Newest College Application Essays

"Can you photocopy money?" my teacher asked. I shook my head, slowly reddening. No, I was not involved in some illegal money laundering scheme. But at that moment, my teacher accused me of a crime to the same punishable degree.

My junior English...

My academic life has represented a process of acquaintance with my talents, values, and flaws. I have strived to fulfill my potential and now wish to pursue a future in the field of Political Science. I have cultivated an interest in languages...

NOTE: This essay utilized pictures and graphics which could not be included online.

“Quiet on the set. Camera ready? Sound ready? Roll camera… speed. Action!” This series of sentence fragments is used to get a film camera recording on a movie set....

“I think we’re lost,” I said to my parents as I stood on the corner of 114th Street and Broadway carrying a large bag of luggage. I stopped confused as to where I was going. I knew I was close; I could tell by the number of people wearing Columbia...

Here’s a sob story for you: my father died when I was four. My mother has always been legally blind, but shortly after my father’s death, when I was six, she fell and broke her back. Two years later, she had a brain hemotoma and nearly passed...

As I watch the edges on the shiny four-by-six memories that I pinned to my wall warp and curl, I cannot help but feel my heart ache. I spent an entire school year and summer investing my time, energy, and love into my job as a nanny for six...

On my dresser, hiding behind a stack of books, is a half-filled bottle of Revlon Red nail polish. I haven’t used it at least a year, not since the day I left it open on a white carpet for my dog to knock over. But last month, after visiting my...

Last summer, while aurally interpreting the script of Lorca’s ‘Yerma’, my biggest challenge was bringing to life the ‘shepherd’s horn in the distance’. My initial choice, the authentic sound of a conch-shell horn actually used by Andalusian...

When my Academic Decathlon coach distributes materials in June—hundreds of pages of history, poems, research topics, and more—it is with the tacit understanding that students have just seven months to synthesize, analyze, and otherwise own this...

I will admit: computer science has not always fascinated me like it does today. As the son of a software engineer, I did not find take-your-child-to-work day particularly appealing. Seeing my father constantly work on the computer had given me a...

What motivates someone to bungee jump head-first off bridges, crawl through rock tunnels miles below the surface of the earth, or tackle the white crags of Mount Everest? Not everyone escapes these experiences unscathed, leaving many questioning...

I have been traveling since I was two weeks old. Denver is where I was born, but almost immediately after my adoption, my parents brought me to my home of 17 years, Rhode Island. I have had the fortune and privilege of having parents who love to...

"I'm not spending money on piano lessons," said my mother. "It will be a waste of time and money since your hands are too small and stiff." The condescending smile on her face enraged me.

I felt a sudden impulse to bang at the black and white...

I never thought that I could be made to do someone serious harm until I read Obedience to Authority by Stanley Milgram. The book describes the Milgram experiment, in which ordinary people were made to believe that they were doing something...

It was two weeks before my 8th birthday and my little head was overflowing with dreams of Barbie’s, toys, cakes, and princesses. The invitations had been mailed, the pink cake had been ordered, and I was convinced that my princess-themed party was...

(Note: This was for an undergraduate transfer application.)

My musical journey began innocently enough, in my infancy, with a toy keyboard placed in my crib as a diversion. Though I would not begin formal instruction on an instrument for several...

Walking towards Asia House from south campus with Joe, my host whom I had met about an hour prior, we talked about the little idiosyncrasies of Oberlin as we prepared to eat the co-op made pizza. There was an indie rock-jazz fusion band performing...

The excitement, first felt in my stomach, is building within me. We’ve almost reached the place that will enable me to begin every day of the next two weeks happy and satisfied. I’ve been craving what awaits me inside this place for the last ten...

If the English language were a playground, the word “education” would definitely be a bully. Big and scary sounding, education grabs unsuspecting pronouns by the collar and throws them up against the wall with their untied shoes kicking above the...

I firmly believe that antidrug campaigns whose values instill the “just say no” attitude in elementary school children should be extended to encompass the wretched habit of knuckle cracking. I have done it since I was a young tot, I am told, which...

Smack! Within a fraction of a second, my life was changed forever. A homemade slingshot snapped and launched a funnel and water balloon at an unimaginable speed directly into my left ear. Once I’d been hit, an incredibly loud whistling screamed...

“The slut! How could she be so stupid as to get “knocked up” at the age of 15?” “ That’s a real predicament for that young girl.” “ I hope the best for her but fear the worst.”

Those were just some of the judgments cast upon me secretly by some...

At the age of five, when most of my peers aspired to be astronauts, princesses or cowboys, I had already decided to become a musician. It was not until almost fifteen years later, however, that I settled upon not only the specific aspects of music...

I was an antagonist. But please do not get me wrong. It was only in our role play. Actually I never imagined myself acting on a stage. This may be the most challenging experience I have ever faced, and I am delighted that I attained a deep insight...