University of Southern California Undergraduate College Application Essays

“Help, I can’t move,” cried a feeble voice. It was a trapped “victim.” At first, I froze in fear until my team leader yelled, “Radio out!” I composed myself, called our Incident Commander on the walkie-talkie, and reported, “Female, green top, red...

Indonesian-ness is hardly quantifiable, but per my parents, mine was a five out of ten. This poor rating stems mainly from my parents’ belief that second-generation immigrants, like myself, were diluted versions of an original product. Though I...

Diagnosed with ODD, he was one of my hardest students to teach Taekwondo, but undoubtedly the most rewarding. He would climb on top of the fridge, scream at other kids and defy every word I said. His mother was an alcoholic who was always late to...

Growing up, cooking was a way for me to feed myself due to my parents often working late shifts. Often Macaroni n Cheese or grilled cheese and tomato soup would be my go-to dish - that was my idea of cooking. However, as I grew up and my tastes...

There’s something exquisite in the curve of a tiger’s tail. An elegant extension of the spine, carefully sculpted by years of evolution to be a flawless balancing tool. Such beauty is not uncommon in the animal kingdom. A dragonfly’s wing, a deer’...

Clutching the remote-control helicopter that I had just received, I sprinted home. When I arrived, I rang the bell and waited for the door to open. I was so electrified that I would have run through the door and left a “me” shaped hole. I was not...

As a kid, I was always fascinated with my mother’s childhood. Living in California, the distant farm-life of Cambodia that she would tell me stories of seemed unimaginable. She would prop me up on her lap and paint pictures in dream-like...

Reverberating voices. Flying spit. Clinking shot glasses. A gaggle of grandpas in furry trapper hats, perched on potato crates, pontificating about Soviet politics in a farm shed. They agreed, yet still managed to yell. As a routine observer of...

Crouched behind my yellow closet door, hearing glass shatter and walls banged, I kept hoping that something wonderful was about to happen. My parents were arguing over my father locking me in my room again. Whenever my mom was not home, he would...

“You are going to a boarding school in Singapore,” said my parents one day.

The decision to send me off to boarding school came as a surprise for my family’s acquaintances. It came as a shock to me --- especially since I did not even know what the...

Light, clear and ephemeral. A bubble is easy to pop. An onion on the other hand, has layers of tough, pungent membranes - breaking them brings tears to your eyes.

When asked where I was from, I would unthinkingly say ‘Karachi’. As I grew older, I...

Snowflakes, soft and silver in the dark, drift past the window, casting shadows on the floor. The door creaks open as my mother peeks into the room to check on my brand new baby sister. She finds me crouched besides the tiny swaddled figure,...

I could feel the creative energy growing, pushing restlessly against the silence as they waited for me to finish reading the brief. As soon as I did, it released itself in an outburst; voices grew loud as they struggled to make themselves heard,...

I had spent the whole morning preparing to execute an Olympic worthy backflip into my aunt’s community pool. It was the summer before 6th grade; I stood at the edge, took one deep breath, and launched myself into the air. I imagined the intense...

Walking into St. Joseph’s chapel on the day before winter break, I felt as if I was walking through a portal. Outside was freezing and dark, but the inside of the stone walls was filled with a certain warmth and light that swelled through me the...

My computer crashed for the 6th time in a week. I had accidentally created an infinite loop in Python, and my glitchy four-year-old laptop could not handle the overload of data. I sighed and looked over at my coworker, Sophia--a college student,...

The American Ballet Theater (ABT) Gillespie School parent/student meeting back in March started off with nothing exciting, nothing new. New drop off and pickup procedures. The June showcase. Spring evaluations. Yawn. But then the school’s artistic...

Like any toddler, I despised my car seat; I’d arch my back and defiantly kick my feet as Mom strapped me in. Finally accepting my fate, I’d sulk throughout the drive to ensure Mom understood my frustration. One day, however, this scene played out...

Lodhi Garden, New Delhi’s most scenic historic park, is visited by a diverse group of people every day: politicians, businessmen, doctors, and also the occasional celebrity. And of course, me!

In the midst of hectic examinations or on quiet breezy...

“Your order #30114391 has arrived!”

I examine the envelope. It’s bright red and covered with small, white doodles surrounding the words “Find Your Thing.” It looks chaotic and somewhat outlandish. Slowly, I open the envelope, revealing a purple...

For the last three years, a friend and I teamed up to lead Spartan Swipe, a school fundraising program that raises scholarship money for students in need. Leading this program has been very important to me. Not only does it feel great to help...

The air in my grandparent’s house is filled with the aroma of pomodoro sauce and the sounds of a slightly out-of-tune piano. There is a contagious energy the minute you walk through the door. Sunday afternoons are marked by delicious meals, family...

Roaring in the crowds of the 2008 Rose Bowl Stadium and immersed within a sea-of-gold-and-cardinal, I chanted with the Trojans to the USC Fight Song after the FIRST touchdown! That game, Trojans won against UCLA Bruins 28-7.

At 6-years-old, I was...

“Does Mr. Fishy go up, up, up or down, down, down?”

I ask my class as I lay a plastic toy fish on top of the water.

“Up, up, up!” a little boy named John exclaims.

“That’s right! Mr. Fishy goes up, up, up like we do!” I tell my class.

A plastic...