optional essay- how much info is too much info?

[guest]

optional essays usually ask the applicant to disclose any information that might be helpful to the adcom as they assess his or her candidacy. how much information is too much? if I've jumped around jobs 1.5 and 1 year, and at current job for 1.5. should I address this? does it matter if it was for health reasons(e.g. too sick to work so had to take a less stressful/demanding job.

what about conditions like ADHD or other health concerns that might have affected my college grades or test scores? would they sound like excuses for some gaps in the application? would they think that the candidate couldn't hack in in their program because of these "disabilities?" any thoughts?

[MBAApply]

Disclose the facts, but don't over explain -- in other words, keep it short. The longer your explanation is, the more defensive it will come across.

Alex Chu
alex@mbaapply.com
www.mbaapply.com
http://mbaapply.blogspot.com