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Posts by nishabala
Joined: Oct 15, 2010
Last Post: Dec 26, 2010
Threads: 4
Posts: 91  
From: India

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nishabala   
Dec 8, 2010
Undergraduate / "Dop-dop-dop-dop, Malaysia, fear of failure" - my common app essay [8]

Hi. I'm a sucker for praise:).

I like this, it's a striking essay, and I think you've got a real talent for connecting the inane to... really pretty events. It's like poetry.

I think 'God' should be capitalized.
And I also think this is a bit vague. And that's OK considering a lot of your colleges will have supplements, but I think you should them display some real action in your supplements and not just display the promise of them.

I ALSO think that you can make this WAY stronger by adding a new paragraph just before the last one, displaying a tangible effect of your metamorphosis. As in, go something like 'so, when I went back to school...' something to the effect that they laughed, it hurt you, but you wanted to learn correct English in spite of these odds and so you've come so far today. Or the truth:)

All in all, good essay:)
nishabala   
Dec 6, 2010
Undergraduate / "DARLING, I AM ABSOLUTELY IN LOVE WITH YOU." - special talent, experience [8]

I'd change the title. That put me off just a wee bit to start with.
But I smiled. don't ever while reading an essay, but I did. And I think the AO will smile too. It's going to be a breath of fresh air.

I'd give the world for your flair in writing. Your love for math (as an applicant listing math as a potential major) is... beautiful.

I'd also change 'When I went to high school I had difficulty forging new relationships and blending in and became a misanthrope who shunned society and sought for solitude. Relationships do not work logically and I found them perplexing. How should one react to others' anger, fear, love and hope? The answer cannot be vaguer: "It depends". Human behaviors and interactions are, to some extent, work like math, in which everything happens for a reason. But here the reasons are diverse and abundant, and they interrelate in the most exquisite way that we can never know what is going to happen'... connect it a LITTLE more literally t why you stopped likeing math and started with socio? For a word count this is the best bit to leave out, and it seems a bit irrelavent and rambling.

But overall, great concept. A little editing would make it a winner:)
nishabala   
Dec 6, 2010
Undergraduate / "Goose bumps" - Stanford Intellectual Vitality essay [3]

I'm gonna be honest. It's well written, and an interesting idea, but it reads like a science journal entry and not a personal experience. So, maybe (and I don't know if this is what you want or eve whether it will work) you could start with talking about your curiosity instead of mentioning it only at the end. I'm only afraid it's forgettable.

Then again, if the other essays are very personal, it may be worth your while to send in purely scientific essay. Your call!
Hope I helped!
nishabala   
Dec 6, 2010
Undergraduate / "I'm in love with olfaction" - Cornell's Engineering supplement essay [3]

I dn't see how this answers the prompt. I'm far from having an engineering turn of mind (my mind tends to wander to the theoretical and impractical), but I'm a physics/chem student. And I don't see the connection. You haven't mentioned the word 'engineering' even once in your entire essay, while the prompt mentions it or its root no less than four times. I think the concept is interesting, but you definitely need to work on connecting it to the topic in a more evident fashion. I can understand you may see the connection, but the AO spending a couple of minutes per essay probably won't.

Also, your style of writing works sometimes. Other times, it feels like you've overthought it and used to many big words in a sentence, and you also stray unforgivably to wordiness. It flattens the emotion out (the only reason I noticed it is I'm prone to the same mistake.) To me, this is most noticeable in the introduction, particularly in "I have eventually been able to come in contact with smells"... You can frshen it up by cutting that intohalf. The rest of the essay, however, doesn't have such a starkly draggin feel to it. You need to start with emotion to grab the reader's attention, maybe with something like 'I could see its velvety crimson hue, and felt the prick of a thorn when I drew closer to touch. But every time someone pointed out the marvellous fragrance emanating from the rose, I looked at them blankly; I could not smell the rose.' (think of something better than that though, that's just an example I thought of.)
nishabala   
Dec 5, 2010
Essays / My "sense of being Irish" - how to approach this essay? [3]

Alright. This is my attempt at helping. I's so far from Irish it isn't even funny, but I've written things about being of Indian origin, so this is what I thought of.

This is one of those essays you can't rationalize, I think. Write whatever first comes to your mind, and then work on it stylistically. Don't overthink it, or it may not be as good as it can be.

Writing a short story/narrative piece can be an inspired choice, because it can become intensely personal. What you could do, which I think may work, would be to write about something that's happened to you or someone you know in an unusually form of writing (example: use second person, especially if an event almost every person in Ireland goes through).

