allylewy

God, it just feels so unfair to have to include it all forever. At what point can people move on from difficult periods in their life

Hey Guys So after a lot of tears and realising that no matter what I do or how much I want to, I can't change the past and be that 'perfect' student I wish I was. I first went to University right after high school and didn't do so well, my GPA was only a 2.15. I was 18, lazy, depressed and still quite burned out from high school. Also in my third year was involved in a serious car crash and had 3 operations on my leg. Anyway, I graduated, couldn't get a job because recessions and bad grades don't go well together especially when you did an arts degree. I started a second degree about 18mo later, but failed the first semester as my mother passed away after the withdrawal date and I wasn't told until it was too late that I could have made a case to have it scrapped from the record, so sadly, it sits on the transcripts because the University refuses to make an exception. Three years after that, I went back to Uni at 26.5 with my shit together am now about to graduate in Politics and Journalism with a German almost-major (did all the language units, just didn't do the electives like 'german literature' to get the major) and have a 3.65GPA with excellent recommendations from my professors. Stupidly though, I accepted 2 exemptions for intro courses at the new school and now can't hide the old degree. I didn't realise it would show as 'transferred credit'. Can't get it rescinded. I now have to own up to the old degree. I wanted to hide it . Do i have any shot at any grad school (or employers later on) with such a weird record? I think I've proven myself to be grown up and have gotten over the depression/personal issues/lack of motivation but I'm worried that they won't care and will just see the bad record and laugh me away even though this was all a few years ago now. How can I best present myself? Do Unis even care about 'life experience' and 'maturity' and 'proving yourself' or is that just crap people say to make people like me feel better? (FWIW: I have advanced German and very good intermediate Spanish and speak Latvian fluently.) I'm starting to feel scared that my mistakes from age 18-25 have ruined my life...