Ohio State University Undergraduate College Application Essays

“Komm Herr Jesus,” she invokes, “sei du unser Gast, und segne, was du uns bescheret hast. Amen,” and we all join in on the cross. “Vater, Sohn, und Heiliger Geist. Amen.”

I always fumbled the words.

My grandmother would lift her head and throw a...

I am indescribably awestruck with The Ohio State University (OSU). The first aspect of the university that caught my eye was its remarkable diversity. All of my life, I have attended public schools where the majority of the students were of...

Sophomore year I tried out for my school’s track team. I made the team but never placed high enough in the competitions to earn a varsity letter. I was very disappointed in myself and worked hard in the off-season to change that. I ate healthier,...

I was born in the middle of two different social classes. My father’s family consisted of wealthy business owners and stock brokers, while my mother’s side consisted of minimum wage workers. Growing up I was able to get a taste of both sides...

It’s safe to say that I went through an awkward stage primarily during my middle school days. Foreign endorphins, peer pressure and poor judgment basically describe grades six through eight. This period of self-identity stretched into my high...

In checkers, players must strategize and plan in order to make their moves and win the game. This is what my dad taught me when we played, almost every day after school. After I learned the basics, it was up to me to figure out how to beat him. He...

“When you have eliminated the impossible, whatever remains, however improbable, must be the truth”. - Quote from The Sign of the Four by Arthur Conan Doyle.

Addicted to detective fiction, I’m a fan of Sherlock Holmes, deeply absorbed in Sherlock’s...

On a late winter evening, a young boy - soon to be robbed of his innocence - watches as his parents get into another heated argument. In every occurrence before, the feuding tempers would cool, and peace was restored; however, this time was...

My story begins in what was once an artist's commune, the Monterey area, an unending canvas of serene beauty. I vividly recall the vibrant colors and the fragrant air as I sat along the coast, watching the crashing waves bleed into the Santa Lucia...

Asian people do not discuss mental illness. While “Asian” is a broad term that cannot possibly encompass all the nationalities and ethnicities of the Asian continent, this is a solid fact in the most prominent cultures: China, Japan, Korea,...

It was an ideal day for a wedding. The sun was shining and was seventy degrees on top of one of downtown Cleveland’s taller rooftops. The airshow was to my right, and the entire span of the Cleveland skyline to my left. The wind died down as we...

A vivacious and carefree four-year-old, I dropped my paintbrush, splattering globs of blue paint all over my t-shirt and classmates nearby. Immediately, my thin lips transformed into an enormous grin. My grandpa, or as we say in Russian, my ...

It’s 6am. My alarm clock squawks at me to wake up. With legs aching from practice, arms tired from shooting drills, and head throbbing with pain from only sleeping four hours, I squint at the illuminated red numbers, contemplating whether or not...

2007: “Are y’all comin’?” I yell to the kids on the playground as I run over to the swings. They look at each other and laugh, clearly making fun of the way I speak. I put my head down, embarrassed, and walk to the swings alone. I wish I hadn’t...

In the summer of 2016, I met Dimitria, an eight-year-old native of southeast Atlanta, at Park Avenue Baptist Church’s literacy camp, an effort to reduce the local high school’s 68% drop out rate. On the surface, she seemed like the other...

Standing atop the highest peak in the continental United States, the thin, crisp air and spectacular beauty of Mt. Whitney’s crest energized and humbled me. I could hear my heart beating, the individual rocks crunching beneath my feet, and the...

The girl stares with blank, pupil-less eyes; her lips are dainty and relaxed, her hair neat and coiled. Her placid expression and plain features provide no insight as to who she is, and because only her head is displayed, I can discern little of...

I spent much of the summer in the basement of a Dublin Castle, jaws clenched and synapses firing as the identity of the murderer continued to evade my grasp of reason. The first surprise was not really a surprise but the fact remained astounding...

The barrel; nothing but the barrel, thick and menacing, held less than five inches away from my face. In that singular moment , the world died: the early jacaranda blooms died, the sounds of shrieking school children died, the hoarse cries of bus...

One thing remains constant from London to Krakow to Ambala Cantt. Regardless of how far one roams, the Law of Moments will remain in effect. Facts such as these were very comforting to my younger self. No matter how many despondent children I...

A house is a trove of memories; a source of dignity and pride; the essence of security - or at least it's supposed to be. When my family was evicted from our fading domicile on Alexander Street, I began to question my right to the city I called...

“Sit still!” my mom shouted at me in Igbo, as she continued to press the scalding flat iron to my scalp. I hung my head, watching as the puddle of tears in my lap grew larger, each additional tear rolling off my chubby ten-year-old cheek,...

There have been two instances in my life in which I felt as if I completely did not belong.

The first time was my first day at Primrose School in Cary, North Carolina, where I realized with discomfort that I could not understand a thing my peers...

When asked who is responsible for the death of Alexander Hamilton, the answer seems simple: Aaron Burr. What’s more likely is Hamilton’s fatal flaw: his arrogance. That answer, however, is exactly what Burr would suggest. We can only imagine the...