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Sample Essays
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COMMON APPLICATION ESSAYS—PERSONAL STATEMENTS
Prompt: Some students have a background, identity, interest, or talent that is so meaningful they believe their application would be incomplete without it. If this sounds like you, then please share your story.
- Unity is a hard thing to achieve. People fight and argue, they disagree and believe conflicting ideas strongly. On top of this, they judge and mistreat each other, often for little to no reason. I’ve had times when I have been depressed by these facts, but one place that has been absent of them is my high school marching band. As I prepared to enter high school, I was worried about making friends. I joined marching band honestly expecting the overall experience to be competitive and confrontational. But I was surprised by the way people interacted. During band camp, a period of summer where the band prepares for the season, a junior named Danny started talking to me. He didn’t have talk to me; Danny was cool and an upperclassman, and I was a freshman who had no idea what I was doing. But band was a place where we were all equals. Walking to my Math class on the first day of school, I saw almost all of my section leaders. Every day they would greet me like I was a friend they had known forever. Band showed me that one of the most important aspects of a welcoming and unified community is the understanding that there is no seniority, no hazing, but that everyone is an equal part of the group. This atmosphere proved incredibly important. When you are playing a song, you must rely on your fellow band members. The wind players have to trust the percussionists to stay on tempo and the brass players not to overpower them, and the brass players have to trust the winds to provide melody. When the players trust each other and play their parts together, the music becomes layered and beautiful. This goes double for marching. On the field, you trust your fellow members to be your anchors, keeping you steady and in position. Outside of band, most of my peers view group projects as terrible because they involve relying on other people, and I used to feel that way too. But marching band showed me something different; in band you have to lean on your fellow players. Now, I feel more comfortable relying on others and trusting them. Unity is rare and difficult, but marching band is a perfect case study on creating it. Everyone says hi in the hallways, sits together at lunch, and we all have a bond through the band. We are not always happy, but every time I was having a bad day, I would forget it the moment I saw everyone in band rehearsal. On one occasion, I was feeling terrible, hadn’t slept well, and was feeling pretty down, but when I got into the band room, we were all joking around and laughing. Everybody needs a place like that, somewhere where you can just have fun and make music instead of sulking on your own. Band showed me that an environment like this is rooted in equality and trust. The members of the group must feel like equals and have a need to rely on each other. Now, as a section leader, I try to create the same environment that helped me so much. And as someone continuing on to college, I hope I can find and create more of them for other people. The world has become more divided than ever before, making unity even more necessary. And because of the band I may have a solution. It’s not to attack and destroy the other side or to take power away from people. It is simply to see each other as our equals. Only when we approach each other with respect and trust can we heal our divisions.
Prompt: Share an essay on any topic of your choice. It can be one you’ve already written, one that responds to a different prompt, or one of your own design.
- As 2:00 a.m. reached the clock, my eyes struggled to stay open as I swope random TikToks by. This time, it was: “What’s the best veggie meat? Taste test.” After the video ended, I had an impulsive thought. I should go vegetarian. As I laughed the idea off, the competitive side in me was compelled, challenging me to try it. I decided that I would try it for two weeks and see how it went. Quickly, two weeks turned into a month and a month into 20. Although I was clueless about vegetarianism, living in a family that thought meals were incomplete without meat, I was motivated to try it. Going vegetarian gave me unexpected skills along the way, such as the independence that came when I had to cook my own meals, the assertiveness that came from sticking up for myself ordering in a restaurant, and the courage to step out of my comfort zone and try new things. In my house, my mom loves to cook. Therefore it’s like every night has a different theme: Meatball Monday, Taco Tuesday, Steak Sunday, and not forgetting all the leftovers that come with it. So, I, who had the skill level limited to the toaster oven, was left to figure out how to cook vegetarian meals on my own. Although I didn't use seasoning and left things half-cooked, I started to make my own meals and try new recipes, my favorites being red lentil Bolognese and Chana Masala. To this day I still cook for myself, but I’ve improved along the way. The independence is present throughout my daily activities, whether it’s stepping up to help care for my younger brother or buying my family’s groceries for the week. It always reminds me that putting in the right amount of motivation with the skills I have on hand, I am capable of tackling challenges that seem impossible. I’ve learned to not get my hopes up when eating out, because there are usually limited vegetarian options. I’ve learned to ask for substitutions when possible, realizing