University of California - Irvine Undergraduate College Application Essays

For those who start their studies in the U.S. with linguistic disadvantages, AP and IB courses are unattainable dreams. As with many of my fellow international students in California, I could not benefit from the virtues of sophisticated academic...

My personal interests range from physics and math to the martial arts, but I would particularly like to address my interest in robotics and creative design. This interest alone has enhanced my creativity and problem solving skills, to the extent...

As I watch my opponent pace back and forth, I steady myself, appear indifferent, and slow my breathing. Suddenly, he lunges, taking hold of my wrist so that I may not block his punch. I think, "Don't flinch! You've done this one hundred times...

"Work hard and get a good job, so you can have a better life than your father and me." My mother's wise words play in my head like a broken record. Her endless endeavors have inspired me to strive for success-not only to follow through with my...

My father has always told me that education can break down many barriers, whether they are class, racial, or religious. For this reason my father has made it a priority for me and my sister to attend well established private schools. This...

"So, what do you want to do today?"

The woman stood in front of me with her clipboard and pen, patiently waiting for my answer. I turned my head to look at my brother-in-law's door down the hallway. My body ached; I had been savagely beaten that...

I was thirteen when I knew. After the first grade report came in, my "A's" gleaming gloriously, a testament to my perseverance and academic achievement, I decided to seek this "education thing" with all that is in me. There was no reason to go...

It is often said, "Write what you know," and I know myself: I know what I want. Every day I learn more, as I reflect upon my habits and quirks, strengths and weaknesses; as I remember my past and imagine my future. I want challenges and victories....

To finish off the junior year, our English instructor told us to compose one last piece concerning our personal beliefs, and I worried about the consequences of reading my controversial paper on homosexuality in front of the class. To do so would...

I was out of my element. Alcoholic fathers and abusive mothers? Gangs and drugs?! I had been thrust, suddenly, into the real world, exposed to all its horrors.

It was two years ago, and I had entered the Confirmation program at my church. The...

When we were young, we were all asked what we wanted to be in the future. Some of us said a firefighter, some said an engineer or a lawyer, and the some even said school janitor. However, I only had one goal for my future. For me, all those hours...

It took one spin class to decide I wanted to make this workout part of my life. During that hour I escape my sense of reality; at the same time, there are direct connections between spin class and the world I come from. The class has given me the...

Tattooed in my memory are the shrill rings of my alarm clock set to exactly 6:00 AM every day, submerging half my 110 pound body into the sub-zero water, fish half my size splashing muddy water onto my pale face. Most kids enjoy the freedom that...

As I rushed up to the sliding glass doors that marked the entrance to the Emergency Room, my heart pounded with exhilaration. Patients were sitting in chairs, lying on stretchers, and nervously pacing the floor. With a dry mouth and sweaty palms,...

Academic Preparation

Last summer, I attended the COSMOS program at UC Santa Cruz to learn about Stars, Sight, and Science. Pulling up into the driveway of College Nine, my heart began to beat rapidly and I quickly realized that it was time for me...

“The world is flat.” When I was little, I never believed this line. I would always show off in class, proudly proclaiming: “The earth is a sphere!” But now, I see the line again, on the title of a book by Thomas Friedman—and, this time, I have no...

His skinny figure stoops and meticulously cleans and wipes each green Dong leaf, then puts it into an small pile. Afterwards, he takes out a basket of peas and grinds them till they are as fine as wheat flour. Each of his movement is quick but...

Open-Ended This question seeks to give students the opportunity to share important aspects of their schooling or their lives - such as their personal circumstances, family experiences and opportunities that were or were not available at their...

It was a less-than-exciting afternoon in the waning days of junior year when the mess began. My name, along with the names of two other speech and debate officers, was called over the intercom. We were wanted in the principal's office immediately....

I stared deep into the dark green eyes of the seal that was lying on my surf board. She looked as if she were trying to tell me something. Her glossy grey coat glowed in the moonlight, and her whiskers twitched in the sea breeze. I could only...

I’m a surfer, which means I spend many hours a week in the vast Pacific Ocean that meets the San Francisco County shoreline. I know my coastline like the back of my hand. I know the texture of the smooth, slimy kelp that flourishes in our frigid...

People often tell me how much I look like my grandmother. They say we share the same eyes, the same nose, and the same eager smile. What they don’t realize, however, is that the five-foot, white-haired, 61-year-old woman beside me is not my...

I had heard it all before: life comes with no guarantees, no time outs, and rarely any second chances. Yet in spite of the currents against me, I sought to make for myself a second chance. When my junior year of basketball ended, my heart sunk...

The external reflections of my admiration are subtle. A red and blue toothbrush, its handle laced with white plastic webbing, stands among bottles of makeup remover by my sink. A boyish PVC and polyester wallet depicting an agile hero as he swings...