Writing about your culture gives ou the opportunity to use some self depracating humor; Poke a little fun at the Irish! Just make your true feelings(hopefully a positive feeling about your culture) shine through at the end.

Hope I helped!
nishabala   
Dec 5, 2010
Undergraduate / Joy of art discovered through broken heart: USC Animation Personal Statement [5]

It's prohibitively long to read. By the halfway mark I was ready to give up; and that's not a good thing because I love your title and the fact it rhymes (though I'd shorten it, if I were you; it would make it more cryptic, and build suspense a little). I don't know what your word limit is, but if you don't have one, I would definitely shorten/get rid of things like:

"I remember that day like it was yesterday... cold wooden floor chilled by Californian winter, and settled on the eastern side of the knee-high table made out of thermosetting plastic painted to look like wood."

"Two years later, I found myself at a new city with my mother and my 1-year-old sister... The school was 99.8% Latino, as my research stated, and I am Asian, consisting of only less than a 0.01%."

Your ending is really strong, and you seem like an impressive candidate!
Good luck!
nishabala   
Dec 4, 2010
Undergraduate / "the opposite of perfection" - the world you come from has shaped your dreams [2]

Hi, some ideas I had!
I think you needed to shorten the beginning, cause it's much less powerful than the body and much too long for it. I've given some ideas for that here.

The world I come from can be described as the opposite of perfection. (Making the first line a generalization and a seperate paragraph is something I do a lot... to me, it give the beginning pwer and a bit of a suspense factor. Do it only if you want to though)

I do not come from youra typical "Mexican family", where the dad (father? for a formal tone?) goes to work and his wife stays home to do the chores (seems just a bit chauvinistic to say.) . No, in my case my mother had to take on the responsibilities of the father due to his absence.(In my case, my mother has assumed my father's responsibilities in his absence) It has impacted my world;in a way where everyone in my household has to work twice as hard for everything; and if you don't work hard, you will be taken down by time.I know that if you do not work hard in these circumstances Then you can be easily taken down with the hard times . Well, that is the path that my older brother took.

All these seventeen years of my life without a father made me see my brother as the father that I never had. I saw him that way because When you are a little girl, you want a "father figure" to take care of you - to buy you things, and to look up to. My brother did exactly that. When my mother was away at work, which was practically all day long, he was there to take care of me, feed me, and he taught me what was right from wrong.

As I grew older, youI realized that life is not all rainbows and butterflies. Once reality unfolded my eyes I started to see my brother for who he truly was - an alcoholic. I saw alcoholism take over his life as he would drink until he would pass out. Sometimes I feel sorry for him because he still has to live under my mothers roof simply because he can not keep a simple job. If you say sometimes, you need to say what you feel the rest of the time.So something like 'Other times, I feel hurt/resentful/angry because... He has lost all of his jobs because he was incapable of waking up after a long night of drinking. My eyes will water with tears those mornings that when I would wake up and see the beer cans spread over the floor. Alcoholism has infuriated him and it has become extremely hard for me to respect him now. He yells with anger and it hurts to realize that I have lost him, not physically but emotionally.

Although,However, I do thank him, not for his actions but for helping me realize that my life can be better. His behavior has pushed me to go to school every day just so I would not have to be around his negativity. He has made me thrive for better grades so they can get me into a university, away from him. This experience has made me love my education and therefore I want to further it after high school.

The world I come from has shaped my dreams and aspirations by providing me the confidence that I know I can be better. I know growing up in a home with alcoholism can bring many hard times, but I have learned to make the best of it by succeeding on my own. The hard times in my family have not and will never stop me from accomplishing my goals. As my mom always told me, "Todo es possible, so nunca te des por vencida" Spanish for "Everything is possible, so never give up".

Also.
You talk about losing your brother emotionally, but you might come off as a little cold if you don't say you want to regain him... mention this somewhere? Maybe? You also talk as though he's almost a barrier... when you say that your family's hard times "have not and will never stop me from accomplishing my goals." I think, maybe, you can soften the last paragraph just a little by mentioning your brother there; an aspiration for in in some form. It would give the essay a much more emotional angle, make it pull at the heart of the reader and thereby making it much more powerful. Plus, it would give it better continuity. I think.