that becoming more assertive was a necessity. When eating at a friend’s house, I speak up for myself when all they have for dinner is the family pack from KFC, declining the limitless chicken wings they repeatedly push towards me. As someone who has always struggled to speak up for myself, I often felt rude or like a burden when I chose to. But going vegetarian has made it impossible not to, which has helped me immensely. Learning to speak up for myself not only helps me ask for help when I need it, but also speaking up for my peers, when I see they are uncomfortable or unable to. One of my best friends deals with anxiety and struggles to tell others what she needs, causing her to be constantly uneasy. We quickly built a strong relationship as she leaned on me for help in situations where another voice was needed. If someone asked me three years ago if I would eat barbeque jackfruit, a common substitute for barbeque pork, I would look at them like they had three heads. But as I started trying vegetarian alternatives, my comfort zone disappeared. After many months of succeeding at this challenge, I started stepping out of my comfort sone more often. I got more involved in my community, trying out for my school’s track team with no previous experience and signing up for volunteer opportunities at the local thrift shop after browsing their selection. Some sort of bravery had entered me, and I didn’t mind it. It pushed me to try new things that ended up benefiting me greatly. I owe many of my most valuable qualities to my vegetarian diet. If it weren’t for that lifestyle switch, I would not have the strong voice I can account for today or half the experiences I pushed myself into. Stepping out of my comfort zone was scary, but it led to such rewarding qualities I never expected.
Prompt: Describe a problem you've solved or a problem you'd like to solve. It can be an intellectual challenge, a research query, an ethical dilemma - anything that is of personal importance, no matter the scale. Explain its significance to you and what steps you took or could be taken to identify a solution.
- I couldn’t escape the pungent Doritos scent. The individual bags were everywhere, chips spilling onto the floor. My screwdriver had orange powder all over the handle, and our robot wore a thin coat of synthetic cheese. That tended to happen when eighth-graders were allowed to eat leftovers from the concession stand. It was day one of February vacation, and the school had granted us access to the robotics lab. I was the leader of a five-person team that had a chance to win the region and qualify for the world championship. We had five days to rebuild our robot. There was fighting, not mean-spirited, but passionate. We were arguing over what each of us thought would work best as a means of grabbing pieces on the field: a pneumatic or a motor- operated claw. The adrenaline in that lab was unlike anything I have experienced since. In the past, club members calmly bounced ideas off each other until reaching a unanimous decision, but with higher stakes and pressure rising, our workspace became a war room. Twelve hours felt like thirty minutes, sweat dripped off my chin and created a small puddle on the floor. It was clear I was nervous – we were all nervous – but my team was determined to succeed. We didn’t lose a single match at regionals. The competition came down to our robot pitted against two others, and we still pulled out the win. The emotional payoff from out-competing the region was better than our winning five awards. I fell in love with the process of designing a robot, not the way we had been doing it up to that point, but the way we realized it was supposed to be done. We stopped acting too good for an approach and explored and defended any idea we had. I loved how emotional everyone was when something mattered. Even though we didn’t accomplish much later at the World Championships, I began to feel like we had done everything we could within the confines of the rules. I couldn’t shake the feeling that robotics wasn’t enough anymore. Building from a list of parts to compete in a similar game every year had lost its excitement. I wanted to build something without the instructions. About that time, my mom told me she wanted a vegetable garden. In Massachusetts deer and rodents eat the plants, and she didn’t want to fence our entire yard. She asked me to design a large garden that looked good, minimized cost, and could keep the deer out. The area I fenced in is 320 square feet, with 128 square feet of planting space in 12-inch raised beds. I researched on youtube and garden blogs before combining a few plans into one: 7-foot posts with four feet of chicken wire at the bottom and one strand of fishing line going across for each remaining foot of post. There’s a gate between two posts, keeping the frame straight. I had a hard time designing and building by myself, but I loved every minute of it. Over two months, I had arguments with my parents about elements of the garden. My dad complained about how heavy the gate was. He wanted to add more structure to the gate and posts, but I knew the posts wouldn’t fall. I designed them to flex or shift slightly. I put up the gate anyway. The tomato plants have now outgrown their cages and the beans wrapped back down their pole, giving my mom the productive garden she asked for. She sits out there a few times a week to read or talk with friends. The Dorito-dusted lab week introduced me to the adrenaline rush and satisfaction that comes with building something that works. Robotics made me want to build a garden without knowing how. I want to learn more about engineering so that I can continue to experience the rush that comes with creating something myself.
Prompt: Discuss an accomplishment, event, or realization that sparked a period of personal growth and a new understanding of yourself or others.
- Hundreds of eyes were on me as I stood in front of the room, sweat dripping down my face. Pews were packed with smiling families and friends. I had a choice to make: to confirm or not to confirm my beliefs in my Church. This was the first decision in my life that was completely my own. While making this decision, I interviewed, talked, and listened to my friends of different religions, members of my Church, and extended family for new viewpoints about faith. I developed so many questions through my exploration. As confirmation approached, I had to decide whether I could confirm my faith in my family’s church or continue my own religious journey. Growing up, I attended church services, not truly understanding the sermons or what was taught in Sunday School. I had always taken what I heard at face value, but when it came time to make this decision, I knew I needed to learn more. I spent my freshman year focusing on asking questions. I attended confirmation class, and, during the year-long process, talked to dozens of people about their faith. I heard so many different stories and views, which made me realize how many questions I had about religion and faith. I wondered how Jesus could have come back from the dead. Why would God allow millions to die in the name of religion? Why wouldn’t he or she stop famine or terrorism? Who was to say Christianity was right? The list went on. No one had definitive answers to my questions. How could I confirm my faith in the Congregational Church while having so many doubts? I continued my exploration, hearing new perspectives in hopes it would help me find my faith. I had attended many of my friends’ Bar Mitzvahs and talked to them about Judaism. I participated in a community event at a Mosque. I read the book Siddhartha and was especially moved by the Buddhists’ devotion to pursuing Nirvana. I talked to my grandma, a religion teacher, about Catholicism. I frequently talked to my pastor, who encouraged me in my faith journey. My mom thought I would be lost without faith. Each exploration had something that spoke to me, while each also left me with more questions. At confirmation, the five confirmands were required to each give a speech to the congregation about our decisions. I spoke last. The four before me all chose to confirm. I ultimately decided that I had to say what I believed, not follow my Church and familial norms. With those hundreds of eyes on me, I spoke. I could not confirm my beliefs when I still had so many questions. I decided to continue my faith journey, letting my own personal experiences lead me to my beliefs. Many Church members congratulated me for my stance after my speech. Although my family was initially disappointed, they understood I needed to make the decision that was right for me. Soon after confirmation, the presidential election became the talk of the town. My religious exploration taught me to respect others’ opinions, and I learned to do the same with other issues, like politics. At school, I talked to many people about their positions. By listening, I was able to learn opinions I would not have heard otherwise. For example, one friend shared a different perspective on the ease of claiming political asylum in the US. I realized that no matter the subject, someone is going to have a different view and I can always learn from it. During this journey, I became much more open-minded and learned to really listen to others. My decision taught me to always stand up for what I believe and stay true to myself, even if it goes against the status quo. This is what I will carry with me for the future. My decision, while nerve-wracking and stressful, was right for me.
SUPPLEMENTAL ESSAYS ( 3 )-WHY US
_Prompt: Tell us why you decided to apply to the University of Wisconsin-Madison. In addition, please include why you are interested in studying the major(s) you have selected. If you selected undecided please describe your areas of possible academic interest. (you may enter up to 650 words).
The commander of Apollo 13. The singer of “The Joker.” The father of Earth Day. The first African American athlete to win an Olympic medal. The list of notable Wisconsin alumni is almost endless. Politicians, scientists, entertainers, CEOs, entrepreneurs, and more. It’s where some of the world’s greats have learned greatness. To me, it says that at Wisconsin, all dreams are possible – and it’s where I want to spend the next four years of my journey. When I began my college search, I knew exactly what I was looking for – the kind of classic college experience that you see in the movies. Top-rated programs. Crisp fall afternoons spent in a football stadium. A big college town in a place a little far from home. As I learned more about Madison, the more I could see myself there. On State Street. In Camp Randall Stadium. Staring up at the columns of Bascom Hall. Now, it’s practically all that I can think of. But, it didn’t all start with stadiums and State Street; I discovered Wisconsin because of its business school. Frankly, I’m inspired by the fact that no other school in the country produces more Fortune 500 CEOs. Over the last two years, like I’ve fallen in love with the idea of spending four years in Badger Red, I’ve also fallen in love with business. I’m VP for my school’s DECA program. This past year, I participated in roleplay for the Sports and Entertainment category where I placed second in the District competition and qualified to compete at States. I also had the chance to participate in a Business Leaders of Tomorrow forum at Capital One in Richmond. This was one of the first big events I did relating to business. When I was here, I got a firsthand look at the importance of business and what strategies I should follow in order to be successful. I’m eager to build on these experiences. In Madison, I’m excited about the idea of joining the collegiate DECA program and the Sports Business Club, and further building out these skills as I pursue my degree. This past summer, I was chosen to take part in an externship with the Senior Vice President of Marketing for Monumental Sports, the organization that owns the Washington Capitals and seven other professional sports teams, venues, and enterprises. Its Managing Partner, Ted Leonsis, talks about the idea of a double-bottom line: doing well and doing good. Monumental is not just one of the nation’s leading sports companies, it's one of the top places to work in the DC area, as well as a benefactor and advocate for the community. This is something I’ve thought about a lot as I’ve considered what kind of business leader I want to be and believe this commitment to service and to giving back is something that Wisconsin prioritizes. I’m highly interested in the Accenture Leadership Center and its program to let students collaborate with their peers to participate in workshops and competitions like the Case Competition. Most of all, I’m inspired by the quarterly service projects that the Center organizes and takes part in, and how it works to benefit the larger Madison community. This kind of experiential business program rooted in a foundation of service is important to me as I seek to build my resume and skills to get ready for the real world. The truth is that I don’t know every class I want to take or every club I want to join, but I know that I want to major in Marketing and make the most of my time in Madison. One day -- I hope someone doing their own research for college essays will come across my name on Wisconsin’s notable alumni list. I’m not exactly what I’ll achieve quite yet, but I know that if I spend the next four years in Madison, I’ll learn greatness.
SUPPLEMENTAL ESSAY (4)-MAJOR
Prompt: What do you want to major in? (300 words) I first realized it at Disneyland. I had lost the giddy, uncontainable enthusiasm I had as a child. My family and I were walking to the enchanted castle, and a toddler in a stroller caught my eye. He was on the edge of his seat, bouncing with excitement, and screaming “It’s Miiiiiickey!!!!!!” Essentially, he was going absolutely bonkers about spotting Mickey Mouse. As I watched him vibrate in his chair, I realized the envy I had for his absolute, over-the-moon excitement. I was fifteen, just out of middle school, and such exhilaration had long since faded. Or so I thought. In high school, I discovered science. Science, to my sheer amazement, still has the power to stir that hyper-focused energy that completely captures my mind. I feel it while participating in the highly calculated experiments using kinematics in physics, while reading Carl Sagan’s The Cosmos, or the magazines Popular Science and Scientific American. Whether employing the laws of physics or learning about science, I am wholly transfixed by what is ‘there,’ the whole time, yet doesn’t actually exist until it is pointed out. Over the summer, while attending an engineering program at Notre Dame, I visited the Chicago Science Museum. After wandering through exhibits, I discovered a small demonstration of magnetism. The interaction had two small wheels that adjusted the power of two magnets suspended above a sea of magnetic liquid. As I cranked up the magnetism, small spikes shot up to reach the magnets. I was blown away. “A magnetic liquid? No way!” I exclaimed to the student next to me. I crouched there, playing with the knobs, impeding little kids from enjoying it, for well over fifteen minutes. The explanation: I love science and all its applications. And it isn’t just me. Nearly the entire physics department at my high school consists of quirky and phun (as they spell it) teachers. Last year, at least once a week, my physics teacher would spin around after a demonstration and exclaim, “Isn’t that cool?!” It seems that individuals who have rediscovered their childhood enthusiasm abound in engineering and science. Whether on a college tour, at a science lecture, or even on any of my favorite Discovery channel shows, scientists and engineers seem legitimately excited about what they do. Over the years, I’ve come to recognize that this was a field I wanted to join: a field where exuberance abounds and imagination is valued. Most importantly, a field in which I would jump out of my stroller screaming: “It’s sciiiiiiience!!!!!!!”
SUPPLEMENTAL ESSAY (7)-WORK OF ART
Prompt: What work of art, music, science, mathematics, or literature has surprised, unsettled, or challenged you, and in what way? ( 30 0 words) The New York City subway system is often referred to by long-suffering locals as “hell on wheels,” with the unbearable heat of its underground, the overabundance of people crammed into the confines of four grimy walls, and the occasional, lingering smell of urine. As I descend those concrete stairs into the dank tunnels, a large metal sign looms overhead, one of 472 scattered across all five boroughs of The Big Apple. Brightly-colored circles indicate their respective destinations, and crisp white words on a black background display the station names—but it is the letters themselves that catch my attention. The precise, sans-serif Helvetica typeface is neutral, neat, and clean—adjectives rarely used to describe the city it reigns—but that is exactly what ensures its appeal. Its simplicity perfectly complements the vibrancy of New York, ingrained in its brand and unifying the chaos of the city into one harmonious hub. The city itself is Helvetica, its characters boldly striving to stand out against a constant rush of background noise, colliding to form one fluid narrative and becoming submerged by surrounding skyscrapers into the city’s identity. Even with its lack of flourish, that simple, artful little alphabet has become a symbol of modernism. Growing up in a world where everyone spends their whole life struggling to outshine one another, I’ve come to view Helvetica as the epitome of how, in a progressive world, practicality and adaptability can bring us further in life than particularity or extravagance. Art is much more than the schema of vibrant oil paintings and hyperrealistic marble statues and elaborate concertos; art does not have to be ostentatious to be effective. It’s often the subtleties and nuances in our average lives that are the most beautiful. As plain and practical as Helvetica initially appears, it is unbelievably impactful.
