Undergraduate / University of Richmond supplement - Outside the comfort zone [4]

Hi everyone, I am a student from Yemen, and I am going to apply to four colleges in the next three days. University of Richmond is one of them, and the others are Kenyon College, Colorado College and Whitman College, so if you have any advice for me please enlight me asap, specifically Colorado College supplement--I have no idea what to write about for the Bloch Plan question, so all help is needed.

Following is my supplement question for URichmond, so please be harsh if you need to! All help will be fine...

The Richmond Question: Tell us about an experience in which you left your comfort zone. How did this experience change you?

Answer: During the ninth grade, I came to know Tameem, who, at the time, I called my best friend. Things were going great between us. However, when I found out that he was from Khoban, I hated him not for who he was, but because of where he came from. The stereotype is that people from Khoban usually depend on playing music, singing or dancing for a living, and sometimes perform those activities even during others' sad moments. He tried to tell me that he and his family had left that village because they did not like what those people do, yet I assaulted him and didn't give him a chance.

Years passed, and in the 11th grade, I won a chance to go to the USA for an exchange program. I knew forty one other students who won the same chance. We all met with our families and friends the day of our going away at the airport. Crying and hugging, everyone was sad to leave his family and friends. But I wasn't sad, instead, I was happy and excited because it was going to be only for one year and it was my first time travelling outside Yemen. Soon we all were on the plane, and nobody was sad any more. We had fun chatting and telling jokes to each other all the way.

Everything changed when we arrived in Washington DC. That was the time we had to say Goodbye to each other because everyone was placed in a different state to attend high school and live with a host family. This time I had the desire to cry because I finally felt I was alone. Realizing I was out of the comfort zone, I started to feel homesick three days later, yet I was even more eager to make new friends.

I was placed in Norfolk, Nebraska. The adults there were very pleasant and welcoming, but the teenagers were not. Every time I tried to make friends, they called me a "terrorist." They called me that because I was from the Middle East, but even though I was annoyed, it did not prevent me from trying to make friends. I joined the tennis, wrestling, and soccer teams because I had always believed that doing activities with others is the best way to reach them, and I worked just as hard at the sports as they did. Once they got to know me, they stopped addressing me like that. They apologized and told me that I was nothing like a terrorist and did not deserve to be called that.

The exchange program came to an end, and I had to leave again. But this time I was aware I wouldn't see my friends for good, and I felt I was leaving my comfort zone again. Still, I didn't cry or huff because I learned that where ever I go, I can make it my home. I learned that the choice is always in my hand.

This experience also made me think hard about how mean I was when I chose to hate Tameem because he was from Khoban. I felt bad because I was in the same situation as him, but people had always treated me well in the end. I was determined to apologize to him and to change the way that I treated him and others, and this was one of the best decisions of my life.

I learned that a baby does not choose who his parents will be, whether he will be black or white, male or female, or from Yemen or America. We do not have the right to insult people for any of these reasons. We should treat others as people like us and view them based on their personalities, not their backgrounds. And we should never call a person "terrorist" or "nigger" because stereotypes are never true and everyone is different. We should know instead that addressing people with derogatory nicknames will not make us feel any better, but will instead instigate conflict and war; it will cause us to lose many friends, and at the same time, gain more enemies.

Scholarship / The real reason behind my choice of Colorado College - CC Supplement [4]

Hi, everyone. This is my essay for Colorado College supplement Question #1, and I have had ahard time deciding what to write about question #2: The Block Plan at Colorado College has a tradition of innovation and flexibility. Please design your own three-and-a-half week intellectual adventure and describe what you would do. I've thought about writing something about Arabian and Yemeni cultures, since I'm from Yemen, so do you think that will work or should I start with a different topic?

When looking at the essay below, please critique and be harsh if you need! and please help me with grammar corrections as well.

REQUIRED: How did you learn about Colorado College and why do you wish to attend?

I was searching on the internet for the top-ranking liberal arts colleges in the USA and came across Colorado College. I also learned about Colorado from my Opportunity Grant scholarship adviser at the Education USA center at AMIDEAST Sanaa. My adviser told me that Colorado was a top liberal arts school with excellent financial aid opportunities for international students.

But that was not the only reason that made Colorado College my first choice, it was the Block Plan system that the school follows in its teachings. I had always studied in a class room that had around 150 students jammed. I have got used to listen to the teacher explain the elements of the lesson, but I couldn't understand because I couldn't even imagine anything about it. I had never got a chance to experience real-life teaching or at least express my ideas with the rest of the class. In that typical class room I studied the different types of electrical circuits but I had never seen one in real life. I've always complained that it takes me days to study something that I forget in few hours, while through living the experience, we learn things that remain in our memories for ever because they become living memories. The Block Plan also refreshes my belief of making every experience education.

Another reason is the double major study plan. I want to pursue a career in science and International Economics. I think that the Block plan will make it easier for me to follow both majors at the same time. It allows me to focus on only two topics every three-and-a-half courses instead of getting lost in many subjects at the same time.

I should not forget about the fascinating nature surrounding the college, and the atmosphere that makes it a good place to grow intellectually and spiritually. I believe it would be a good place where somebody can experience adventures during learning.

Undergraduate / "Thank You" is more than a phrase - Gettysburg College Supplement... [2]

Hi every one,
I am an international student from Yemen. I don't know much in writing, so I would want any kind of help.

This is my last commonapp supplemental questions, so I hope I receive all your help.. Please, critique and be harsh because I want my last commonapp assignments be the best of all of mine, so please don't be stingy when giving advice... If you have any way that I can make my writing more exciting please help. Also, help me with any rewording, grammar corrections, sentence editing, or content ideas. I also would like to thank you in advance for your precious help!

Question 1: Gettysburg College students are engaged learners and 'make a difference' both on and off campus through their academic and extracurricular activities. Describe a situation in which you have made a difference in your school or community and what you learned from that experience.

I have always heard the Arabic proverb that says "The good word breaks the arid rod." Every time I heard it, I wondered what it implied, and decided to investigate. Years passed but I never found a satisfying explanation. I also did not see how my way returning home from school every day was building an illustration to approach the meaning-the real one!

For my senior year, I moved to a new school, which was one hour far from home. I used to be delayed even more when I returned home in the afternoon, probably most because of the unavoidable street market near the school. No way a car could make its way through it in less than an hour, yet I enjoyed walking through it not only because I could pass it faster but also because of the delicious types of food sold there. Selling their food, people expected nothing more than money from their customers. However, whenever I bought something, I said "thank you," as I appreciated the food and liked its taste, before I gave them the money.

At first, nobody really cared about it, but as time passed, people began reacting to me positively. As I showed gratitude to them, food sellers started to exchange appreciation with me. When I declared I was grateful, people would smile at me and say thank you in exchange. Then they asked my friends about me when I didn't come. After that, I started to get free food when I didn't have enough money. People, in the other hand, activated their love towards their jobs and developed their ways of nice communications with others. Satisfied with their jobs, people figured other ways to be happy.

I started to get sense of how a simple phrase, like "thank you," could make a big difference in people's lives. I realized how accidently I did something to make people live even happier with what they did for a living. I had never known that walking through the market, at the first place, was not only for saving time passing it. I also learned that I shouldn't expect any benefits from people when I use praising phrases to express my appreciation of something; yet I could exploit them to receive my ultimate desired goals.

Question 2: How did you become interested in Gettysburg College?The school is suggesting a very short answer for this question.

"Why don't you take a look at Gettysburg College?" My Opportunity Grant scholarship adviser at the Education USA center at AMIDEAST Sanaa asked, adding that Gettysburg was a top liberal arts school with excellent financial aid opportunities for international students. I also did more researching on the Internet to learn more about the School. And the more research I did, the more interested I became.

Undergraduate / Gettysburg College: Why? Why? Why did you choose us? [7]

Deadline is Tomorrow. I need help asap with this very short essay, please! Suggestions and corrections are very welcomed, and thanks in advance!

How did you become interested in Gettysburg College?*

My Opportunity Grant scholarship adviser at the Education USA center at AMIDEAST Sanaa suggested Gettysburg to me as it is a top liberal arts school with excellent financial aid for international students. Her suggestion compelled me to explore the school's web resources, and the more I learned, the more interested I became. Outside the classroom, there are around 800 events yearly and 120 clubs and organizations, in addition to sports, where I look forward to developing myself intellectually and physically. In addition to pursuing International Affairs through Gettysburg's multidisciplinary curriculum, I look forward to various types of entertainment from Gettysburg's Ultimate Frisbee to the soccer team, Game Club and many other events.