Undergraduate / "a road trip to see the Northwestern campus" - NORTHWESTERN [4]

During the summer of 2009, my family and I took a road trip to see the Northwestern campus. As we past the Sears Tower and Cloud gate, I realized that the urban setting of Chicago was leery and unnerving for a suburban girl like myself. As my family's Honda Pilot past the green Evanston sign and entered the campus, I was completely taken back by the juxtaposition of modern architecture and Victorian style buildings. The combinations of extremes were eye-opening and summoned the urge for me to grab a textbook for Poli Sci 240 Introduction to International Relations and read on the freshly mown green grass on Deering Meadow. Although regular classes weren't in session, the local Barnes & Nobles was lurking with students in their Wildcat purple. Their bodies were carrying humongous loads, but the expressions on their faces contained enthusiasm, and not discomfort from the weight of their textbooks. My family and I stopped by the closest Starbucks, sat outside, basked in the comfortable summer heat and sights of a visionary college town. After this brief college visit, I immediately went on the Northwestern website and perused the website longer than I usually did for Facebook (2-4 hours).

From this browsing session, I found that Northwestern was the university that could fully prepare me for my ambition to be an effective global citizen. To fulfill this goal, I suspect that I will be an international studies major at Northwestern and what intrigues me the most about this major at the university, is its International Studies residential college option. It provides the opportunity of learning beyond the classroom, living with peers and a roommate that have the same passions, as I do. This is my definition of an idealistic collegiate education, and Northwestern offers the seemingly fantastic imagination.

Of course, plain old fun and games should also be added to any perfect picture. Beyond anything else in my high school career, I remember the experiences I had with my extracurricular activities, not the grades I received in my classes (gosh! If I only had that single measly point in Enr. Physical Science my freshman year...). Only with a huge undergraduate class of over 8,000 people does a gargantuan list of intriguing and out-of-this-world activities appear. I see the amazing varsity athletics that shine in the Big Ten, where I can reminisce on my own high school varsity football games, always cheering for a winning team. I get excited about watching the Freshman Fifteen perform, where at Northwestern, is known as an a cappella group, not a weight-challenging plague that affects almost every freshman at all colleges nationwide. I am enthused by the Happiness Club because I imagine that it will be my "scene" at Northwestern. This club will always allow me to access my childhood by participating in sticker giveaways, chalking sidewalks, and building sand castles.

These unique qualities of Northwestern are what make me want to "carpe" a college education.

Undergraduate / "Touring the West Bank" - STANFORD INTELLECTUAL EXPERIENCE [5]

Constructive criticism and feedback will be GREATLY appreciated.
*if you edit mine, i'll edit back. :)

An idea or experience, you have had that you find intellectually engaging.
Last summer, I had the amazing opportunity to visit Israel with my high school friends, AP Comparative Politics teacher, and my United States History teacher. Many months prior to the trip, I did all I could do to know about Israel from every aspect: I bought multiple guide books, practiced my Hebrew and Arabic, and read the Lemon Tree, a novel impartially written captured the Arab and Jew perspective in the heart of the Middle East. I was prepared to gain an intellectually stimulating experience of a lifetime.

This occurred when our group was able to tour the West Bank. Passports in hand, one by one, we stepped towards the Foreigner booth. I flashed my United States passport and found myself staring at a Palestinian woman in traditional clothes with a newborn strapped to her back. Beads of sweat dripped down her face; her dark eyes flashed a look of hatred that said, "You Americans." After the tour of the West Bank, we returned to our cool air-conditioned bus and sat down on soft clothed seats. Peering through a tainted window to the Palestinians on the other side, I could not forget the woman's dejected and exhausted eyes. She was telling me to do something, almost pleading, underneath her abhorrence for me as an American. She has affected me to make every decision as a World citizen rather than an American. I recognize that my opportunities given to me as an American are unattainable privileges for others, but I have also come to realize the need to seize these opportunities and advocate for those who do not have the rights or the means to do so themselves.

Undergraduate / "I'm a girl." COMMON APP [12]

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.

At the age of six, I was given a chance comparable to Pandora's box. On February 1, 1999, in Raleigh, North Carolina, I had the opportunity to name my youngest baby sister. The thought process included going through the list of names of my best friends in my first grade class and the consideration of naming her "Molly" after the main character in my favorite TV show, "Big Comfy Couch." Eventually, I came to the conclusion of naming her "Kristin" because it had a "Kuh" sound and because the name "Catherine" has the same sound. Catherine was the name of my other sister. I thought that if I had let my imagination go wild, my dad would have disapproved. It was important to me to be approved by my dad because my suggestions couldn't be more of a disappointment than I already was. I still recall the heaviness and regret that hung in the air as my dad walked away to name the baby, Kristin, a name he had not expected to give. The perfect list of names for his son was dashed, alongside our family's tradition of male heirs that had lasted for decades.

Before the birth of my youngest sister, Kristin, my younger sister Catherine was attempt number two. When Catherine came home from the hospital in my mother's gentle arms, I saw a facial expression on my dad that was trying to hide a myriad of emotions. Even at a young age, I could suspect disappointment. I looked away and hoped it would fade because I wanted Catherine to be safe. Unfortunately, when Kristin came home, the expression came back and I finally realized why it had returned. To him we were failures. I could envision the thought cloud floating above my dad's head going "poof, poof" because no child of his would be able to fulfill his imagination of fatherhood. My dad would never go to the batting cage, spend hours upon hours trying to get past the one level on the hottest video game in stores, or even be able to say, "like father, like son."

Within my family, my dad is the first son of my grandfather, who is also the first son; my sisters and I brought shame to our family line. Throughout my life, I have been climbing mountain after mountain to reach the Ivory Tower of my grandparents' and father's expectations. Even after decades of feminist movements around the world, there are still nations that refuse to move forward; they choose to value the male more than the female. The inability to carry on the family name as a female is the root of this burden. My dream to rid the world of gender inequality is a product of my life experience. I am aware that my dream is of great magnitude, but to prove the value of women around the world, dreaming big is what I must do.

polished level? how effective/memorable will it be to the reader?
constructive criticism appreciated!