - How and why Ethan changed his workshop approach
- 12:32 - What response did Tina get after her TED Talk? What was the impact?
- 14:29 - What has Tina learned since giving her TED Talk?
- 17:28 - How will applicants of colors be affected by the recent Supreme Court ruling on race-conscious admissions?
- 19:46 - Is it okay to discuss race in your application?
- 22:03 - Ethan & Tina read of a sample personal statement that discusses race
- 25:03 - Tina’s analysis
- 27:32 - Ethan’s analysis
- 30:04 - Three ways that students can share their identity in their personal statements—that don’t focus on a traumatic story with a happy ending
- 34:55 - How to avoid writing a “sob story”
- 35:45 - How to structure a challenges-based essay
- 36:34 - What are colleges looking for in a college essay?
- 38:15 - Practical brainstorming exercises for finding great personal statement topics
- 43:04 - Navigating supplemental essay prompts
- 47:31 - This isn’t the “Vulnerability Olympics”
- 51:36 - Counselor resources & takeaways
- 53:11 - Student resources & takeaways
- 55:47 - Book recommendations from Tina on psychology & trauma
- 57:21 - Closing thoughts
Resources: