Newest College Application Essays

Midnight was two hours old before I could finally peel out of my costume. The prosthetic nose and glue-on beard tore at my skin as I tugged them off, and they quickly joined the clutter on the bathroom floor: a tired pile of mismatched robes,...

In fourth grade, after recovering from a brief "I want to be a waitress!" phase, I discovered art, and knew that one day I would become an artist. At that age, I knew people liked art and I had fun creating art, so it seemed like the perfect thing...

An electric current of energy surges through my veins. I want to jump or scream, but all I can do is move my index finger an single inch along the sliding button. The house lights dim as my finger slides the lever downwards. From the lighting...

In an ideal world, mustard would come in whimsical glass containers with pictures of wholesome families on their labels. The words "all natural" or "organic" would adorn the jars. They would line the supermarket shelves next to matching bottles of...

Growing up as one of a trio of "Golden boys" has its share of ups and downs. I am the oldest. Ben followed by two years, and Aaron by another three. It still amazes me that three individuals raised together with the same values, treated the same...

By all accounts, the University of Chicago is a unique place. My late grandfather, a Bachelors and Masters degree recipient from the University used to say, "for the right student, Chicago is the only place, but it can destroy the wrong student."...

I find it disturbing that many people - particularly minorities, youth and women - are so daunted by the prospect of starting a business that they choose not to do so. I believe that society must work to provide equal opportunities for all...

(Please note: my assumption in answering this question is that we do not have the ability to "change history" and are simply observing a moment that is important to us.)

Given the opportunity to be present at any event in time, I would choose to be...

Dean Snyder, it is so nice to meet you. Given that we are on an elevator and have but a few moments to converse, I will be brief. Chicago is my place. It is my family's place. I have attended other institutions of higher learning, but have never...

Ever since the age of eleven, I have known that I wanted to pursue an M.B.A. Business practices across disparate environments fascinate me. I hope to pursue an institutional framework that allows me to gain an understanding of the different modes...

During my junior year of high school, I had the wonderful opportunity to participate in a student exchange program to Italy sponsored by the Ontario Student Exchange Foundation and Intercultura. The exchange program worked on a reciprocal basis:...

"You have to be wary of other religions," Mrs. Ebel explained. It was not hard for any of us fourth graders to come up with the imaginative moniker "Mrs. Evil". "Believers of Judaism, Buddhism, and Islam don't believe in Christ as their savior and...

Papers were sprawled on my desk. Books were stacked two feet high. I was sitting in my cubicle, hunched over old lectures, trying to learn the jargon of rocket science. My eyes squinted at the tiny text as I stumbled through the abstruse...

There are many things in life I could do without: mosquitoes, watermelon seeds, telemarketers, bad weather, cars that won't start, cold swimming pools, traffic lights, stuffy noses, people who disagree with me, and movies that look good until...

The sweat trickling down my neck felt like the stickiness of a dinosaur's breath. My muscles tightened as author Michael Crichton revealed the extent of scientific advancement in today's world. The pages of Jurassic Park turned quickly in my...

"If you only learn one thing all year, I hope it isn't which side won the Civil War, or how Kennedy and Krushchev saved the world," a middle-aged man with peppered hair and round glasses candidly stated from the front of the room, "but that school...

When I was a little kid I used to carry around notebooks which I filled with hundreds of stories ranging in length from a single, whimsical sentence to pages and pages of fantasy. Every hour of the day, there were countless images and ideas...

The women stood in the doors looking out at their husbands, who were talking to the landowners. The children gathered behind them, one bare foot on top of the other. They all watched tensely as the negotiation dragged on; their lives hung in the...

I only have to close my eyes to see this picture before me: A tall, old man standing in the middle of a semicircle of tired faces, grandiosely waving his endless arms as though he were swimming through the music. At five o'clock Friday afternoon,...

"Saudi Arabia? That's a country Daddy? Where is it? Is it going to be like it is here? Are there going to be playgrounds and ice cream?"

Those were just a few of the thoughts that began circulating through my seven- year old mind. I was born in...

I have shared victories that have come from striving toward a common goal with other swimmers: Lauren, Brittany, Lizzie, Kelley. Those ten-year-old girls would cheer with spunky screams when participants of our neighborhood swim team would...

Throughout my life, my eyes have been drawn to the sky. When I was a child I would look up in speckled black night and gaze at constellations, unable to comprehend the extent of the universe, wondering if it ever ended. By day I would look to the...

I still can't believe that when faced with the certainty of a punch in the stomach from a two hundred-pound black belt, I found myself thinking, "I hope he hits me hard." This may seem a little surprising -- masochistic, even -- but it was only...

A soft humming fills the quiet kitchen as she picks up another potato. Calmly, casually, almost lovingly, she guides a smooth steel blade under the thin, textured surface, and a perfect strip of skin falls onto the cutting board. Each stroke of...