Otherwise, it's a nice response to the topic. It's powerful, but not as much as it could be.
Good luck!
nishabala   
Nov 29, 2010
Undergraduate / "to become a pharmacist" + "playing the violin" - UC transfer. Prompt 1 & 2 [4]

Prompt 1
Visually, the first paragraph looks like a monster. It I were the admissions officer I'd be petrified of it before I even started reading it. Consider breaking it into parts? (Mind you, I haven't even started reading it yet.)

...
Upon reading, the same paragraph seems just bit rambling. You can and should cut it down, and categorize the ideas. For the lack of any other way to put it, I'm gonna try rewriting it... take only what you like!

"When I had to decide what to do with my life, I told my parents that I would study in the science field to become a pharmacist (Try something a little more striking as a starting line. Something like 'The moment of reckoning had come, and I was proud of my choice. I had just told my parents that I wanted to become a pharmacist). My parents(they?) were not surprised at all and they begun to give their full material and emotional support. It was because they knew why I hopedunderstood my desire to be a pharmacist.

(start new paragraph)I had a aunt whom I loved very much. She died in spring when I was th en years old. My aunt, who I remembered, battled five different kinds of cancer including breast cancer for 20 years. Although she kept a stiff upper lip, my parents said totold me that she died a painful death. Although she left me early, there was a lot I could learn from her. She gave her life to helping the poor and ill . Also She donated her whole body to a medical school for cancer research before she died. She wanted to help cancer sufferers in her entire lifeother people plagued by the disease .

(new paragraph?)My aunt's selflessness inspired me; since then, I and my elder sistermy elder sister and I agonized what we could do for others like our aunt. Every day we went to the public library in my hometown and read the cross disciplinary books.; I promised my sister that I would use my knowledge to help others in the future. My sister studied Biology at her university and worked at the laboratory after graduation. She hoped that her research would be able to contribute to society and seemed perfectly happy. She is a role model for me.

(new paragraph?) After studying Chemistry at the university, I wanted to become a pharmacist and contribute to saving sick people. I lost my be loved aunt because of cancer and I hoped that other people did not suffer from the same thing. For being a pharmacist, I chose major in Chemistry that is the most important subject as well as the most fundamental material. My parents told me that Chemistry is a certainly difficult learning but after standing all hardships, I could achieve my goal."

I think it rambles a bit too much and includes unnecessary detail. Cut down on the details about your aunt and job and talk about your feelings. It will make for a more powerful essay. Also, I think you should shorten it by bout 200 words, as its power is now diluted by its length.

Prompt 2:
NEVER use the word 'nice,' especially at the beginning of an essay. Replace it with something that 'means more.
I could have played the violin for 12 years because I was a girl who did not know the abandonment.": I'm sorry, but I don't undertand what you mean by that.

This essay doesn't have a real conclusion, end it better.

Sorry for the prohibitive length of this. Hope I helped!
nishabala   
Nov 29, 2010
Undergraduate / "Taking care of an Autistic and deaf boy" - extra curricular activity [3]

Here's my knee-jerk reaction:
I'd dramatize the beginning, cause it's got the scope for that. Really. Since it's 150 words, you might even want to wait till the end to mention that Michael is 6 and autistic, and build it up to be like you're talking about a boyfriend before that, and ending with smething like 'Babysitting Michael , a six-year old autistic boy, was enlightening because I had never thought that a mundane object could spark a young boy's imagination and bring us closer together.' I think that would be really interesting.

But that's just stylistic. Otherwise, interesting essay!

If you get the time, check out my essay? It's at UC Essay: Prompt 1

Thanks a lot, and hope I helped!
nishabala   
Nov 29, 2010
Undergraduate / "I live a busy life and stress fuels me" - UC App- Prompt 1- Yearbook [4]

Hi!
Here's what I thought, when I first read this.
"I live a busy life and am only comfortable when I am in a fast-paced environment. Being Editor in Chief of the yearbook is perfect for me because I am constantly busy and always multi-tasking." You've said you are 'busy' twice, that makes it a LITTLE too repetitive for an introduction.

Actually, you CAN knock off most or all of the first paragraph. The first line of the second says almost the same thing.
"an uncountable number".. something feels wrong about that. Try innumerable?
And my gut instinct... it's a little vanilla. Bland. It's GOOD, but doesn't show much creativity (which you seem to have) and doesn't REALLY make you stand out from the other people applying. But that's just what I think. I think if you add another dimension it wouldmake it a LOT better. Also, stress your achievements more. I saw 'six years' at the beginning of the last paragraph and I went 'WOW, six years!? Why didn't he say that before? DAMN he must be good...' Don't make the reader wait for the end for that revalation.

If you have time, could you check out what I had to say for the same topic? It would be great if you could. It's at UC Essay: Prompt 1

Thanks in advance, and hoped I helped!
nishabala   
Nov 29, 2010
Undergraduate / "My India nationality and in-the-middle personality is up for grabs." - UC 1 [9]

Hey! Really close to deadline, so any help appreciated!

Prompt: Describe the world you come from ― for example, your family, community or school ― and tell us how your world has shaped your dreams and aspirations.

OF TWO LANDS

My nationality is up for grabs.

It has been since I moved to India after seven years of an idyllic American childhood; since I realized I could see beyond the flaws of India, beyond its stark juxtaposition of opulence and abject poverty. I'm made painfully aware of my landlessness when somebody asks me which country I'm from. I shrug sheepishly, since they always expect me to give just one answer. I avoid the question for as long as I can, and then give the exceedingly vague answer I had carefully formulated; I was half Indian.

But which half of me belongs in India?

Academically, living in India has played a formative role in defining my interests. The jarring vividity of Indian culture intoxicated me, leaving me with a desire to understand it further. I developed keen interests in the history, political structure and economy of the land I once believed was forced upon me; and as I grew up these interests diversified. My self-proclaimed dual nationality granted me impartiality; I felt I could better evaluate situations. Paradoxically, living in India prevented any of these interests from becoming subjects of formal high school study. India stigmatizes children studying humanities, forcing students with the slightest scientific inclination to study the 'hard sciences' that would guarantee them a job. Although I was figuratively forced into studying the natural sciences, my curriculum fostered a fascination with physics and chemistry. Concepts like Schrodinger's cat and relativity intrigue me, and drive me to study further. The variety of my interests made me despair of ever finding one field I would want to study further, until I comprehended the role of mathematics in all of them. Math is my latest passion, and the convergence of fourteen years of education; it's the one field that is truly representative of the person I am and the interests I have, and so one I want to excel in.

On the other hand, I never memorize formulae, but derive them during a test. My sentence structure and spelling sometimes drift away from British convention. The quality of my assignments matter just as much as the grade of my final examination; I don't work just to amass marks. Within my academic context, I can see the influence of India; to people around me, I seem to stick out as a bit of a wild child.

In terms of my personality, I think I'm stuck in the middle. I pick up litter at self-serve restaurants. I can't tolerate spicy food. I blatantly question my teachers. I rarely, if ever, talk to my extended family. The only language I really speak well is English, although I've picked up hints of other dialects. For better or for worse, I stand out from the stereotypical perception of an Indian. However, in many ways, my situation allows me to be more Indian than a lot of people in cosmopolitan Bangalore. I travel by trains to see historically significant temples. I make an effort to learn local languages, and I can understand at least four. I've learnt both Karnatic and Hindustani music. I study Hindu mythology just because its complexity mesmerizes me. These aspects of my personality are inexorably intertwined.

The cultures of both my countries have played formative roles in my development, and I cannot trivialize that by disregarding my connection with either one. I can never name one country I'm from, but why do I have to? Why can't I just say that I'm from both?
nishabala   
Nov 18, 2010
Undergraduate / the Lawrence school - extra curricular activity- band [4]

I didn't mean you should literally start your esay with that very sentence, you need to make the sentence fit the start of an essay. Something like

"'It is not just a maze but a test of responsibility and leadership'
I beamed with pride as the band master handed me the grand maze. I was now Band Seargent for the 151st Founder's day, and my dream had come true. I was ready to fulfill my resonsibility; to the band, to my school, and to myself."

Don't use that, necessarily. You actually shouldn't. That's just an example:).

"Band to me is equivalent of transcendental meditation."- I think it should be 'Music has the same effect on me as transcendental meditation.'
nishabala   
Nov 16, 2010
Undergraduate / "work at wegmans" - work exprience..common app..150 words [3]

Use a basic spell check software, you're got a bunch of typos.
"Being sheltered and having to go from one private school to another did not give me much of a social life. I am and always have been shy."- KIND OF weak beginning. Try to start with a bang, not with a weak word like 'being.'

I think you need to capitalize 'wegmans'.
"on a daily basesbasis "
"The ability to talk to strangers did not come naturally for me. ": you only have 150 words, and this wastes it. Use the active voice, like 'I could not naturally talk to strangers.'... also this is redundant, understood when you said you are shy.

"After a year of working with the best people I've ever met, I felt like a new and transformed person.": Completely a matter of style, but I'd say go for drama here. And that's achieved by conciseness. Try:"A year of working transformed me; I know am loud, talkative..."

You don't talk about the net gain for you from thins experience. ou became more outgoing, but I think your concluding sentence should talk about how being an outgoing person has affected you.

Good luck:)
nishabala   
Nov 16, 2010
Undergraduate / Band Geek of the Elite Variety - Commonapp Essay [8]

I'm being astonishingly pedantic, but "faster than honey attracts bees"... honey doesn't attract bees. Flowers do, with all their nectar:P. It works as an idiom, but, well, It struck me when I read this. It may strike the person grading this, who knows?

"No, a Doctor just won't do, although I do have the grades to become one." something's bugging me about this, though I can't put it in words. Not grammatially, something about the content made me read it at leace thrice and think 'hmm, is mentioning the grades and doctoring worth it?' It seems a bit too pragmatic... a bit too rational... this is way too vague, but I hope you've got an idea of what I'd be waving my hands around to tell you if you could see me.

It's catchy, and it represets passion well. And I'd give a kingdom for your conclusion. It's great.
Good luck!
nishabala   
Nov 16, 2010
Undergraduate / "My sister's name is Norah" - Someone Significant in Your Life [2]

-"It was about three years ago when I had seen a miracle before my eyes. ":Awkward. try something simpler? Like "Three years ago, I saw a miracle.' though there HAS to be a better word that 'saw'

-"I was losing belief in my faith, I was losing hope in the relationship between my parents, and I was losing faith in myself." Raises too many questions. I also think it detracts from the essay, I've only read this much and really want you to just dive into talking about your sister. Shorten the introduction?

-"I was only fourteen years old": that's the third time you mentioned your age! It seems kind of redundant by this point.

-"I was starting high school and with all this stress I was dealing with, I wasn't ready for anything significant in life." 'all this stress'- what? I don't think you should mention it if you are not going to explain it. Or if you already have.

Alright. To be honest, I was losing interest. Further, I don't think you've got a clearly defined intrduction or conclusion, and so it's all blending together in my mind. Plus, it isn't giving me any information about you, or your sister, or your family.. it's just a slightly vague description of your family situation in 2007. I dont think it's a strong college essay, you need to cut down on length. And ue concrete examples that tell your story and how your sister changer YOU. I mean, think of something you started doing differently, better. I appreciate the impact your sister may have had, but I don't think this essay does justice to her or you.

Good luck!
nishabala   
Nov 16, 2010
Undergraduate / "My ravioli dilemma" - UC prompt, personal contribution, quality [8]

Oh don't, don't, DON'T throw it away. Please? It's a breath of fresh air. I love the tone, I think it sets it apart, especially since you get another essay with the UC's to showcase a more formal style and be a little more self-serving. And I also think changing your writing style to fit a college is just a bad idea. Write the way you want, and if they don't want you after that, at least they don't want YOU, and you won't have regrets about being somebody else. I also don't think the length is a problem, the essay feels alright.

Definitely think it's worth the trouble of perfecting. You might want to get the last paragraph in more detail- after all it's a college essay, you ARE trying to sell yourself. They style can do with proofreading of the 'sounding older' variety, but I don't think you should lose the casual-ness of the tone. You're introduction's a bit choppy, but the shin bone sentence made me laugh. I think, more than anything, you should work on the flow of the essay and the thoughts. I think you've got a winner here, but that's just what I think, and I'm no expert.

"or until I find a more interesting problem" I wouldn't end with that. Or even SAY that. It begs the question: what if college doesn't interest you enough? Then what?

Hope I helped!
nishabala   
Nov 10, 2010
Book Reports / A Rebuttal to Twain's "Damned Human Race" feedback [3]

Maybe I understood it wrong, but I don't think the best way to write a part of this would be to highlight the fact that animals are ruthless and wastful in killing, cause it doesn't persuade me at all. I think you should talk about how the actions of a few should not govern the perceptions of an entire race. You say "Man also engages in these types of activities. This does not prove that man is the lowest of animals, instead; it proves man still has these instincts left over from the animals"... I think ou need to move past the fact that some men succumb to instinct and talk about people fighting instinct. That's just what I think, though.
nishabala   
Nov 10, 2010
Undergraduate / the Lawrence school - extra curricular activity- band [4]

The fame of the Lawrence school band is known across the country.The Lawrence School Band is famous across the country.All the Students of this school, dream to be a part of this school bandplay and march to the beat of the band from their Preparatory clases, and I was no exception. I also dreamt of playing and marching to the beat of school band. When I was in class 9, I was selected for the band.(I was thrilled beyond my wildest dreams when my childhood fantasy was realized, when I was selected for the band in class 9)

Through my junior school years, I recognized my talent and worked on it. Playing the bugle and the trumpet expanded my mental horizon -helping me to see the world from a different perspective(why? That's critical in an essay like this). It made my actions mature and responsible.

During the tryouts for the 151st Founder's day, the band master and the band major were amazed at my performance and made me the band sergeant. When the grand maze(explain, maybe? cause I don't know what a maze is, in context) was passed on to me, my band major said, "It is not just a maze but a test of responsibility and leadership".(maybe you can start the essay with this idea... it seems like a nice beginning to an essay)

i have a lot to learn in the field of instruments . I am looking forwad to learn more and reach the zenith of my accomplishment in the college.

Needless to say, you should only take the change you think will work for you out of this. These are just a couple of suggestions.

Hope I helped!
nishabala   
Nov 10, 2010
Undergraduate / "how I feel about my friend" - international student supplement essay on friendship [6]

-'sweet-looking girl'- I don't ever like the word 'sweet' uless it's describing taste... It's meaningless, an empty praise word like 'nice' or 'good'... you might want to change it to something a bit more emphatic!

-"My ingenuousness intimidated her" : ingenuity?
-"we got used to our dissimilarities and liked the other for the way she was"... I THINK you should use the word 'each' somewhere in the sentence as it increases clarity... maybe like this: "..and we ech liked the other for the way (who?) she was."

-I think you should talk more about WHY she's the peanut butter and not the apple.
-Also, I think you shoud talk, on a deeper level, about the changes she brought in you: because right now it seems a it trivial. So, instead of saying you imbibed her culture, as you did in " I now know I should remove my shoes before entering a person's house," maybe you can say that she made you more sensitive to cultural differences and respecting diversity. Talk about real personality growth, now it seems a BIT trivial.

Hoped this helped!
nishabala   
Nov 4, 2010
Undergraduate / "Hollywood High School, love for Journalism" - #1 Describe your world.... [3]

It interested me, but two things are bothering me.
I don't know if it actually answers the prompt, it seemsabout journalism and not Hollywood High School. Talk just a LITTLE more about the 'environment' per se?

And I LOVE the beginning, it seems so... dreamy. But the second half feels TOO pragmatic. It seems almost as though someone else gave you the idea for one of the halves. I actually think you've got a great idea if you talk about being an immigrant, and growing up with parents who taught you about the ;metamorphois' and what that meant to you, and not bring journalism or your high school in at all.

Just suggestions though.
Good luck!
nishabala   
Nov 4, 2010
Undergraduate / Tutoring + "Mother Nature", extracurricular activities and importance of an issue [10]

You might want to get an English teacher or something to look at this for sentence construction... I'm seeing things that are wrong, and I think it would be worth your while to get someone qualified to look at it. You jump back and forth between tenses, and I'm not going to mention those, but you need to decide what tense the essay(especially the first part) should be in and write it paying attention to that.

"Football or soccer, also known as the "world game" is played everywhere around the world. Given its room for creativity and fast-paced flow, it has found prominence among the youthgenerationyoung . I live in the UAE and here you'll find kids and teens playing the sport in any possible space; be it in parks or parking lots. I've always enjoyed watching the game and I love to play it with my friends, but I'm usually disregardedleft out ](or a nicer word, but 'disregarded' doesn't work)whenever there's a match. It might be because of prejudice but I think the main reason is that I can't play the sport the same way as they can, and that I believe is because of my obese nature that I am(was?) obese ."

"My mother told me that when I was an infant, my aunt used to feed me a lot - like mixing custard in the milk for example."... there's something wrong in the second part of the question... doesn't tie in well, the grammar isn't right... I'd suggest removing it entirely, it's confusing me a bit.

" It also causedhad a deep effect on my personality; 'shy', 'insecure' and 'bookish' were some words for my description described me and (this view of myself?) affected my ability to socialize with others."

To me, the last line of the first paragraph lacks the drama factor. Say something like "I felt neglected; my parents didn't have time for me and my teachers just didn't seem to care enough.'

The second paragraph is interesting, but you might want to tell the story in the past tense and switch to present tense when you talk about yourself now. Draw the reader more into it by telling us what your REALLY felt, not so much telling us about your journey. I think it's make this seem more powerful; now, it just seems a bit like a social message, instead of a personal experience.
nishabala   
Oct 28, 2010
Undergraduate / Early riser / College options ('letter to roommate' / 'Why Stanford is good for you') [7]

Letter prompt:
Don't say ", and so on", the examples are illustrative enough. Stop with them.
" I enjoy thinking about these kinds of things"... that's probably understood by the fact that you talk about them.
It isn't... fun enough, maybe? You're talking about talking, which, although interesting, isn't awe-inspiring. Say something quirky about yourself! Oh, and for goodness' sake, if you say you talk PLEASE put in that you listen too?

Why Stanford?
You come across too logical. Put some heart into this, some emotion. Fudge it a bit if you have to. It's interesting that you are so rational, but it makes you come off as though you don't really care if you do or don't get into Stanford, cause the other colleges don't offer much less than it. Talk about more than the reputation it built up, and the people who have left there. Talk abiut the atmosphere, the professors, the curriculum, things that REALLY set it apart.
nishabala   
Oct 26, 2010
Undergraduate / "TV station internship" short answer for common app [3]

"What behind the TV screen are enormous efforts and sweat."
Did you mean 'what is'?

"six weeks' practicing "
practicing for six weeks?

You aren't contradicting anything when you start the second paragraph, don't start with however.

I'd suggest you sut down the length of "As an audience, I used to ridicule some TV programs but after six weeks' practicing I couldn't laugh out any more because I've known clearly that every episode need to be planned in weeks advance and entailed countless considerations, from buying water to contacting shooting place." and use the words to ad more to the second paragraph, where you talk about yourself. You should talk more about yourself:)

Good luck!
nishabala   
Oct 26, 2010
Undergraduate / Finding and defining "X" - UChicago supplement: Find x which essay should i work on [3]

Interesting ideas, but almost no flow between them. The first paragraph talks about how x is indefinable, the second contradicts that.
You talk about yourself to superficially, talk about how each of the 'sides' of the triangle contribute to the area.

I think the essay needs a lot more work, a more thorough grammar check, and some real thought on what you want to say. You want a realistic, personal essay or an abstract intellectually appealing essay? Think about it, but make it clear that you have to pick one or the other.

And sorry for the length of this:)

Good luck!
nishabala   
Oct 26, 2010
Undergraduate / "The Limit Does Not Exist" Common App Activity Essay [13]

I don't mean JUST ephemeral, if you doctor your essay to include different words it may not seem as heartfelt. Plus, vocab's not gonna be a problem for the AO reading your essay.
nishabala   
Oct 25, 2010
Undergraduate / "The Limit Does Not Exist" Common App Activity Essay [13]

Bias towards ephemeral here too, I'd say keep it. I actually think changing words you use amounts to changing style, which I really don't think is a good idea cause it detracts from your style.

One thing, I think "So I replied" at the end just sounds wrong. It may be worth your while to rephrase the beginning in the end (So, when my friends ask me why I joined Track, I replied...) but that might kill your word count.

"...and my practice results were devoid of any hope of ever seeing improvements in running time and jumping distance." is a bit wordy, '... and I had no hope of improving my running time and jumping distance' sounds a bit better, though I'm not sure that it contains everything you want in it.
nishabala   
Oct 25, 2010
Undergraduate / "I am human" - Common App supplement [5]

"But I am also human. And look - there's a planet full of people just like me."
LOVE. But should it be "But I also am human?"... I'm not sure.
And "And look - there's a planet full of people just like me."... does it make it seem, from a college point of view, that you're flattening your culture? I don't know, think about it... I get the sentiment behind it, but express it in a different way maybe?

It's a REFRESHINGLY different essay, with a different take, and I'm feeling it.:)
nishabala   
Oct 25, 2010
Undergraduate / "Soccer field" - Williams 'an environment that is particularly signifiant to you' [15]

Thank you, Jason and Daniel.
For a bit of background, I wrote this essay after I wrote my common app essay (an uplifting little piece about confronting death) and I couldn't send another piece like that to a college cause, well, I wouldn't let myself. So this may seem a bit superficial, especially in comparison, but that's basically to show a different side to me: especially cause this would have been SO easy to write from a diversity standpoint(writing about how being Indian and American has impacted me) but I didn't want to be just another kid talking about her cultural past. So I think the lack of insight, if you'd call it that, was a conscious decision. But I'll work on it, within the topic(which I don't think I'm quite ready to reconsider yet:P)
nishabala   
Oct 24, 2010
Undergraduate / There are 2 types of people in the world...What are they? UChicago supplement. [9]

Here's my view of the topic: the fact that they have given such abstract topics means that they are up for interpretation, however you choose. It's just a good idea to write something you have a personal connection with, it tells the reader more about you.

Here's what I took the 'find x' thing to mean: a personal journey, possibly an unresolved one, with the end an abstract 'x'. Likewise, there was one that went something like 'If you had the power to dissolve one ting in the world, what would you dissolve and what solvent would you use' and I thought that would mean a quality in the world that you dislike and the way you would hide it or bury it or whatever.

If you've got the time to, just give it a break and return to it in a while, hope for serendipity, cause I think that really is the best way to do this. Possibly switch topics, write something else, give yourself some distance and then try again. It's too abstract to think logically. If you don't have time, list all the events in your life where you made a choice. The other type of people in the world are people who made the other choice.

That's just my interpretation of the topics though, there are a million other ways to. Hope this helped!
nishabala   
Oct 24, 2010
Writing Feedback / Regret (the graffiti walls in the cell) - manslaughter essay [4]

I'm actually afraid to touch it lest I ruin the emotion that comes through. It's an interesting story, and I like your style. The only thing I can think of it I don't think people say 'divorcing you'... leaving you? And the wife seems like a character who'd take the kids with her, mention that.
nishabala   
Oct 24, 2010
Undergraduate / (Model United Nations) - CommonApp Short Answer [5]

This is interesting. I'm an officer of my school MUN club in India, and I'm an American citizen. Similar situation. My problem with this is that I can substitute places and names and submit it as MY essay, and it would work just as well (and no, I am NOT gonna do that:P). It isn't personal enough, I think. It describes a situation but doesn't REALLY explore the deeper impact of the situation on you, which I think will make the difference.

But then again, that's just a feeling in the back of my head. It's a good essay, quite telling of the kind of person you are.

One another note, if you do MUN and want to do IR, wouldn't you want to write more about MUN? I'd write about another extracurricular, and save the MUN for supplement essays, so you don't overuse it but you use it to its full potential.

Hope this helped!
nishabala   
Oct 24, 2010
Undergraduate / "embroidery, the Chinese Cultural Experence Campus"- my common app [6]

Hi,
This is really original and interesting. It's got those 'awww' moments (girl is now my sister-in-law.) and is a really nice story, and would actually work even as an autobiography or something. However, the story isn't enough. I think you need to show an emotional or personality growth somewhere in it, and that isn't coming through at all except for the end, where it seems fake and put in just because that's what people want to hear. You need to integrate your growth/better understanding of the culture/emotional connection with your family/ANYTHING along the same lines THROUGHOUT the essay cause that's the entire point of the essay; to talk about yourself, as opposed to just another thing you do.

Good luck!
nishabala   
Oct 24, 2010
Undergraduate / Personal story about Dancing and asthma for the Common Application Main essay! [3]

"reprimanded me to give up those "illusive meaningless hobbies" ": I don't know if reprimand is the right word in the context.

"let alone dancingdance on the stage"
"I led the youngersyounger children/youngsters and choreographed "

It's a great concept, and the reader can really feel your passion:)
nishabala   
Oct 24, 2010
Undergraduate / I am a warm-hearted girl; Mich Supp- international community [5]

"It was my first time to be such a great distance away from my home by myselfthe first time I was alone and so far away from home(it just seems more natural) when I came to the United States to study."

"I was so proud of myself because it was such an honor to stand out among all the candidates."

"As an international student, I live in a large community of a residential dorm. In fact, it is not only a community, but also a big family with approximately two hundred family members from every corner in the world." :A little too long? Your opening paragraph should strike the reader, and if it's wordy and rambling like this you don't necessarily catch the reader's attention immediately.

It tells a lot about the kind of person you are, but I don't think the essay is particularly memorable. It isn't gripping or one-of-a-kind and won't distinguish you from everyone else, and it seems that any residential prefect from your school could write the exact same essay and send it in. Anecdotes?

But that's just my opinion.

"It has been challenging to undertake this responsibility."
This sentence is extraneous, the only necessary part of it is the word 'challenging': incorporate that somewhere else in the essay, in that paragraph.

"I am a warm-hearted girl.":
Don't say. Show. If you wat to illustrate your kindness don't say it straight out like that, give the reader an example. It also is a bad start to a paragraph, the second sentence is a nicer start.

Too many of your sentences start with the word 'I' or 'my', and that can annoy people.

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