Undergraduate / "the reasoning behind choices" - (Tell us what makes Stanford a good..) [3]

Tell us what makes Stanford a good place for you.

My father has often advised me, "Dani, you will make a lot of choices in your life but more important than the choices you make is the reasoning behind them." My interest in Stanford University is not due to the "brand name" of this prestigious university, so to speak, but rather, is due to features the university offers which align with my goals.

As I entered my senior year I started to list the qualities that I wanted in a university: West Coast location, rigorous academics particularly in mathematics or pre-health professions programs, a diverse, school-spirited student body, and preparation for leadership in the post-college world. Although the University of California, Los Angeles was initially my first choice, upon closer examination and a visit to the campus I found that UCLA was not the school for me. I ended up not even applying there. Instead I found that Stanford was a much better match.

I am looking forward to meeting and learning with, as well as from, people who hail from around the globe but congregate in the Bay Area. Being taught by world-renowned professors and then retiring to a dorm with like-minded people to study for an upcoming differential calculus test or maybe crossing "the farm" to study in the Meyer library alone; these are all activities I cannot wait to partake in.

In short, Stanford is an excellent school for me because it possesses all the resources I need to become a well-rounded, globally-conscious, successful citizen of earth.

Any feedback is welcome!

Undergraduate / "we at least share a commitment to academic excellence" Dear Roomate- Stanford [6]

Write a note to your future roommate that reveals something about you or that will help your roommate- and us- get to know you better.250 words: Write a note to your future roommate that reveals something about you or that will help your roommate- and us- get to know you better.

Dear Future Roommate,
While you were most likely informed that you would be rooming with someone by the name of "Elizabeth Gomez" I am here to tell you that you will in fact be rooming with "Danielle Gomez". While each of these names do belong to the same person, they represent two very different aspects of myself.

Elizabeth is the name I was born with, although my parents' intention was never to call me by it- as two 17-year-olds, they thought Elizabeth Danielle was more pleasant than Danielle Elizabeth. Instead I would spend every August explaining to my teachers that, "Yes, I am Elizabeth; but no, I won't respond to that name. I go by my middle name, Danielle instead."

I consider Elizabeth to be my academic personality, the one that is driven, determined, and disciplined. Danielle is more representative of who I am on a personal level: energetic, empathetic, and entertaining.

While organized when it comes to school, you can expect books, CDs, and DVDs to be all around, often unable to be located by anyone but myself. I tend to be grumpy in the mornings, but no worries, I'm taking mostly afternoon classes. While I may seem odd at first because of my quirky habits and funny way of speaking, I'll grow on you like ( ) .

I know we at least share a commitment to academic excellence, but my hope is that you get to know me as Danielle rather than just Elizabeth.

Your new roommate,
Danielle

Undergraduate / Intellectual Vitality - Stanford (benefits of right brain/left brain learning) [3]

Stanford students are widely known to possess a sense of intellectual vitality. Tell us about an idea or an experience you have had that you find intellectually engaging.

My weeklong internship at Neurologic Music Therapy Services of Arizona (NMTSA) was probably what sparked my interest in wanting to become a physical and occupational therapist. Although only fourteen at the time, I was fascinated not only with the different symptoms of the patients themselves, but also with how effectively the music therapy seemed to help them. I wondered if similar music therapy activities could help beyond the normal demographic.

While even therapists who are not specifically music therapists utilized instruments to help with fine motor skills or singing to help with speech, I feel the power of engaging the right side of the brain in order to assist the left is not sufficiently utilized in regular student curriculum. As school systems are forced to cut more and more programs, it is shocking to me that art and music programs are always the first to be rid of when the are so beneficial to creating well-rounded students.

If we could somehow find the resources to apply the principles and methods of music therapy to ordinary students, how much more could we teach them? Would the product be more innovative, visionary leaders for the future? I do not yet know, but I believe it is definitely something worth investigating, as I plan to do.

Any feedback? This is a first draft.