University of Wisconsin - Oshkosh

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...

University of Michigan - Ann Arbor

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...

University of California - Berkeley

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...

California Institute of Technology

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...

Vanderbilt University

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...

University of Florida

We were inches from the edge; they were shouting “Dale la vuelta! Dale la vuelta!” (“Go around!”). Unless they moved their truck forward, we would plunge to our deaths, our tires were beginning to slip over the edge of the 2,000-foot cliff.

Our...

University of California - San Diego

My childhood began amidst a bevy of confusion – my parents worked several jobs and rushed in and out of the front door from one shift to the next, each time in a different uniform. Although my sister and I were able to take part in every school...

Bucknell University

Ireland was nothing like I had expected. Living in a small Irish city with my aunt and uncle for two months was much easier than it could have been. I wasn’t a total stranger, nor did I have to survive on my own. I was never homesick. There was no...

Carnegie Mellon University

Waving our banner wildly, we counted down the seconds, not at the homecoming game, but rather the 2009 FIRST Robotics Competition Kickoff. With only six weeks to build, wire, and program a 120-pound machine, my team jumped headfirst into...

New York University

1. I spent entire my last summer in Burlington County Footlighters, which is a small community theater. I was involved in two shows: The Secret Garden and The Odyssey, as a pianist for The Secret Garden rehearsals and a violinist for both shows. I...

Boston University

My open-mindedness, good sense of humor and diverse talents give me much to contribute to Boston University.

First, I am an open-minded person. I always have been courteous to people regardless of their backgrounds and personalities, and accepted...

Cornell University

Like every other year, a spectrum of color surrounds me on the first day of 2009. My January 1st mornings have always been shared with Grandma, a 91-year-old woman who still manages to scurry through the kitchen preparing the brunch that stares at...

Boston University

We have a saying here in The Valley: The world will take us where we want to be. In essence, this little bit of wisdom accurately embodies the world I come from, what it has taught me, and the many ways in which it has shaped my dreams,...

Northeastern University

When I first met Brandon, I’m sure that I was too young to understand autism; but I did know that he was different. At that time, for Brandon at age 4, basic communication was a challenge and his frustration seemed to engulf anyone who attempted...

Mercyhurst College

No experience has affected me more greatly than my first job at Burger King. This job has taught me invaluable lessons that I use in my everyday life. I have learned time management, how to deal with all denominations of people, and the importance...

Boston University

It was May 3, 2007, a warm, bright day. Every field was filled with blooming flowers and all the trees were covered with lime green leaves; everything seemed beautiful and normal besides this madness. I was in the back seat of a police car that...

Fordham University

“Repeat Dojo-kun. Seek perfection of character. Be faithful. Endeavor. Respect others. Refrain from violent behavior,” I call out. To my left, the line of kneeling students repeats my words. “Sensei-ni, rei,” I call to the line, and we bow to our...

Cornell University

My middle school was a mess. Not in the sense that we had students crying, teachers screaming or chalk flying everywhere, but rampant homework copying and dozing in class raged all over the campus. It was just a place where learning was not cool....

Cornell University

The College of Arts and Sciences’ flexible opportunities allow me to best pursue all my interests. For example, by integrating physical and information science into biological science, Computational Biology allows me core training in biology...

Georgetown University

It was our last scrimmage game before the start of the 2009 Valparaiso girls’ varsity basketball season. The clock counted down not only the time left in the game but also how many seconds I had left playing on my basketball team before I told the...

Michigan State University

“Τι κάνεις? Στην υγειά μας! Opa!”

“Howdy, partner. What’s in that iron skillet, ma’?”

Those phrases from opposite worlds represent my diverse cultural life growing up with a Greek mother and a father from North Dakota. From my mother I learned to...

Pomona College

I take a deep breath to steel my nerves. I ponder for a second how ridiculous it is that a small white ball has such a profound affect on me, the man with a long metal club. “The hell with it” I finally think as I strain every muscle in my body to...

Vassar College

Thursday, March 19, 2009. The time is 6:55 AM. As my shirt proclaims, this is a special day. I pass my sister as she leaves to catch the school bus and she is wearing the same shirt. I drive to school and find that dozens of my friends are also...