SUPPLEMENTAL ESSAY ( 8 )-TOP 10
Prompt: Give us your top ten list and theme (100 characters for each) Onlies:
- Only person in my math class to remember all the derivative rules on a quiz
- Only left-handed member of my family
- Only non-law school intern at McGuireWoods
- Only teen member of women's philanthropy group Impact100, practicing collective giving in Richmond
- Only player from Collegiate on my travel softball team
- Only pitcher junior year of high school
- Only one of my friends to be a die-hard Washington Nationals fan
- Only drink unsweetened tea
- Only person to get a sticker for my laptop case from every place I go
- Only college application I’ve completed, hoping it’ll be the last
SUPPLEMENTAL ESSAY (1 1 )-SHORT ANSWERS
Prompt: List the titles of the books you read for pleasure that you enjoyed most in the past year. (150 words) Books I learned from: The Hate U Give - Angie Thomas, Feminism is for Everybody: Passionate Politics - bell hooks, The Picture of Dorian Gray - Oscar Wilde, A Room of One’s Own - Virginia Woolf Books I cried over: And Every Morning the Way Home Gets Longer and Longer - Fredrik Backman, A Little Life - Hanya Yanagihara, Long Way Down - Jason Reynolds Books that made me forget about reality: Ready Player One - Ernest Cline, Me - Elton John, The Song of Achilles - Madeline Miller Books with beautiful writing: Bone - Yrsa Daley-Ward, The Nightingale - Kristin Hannah, The Poet X - Elizabeth Acevedo, Pride and Prejudice - Jane Austen, Beartown - Fredrik Backman Books that brought me immeasurable joy: The Prince and the Dressmaker - Jen Wang, Red, White, and Royal Blue - Casey Mcquiston Books that changed my life: The Seven Husbands of Evelyn Hugo - Taylor Jenkins Reid, Aristotle and Dante Discover the Secrets of the Universe - Benjamin Alire Saenz
SUPPLEMENTAL ESSAY ( 12 )-SHORT ANSWERS
Prompt: A few details: (300 characters each) your favorite book and its author; your favorite movie; your favorite website; two adjectives your friends would use to describe you; your favorite recording; your favorite keepsake or memento; your favorite source of inspiration; your favorite word; your favorite line from a movie or book and its title
● I will always appreciate Taylor Jenkins Reid’s portrayal of an unapologetic, ambitious, bisexual woman
in The Seven Husbands of Evelyn Hugo. Evelyn’s character, while flawed, reminds me to have compassion for myself, never let anyone make me feel ordinary, and to always stay true to who I am.
● Dead Poets Society makes me feel somber and bereft, valiant and inspired, teary and hopeful. The best
thing about the movie, though, is how Mr. Keating left me with an idea that I consider every day as I scribble down novel ideas in my notebook: the only way to truly live is to do what you love.
● I can’t help but regularly visit flightradar24.com to see a constantly-updated map of every airplane
currently in the air. Contemplating the planes and thinking of the passengers’ backstories makes me feel like a part of a world with endless possibilities, places to go, and people to meet.
● Introspective and purple (I have an intense love for the color purple, so my friends have started to joke
that I embody the color. I could do absolutely anything and my friends would say, “how purple of you.”)
● A voicemail I saved from my late grandmother, Memaw, where she assures that she “can call later,
honey, bye bye!”
● I’ll never let go of the copy of a book I’ve loved for years, I’ll Give You the Sun by Jandy Nelson, that my
best friend gave me for my 16th birthday. She meticulously painted the front cover and annotated the inside with colorful glitter pens. It’s the perfect symbol of our friendship.
● My idea for my favorite thing I’ve ever written - a one-act play about fear and truth - came to me while
driving on the open road. Driving alone, I often find myself pretending I’m in a coming-of-age movie, and I end up creating intricate, elaborate characters, plot lines, and entire universes.
● Usually, if a book is called “poignant,” I’ll probably love it. I actively search for poignant stories, and I’ve
realized that all I ever want is to write a poignant story of my own; one that moves people and sticks with them for long after they’ve finished reading.
● In the opening pages of Beartown, Fredrik Backman asserts, “Never trust people who don't have
something in their lives that they love beyond all reason.” This quote reminds me of our intriguing, admirable ability as humans to love something - or to burn with passion - against all odds.
