[cillitbang]

hi, this may be in the wrong forum.
i was just wondering whether universities care/ are biased when people admit to past eating disorders, for example on university applications when you have to mention any medical problems. (especially if applying for a course in healthcare). also, if you had a year out from study (school) due to it, is it best to explain why or to pass over the fact? as i'm guessing most unis aren't looking for mental health time bombs. thanks for any help...was merely wondering whether honesty is the best policy in a situation like this.

[lincs_b]

I'm not sure about uni's but I had a friend who suffered with an ED who was a nurse. She felt unable to get any support in case it affected her career. I think if it is a past issue it is best to keep quiet as it isn't going to make any difference.

[daniel_williams]

i don't know if it would because everyone changes when they get to university, its a big thing in someones life, those that may have been unstable at home may be more stable at uni, others who are stable at home may become unstable at university.

i really can't see why it would make any difference, universities have people trained to deal with these problems and they must have ealt with them many times before. eating disorders affected someone I know and all they did was more them into different halls to make them feel more comfortable and be with some of their friends and things settled down, it was done so they could be monitored more easily.

i wouldn't worry about hiding the truth, infact if you can admit you've had a problem and you've overcome it then it shows your a strong willed individual.

[Paeony]

When I was at uni there was a girl who had anorexia and was living in my halls. The uni was incredibly supportive of her, but unfortunately there came a point where it was obvious that she was becoming very ill and the uni took the decision to ask her to leave until her illness was under control, as ultimately they couldn't accept the responsibility of her care. I'm not sure if this situation would be different if she was living at home and coming to uni daily though, and I believe that in terms of accommodation/pastoral care my uni was very ED aware because of a previous case that wasn't handled well. They did allow her to return and to live in halls again the next year though, as it was clear that she was much better and wasn't in obvious physical danger. AFAIK, her tutors were very supportive of the situation too.

Personally I think that it's best to be open about these things. There *might* be some courses where potentially it could affect your admission, but I know of people who've got onto fairly 'sensitive' courses (nursing, teaching) and have had eating disorders, they just tend to be referred to the occupational health people for further assessment so that the uni can be sure that their illnesses are substantially under control before they accept them onto demanding courses. I don't think it's a good idea to hide anything if you're directly asked, as it never looks good when lies are found out (and they generally are ...) I think it's best to make people aware of any issues, just so that you know that you've got people looking out for you.

[cillitbang]

yeah, it's funny that there's probably a lot of people working in the health care sector who deal with medical or psychological related problems. perhaps the most obvious is psychiatrists, quite a few of whom have experience of mental health issues. some sort of 'wanting to help others' who have experienced what they went through, or even self-help to a degree.

you're right about the overcoming problems showing strong will. i think that eating disorders can often reoccur though, especially in stressful situations such as exams at uni. the only reason i was wondering is due to the discrepancy in my exam dates (due to missing a year of school.) i.e there will be 3 yrs between gcse grades and a-level grades, as opposed to 2.

[Paeony]

I doubt that most universities will even notice the discrepancy. If they do I doubt you'll be unusual, as I'd imagine that there are a good few people who, for whatever reason, have an 'extra' year between their A-Levels and their GSCEs.