Newest College Application Essays

When life throws me a curve, I try to find an equation for the best-fit line. Actually, life never really throws me a perfect curve, only a series of data that resembles one. Most people are content by connecting these random dots, forming a...

My father was born in a little village in the south of France called Le Chambon in 1944. In that village, 5,000 Christians saved 5,000 Jews, including my grandfather, my grandmother, and my father.

Last summer, I visited Le Chambon for the first...

Entering the music room in LaGuardia Community College for the first time, I sit down before the upright piano and take out Mozart's Fantasy in D Minor. It is a simple piece, but one of my favorites. It consists of three parts, the first with a...

An over-achieving comically jubilant class president, a hypochondriac vegetarian, a quietly cynical artist, a pair of environmental and social activists who use their intellect and incredible ability to convey propaganda to save the world from...

Helpless, the fuzzy, fat caterpillar floated in the creek near our house, wriggling bravely in a vain attempt to swim to shore. I took a stick, knelt down and extended it towards him. The caterpillar latched onto it eagerly, then hesitated a...

Kimball Farm once had the lightest atmosphere on earth. My problems would dissolve upon entering the ice cream stand and my concerns for the outside world would completely vanish. At work, I worried about simple things, like whether or not we had...

Just as the plane landed, I closed The Fountainhead interrupting Ayn Rand's famous courtroom speech. Everything Rand wrote about, from individualism to selfishness, all made sense. As I stepped foot into the dreary airport, I knew I wasn't in...

Ever since I opened a National Geographic magazine to a five-page article on the Congo basin, I've cherished a secret desire to be a National Geographic photographer. I've always been fascinated by ecological biology, and I would love to learn...

I was born May 10, 1987, the third child in my family. I enjoyed the title of "the youngest" for exactly 754 days (and 3 hours) until I lost the coveted title on June 2, 1989 when my brother and sister were born. I now hold the often-detested...

Of course, the preliminary criteria for a roommate is someone who won't leave half-eaten food and wadded-up paper and underwear all over the floor, who won't blast AC/DC at 2 a.m. and who won't invite her new boyfriend over to spend the night. But...

My French teacher, a die-hard fan of existentialism, assigned Camus' L'etranger last year. I went into the book apprehensively, but came out enthralled. It was not the story linea man condemned for refusing to live by society's rules--nor the dark...

In my opinion, something which should be given a lot of weight in an application is the student's involvement in his or her community, whether it is in school or outside of school. Being involved in the community encompasses many things, from...

"Mommy! I can't find it!" My chubby hands flew up in frustration as my blankets and bed sheets tumbled on down, creating an incriminatingly prominent heap on the floor.

"Find what?" Faithfully her characteristic scent of jasmine with a touch of...

"Angelina, you're 18 going on 45" - that's my best friend, Bailey's, favorite expression. What most people don't understand, though, is that those qualities of mine that make me seem older are simply the result of a rather unusual upbringing. Of...

The city spoke softly to me in cool, cosmopolitan tones. It invited me to explore each avenue full of boutiques. It dared me to bite into each warm, fresh croissant from the boulangeries that I passed. It pulled me through the bustling streets...

"Don't be such a wimp, just jump!" I glanced up to see the smirking face of a blonde riding the chairlift above me. For the past five minutes, I had sat perched atop a fifteen-foot boulder directly under Snake Creek chairlift, snowboard strapped...

I shuddered. Chills raced down my spine. My arms and legs were suddenly covered in goose bumps. I read the quote once again. âTo leave the world a little better; whether by a healthy child, a garden patch, or a redeemed social condition; to know...

"Pre-calculus is much harder then calculus, and if you can make it through pre-calculus, you will breeze through calculus." This is my math teacher, Mrs. Croft's, favorite statement. Until I took calculus, I never believed her. I walked into...

I love to play the violin, but I hate to practice it. I dislike what I consider to be the mundane but difficult process of going over each passage or line individually, trying to make each note perfect while still developing the piece as a whole....

Nothing better epitomizes today's motto of learning than Aristotle's analysis of education, "The roots of education are bitter, but the fruit is sweet." It seems that the fruits of education have bloomed even greater and sweeter than ever before....

The hum of the centrifuge sharpened to an insistent whine, clicking softly as the safety lock disengaged. I collected my vial and reached for the pipette -- that sixth extension of my hand. My fingers shook slightly, but I was careful not to drop...

The dust billowed down, coating my face and the inside of my lungs as I ran. Ahead, Heartbreak Hill seemed to stretch into blue infinity. My senses deadened by fatigue, I almost missed hearing the voices. They grew louder and louder and suddenly I...

Hey roomy, come to the local chili festival this weekend! I had a blast there two summers ago -- and not only as a chili aficionado. Let me explain. I was a Palo Alto Fire Explorer in high school, so during the summer I staffed first aid stations...

Quotes are like songs and musical tunes. You can remember and repeat only the really good ones. For some reason, they stay in your head and play over and over again after you have found the perfect one. Like songs, quotes can be stuck in different...