SUPPLEMENTAL ESSAY (1 5 )-ACTIVITY
Prompt: If you could choose only one of your extracurricular activities or work experiences to continue, which one would it be? ( 150 - 300 words) Although I care deeply about my extracurriculars, environmentalism takes the (sustainably sourced) cake as being the most important aspect of my extracurricular life. I would choose to continue as co-president of the Project Green Schools National Youth Council if I were faced with this tough decision. The opportunity came into my life my sophomore year, a time when I began to feel bummed out by my lack of action in standing up for issues I cared about and staying standing. I quickly jumped in and began revamping the organization's monthly initiatives to include a wider array of possibly less considered areas of life that need a little environmental TLC (i.e. celebrating holidays more sustainably while being a little more mindful of the amount of wrapping paper waste and the toll of plastic packaging on the environment and meatless alternatives to staples like the classic holiday ham.) SUPPLEMENTAL ESSAY (1 6 )-ACTIVITY Prompt: Please briefly elaborate on one of your extracurricular activities or work experiences that was particularly meaningful to you. ( 150 - 300 words) “Do you actually have ice powers?” a starry-eyed little girl questioned, gazing up in amazement at my crown and dress from Tiffany’s Bridal. I won the 2019 Snow Queen merit scholarship at the Children’s Museum of Richmond, and throughout the year, I’ve dressed up as a character resembling Elsa from Frozen - someone children come to the museum ecstatic to meet. Although I love leading games and serving in the annual parade, my favorite Snow Queen activity is reading to the kids. I bring some of my favorites: Grace for President , A Is for Activist , and Tango Makes Three. By reading books that celebrate inclusivity, I strive to encourage them to grow into kindhearted individuals who appreciate diversity, and they in turn inspire me to become more imaginative and give me hope for the future. And doing it all in a free wedding dress? It doesn’t get much better than that.
SUPPLEMENTAL ESSAY (1 7 )-ACTIVITY
Prompt: Please briefly elaborate on one of your extracurricular activities or work experiences that was particularly meaningful to you. ( 150 - 300 words) I’m very proud of my excellent ability to play Go, an ancient Chinese game where two players take turns placing black and white stones to surround territory on a board. Go is the most complicated game ever invented: it has about 10^700 possible legal games, while chess has about 10^200. I’ve reached the rank of 5 dan, one of the highest attainable by an amateur player. I enjoy the process of designing a grand strategy, anticipating my opponent’s plans, and calculating precisely my best moves. I’ve honed my calculative ability by solving a wealth of difficult puzzles in my head, some of which I had to ponder for several days to understand completely. This experience prepared me for my study of mathematics: proving a theorem often took relentless effort over multiple days. Go has also taught me the importance of perseverance. When I first started playing, I probably lost 90 percent of the games. I gradually learned not to be disheartened by failures, and after every loss, I’d spend a long time figuring out my mistakes and working on my calculations. Recently, I’ve been playing against an artificial intelligence program for Go, XingZhen, which can easily beat human world champions. Initially I struggled, even with a significant four-stone advantage; however, after about 40 frustrating but very instructive games (which took about an hour each), I’ve improved quite a bit and can mount an impressive resistance with only three extra stones. Playing Go has made me a meticulous thinker and a persistent and well-organized student. I’m the president of my school’s Go club and enjoy helping others improve their game. I hope to spread the joy of Go at Carnegie Mellon by volunteering as an instructor in the Pittsburgh Go Association and making a series of teaching videos for beginners.
SUPPLEMENTAL ESSAY ( 20 )-CREATIVITY
Prompt: What excites you? (300 words) The scene: Layla lying motionless with her feet hanging out of her shoes. We shot this scene over twenty times using different angles and lighting. We wanted to get it right. In our Multimedia Club, we have diverse interests like design, acting, photography, and video and sound production. I enjoy hearing all their perspectives. For example, Manny has a great sense of lines and geometry, and Caryn has great awareness for the audience. My peers push me to learn about things beyond my own interests. Bob has helped me to learn more about the art of recording and manipulating sound. Layla, who does improv, challenges me on my inflections and tone as I struggle through some lines. Eliot urges me to research f-stops and apertures for my next camera. I’m usually a soft-spoken person, but I find myself loud when we work together because it pertains to things I care about deeply. I realize how much I grow intellectually as I push myself with others but also as I engage in the classroom learning about design, photography, marketing, and psychology. Even something topically so distant like history helps me gain emotional connections with stories and their historical perspective. Despite my love for the classroom, I’ve come to realize that learning in the classroom is only as exciting as what it offers in terms of enriching our experiences within our community. I think learning is a prerequisite. However, what comes later and the chance to be engaged in a vibrant community is why I learn, and it is what excites me. We finished the last scene and drove home as the sun was setting. I’m not sure if we ever got the scene “right,” but the view was definitely unforgettable.
