Newest College Application Essays

I stood in front of a fourth grade classroom, all eyes fixed on me. For some reason, I felt nervous, as if I were bare, exposing all my past secrets to the world of susceptible minds. I held up the book The Colors of Freedom, explaining that it...

Maybe, I could be the next Lorene Cary, whose novel, The Price of a Child was selected to unite the city under the 2003 “One Book, One Philadelphia” project. Maybe, I could be one of the few students who stay up until three in the morning trying...

I have encountered a fork. Should I again submit to my father’s demands as I am sent to the kitchen to serve or should I refuse and risk tainting my role as the ideal Vietnamese daughter? I succumb, and fetch a repulsive-smelling platter of duck,...

I’ve lived with my grandparents all my life. My grandfather, whom I call “Pipo,” is like a father to me, and he is absolutely, no-doubt-about-it my favorite person in the world. He is intrigued by everything academic and has a photographic memory....

A thousand miles away from home, I sat in a cramped apartment littered with Bruce Springsteen CDs, listening to my Spanish home-stay family talk about their day. Every evening, just before dinner, the four of us would gather for tiempo de la...

As I graduate from high school with just enough basic understanding of the arts and sciences to appreciate their complexity and depth, I find myself constantly investigating a broad range of topics. My intended field of study is biology, with the...

After years of constant nagging, I finally gave in to my family's relentless pressure to try cooked pig intestines, or chitlins. Their smell, both sickening and overbearing, has made me steer clear from them every year. But, honoring a strong...

Each weekend before Christmas the tempting aromas of ginger, cloves and cinnamon permeate our kitchen as jovial friends and family gather. Freshly baked gingerbread for miniature houses are laid out on the table, and bowls of candy and homemade...

“You have a choice to make. If you choose to publish that article, you will be responsible for ruining the reputation of the school. Do you want to have that on your shoulders?” Assistant Principal Jeff Dingo asked me sternly. The following day,...

“Come on, place your bet. There is already 20 bucks on MESME.”

No, this is not about the conquering of a gambling addiction but rather my story of a life-changing summer at a girl’s overnight camp and the bitter-sweet taste of responsibility. I...

One cannot help but be in awe when he contemplates the mysteries of the human brain. After a particularly lacklustre discussion in my religion class, our teacher gave us an extra writing assignment. “Who is responsible,” she posed to the class, “...

When I was first compiling my college list, I was resistant to the idea of including Wellesley. I was in the group of people who didn’t like the idea of college eithout y-chromosomes. For me, it wasn’t a social issue; I can have fun with whoever...

The first rower I ever met was my proctor in my dorm. At the end of her senior year, her first year on varsity, I asked her how she felt about closing her career with a championship. “I would have rather been on third boat,” she said, “Less...

I can’t stand carpet. The diverse and rugged terrain of the outdoors is undoubtedly superior. I find air conditioning annoyingly artificial compared with summer’s pure, refreshing breeze. And though it may be abnormal, I love to feel sweat...

A year and a day’s journey lay ahead of every fabled knight in search of the ever elusive Holy Grail, and if said knight was deemed worthy to find it, exhaustion would cause him to sleep at the feet of the Grail without ever truly seeing it. And...

I am well known for having many strongly held personal convictions. Whether people look fondly on my convictions or harness utter disdain for them is a completely different story. Some are seen to be outrageous, such as believing that dipping...

I grew up in a family full of high school dropouts; completing school has not always been a top priority. In fact, I will be the first child in my family to graduate from high school, and first to go to college – this despite a constantly unstable...

It was broken. Teams were gathering in the gym for the regional Science Olympiad competition and my electric vehicle sat useless on the cafeteria table. The motor simply would not spin, even though the lights said the circuit was on. The...

I couldn’t find the elevator button. Minutes away from my first big meeting, my first real taste of corporate America, and the elevator seemed determined to snatch away my moment of glory. I tried to maintain my self-assured countenance, practiced...

Anne Frank once said, “How wonderful is it that nobody need wait a single moment before starting to improve the world.” Many people do not realize the impact the smallest good deeds can have on the human race. Some may even give up trying to make...

Touring historical museums, monuments or structures was never a shoulder drooping, heal dragging excursion for me; rather, I would spend the entire outing seemingly staring off into space at the visual delights and spiritual energy of what my...

My world has been exciting and supportive for all my pursuits in life, but I’m most thankful for how it has exposed me to science and welcomed me into research. Ever since my first encounter with science, I’ve been developing a grand theory in my...

My legs dangled high above the ground as I sat next to my mom on the train. As I fidgeted the way little children do, my mother spoke to me. “You have plump fingers, not thin and bony like mine.” I frowned at her as she held my then tiny hands in...

As the puck becomes tangled beneath my skates, my body tenses, and I frantically brace for the inevitable destruction. My senses are acutely alert to the heavy breathing that radiates from the opposing player barreling toward my backside. While...