Undergraduate / "Where I'm going, and Who I want to be" - Common App Essay Topic of my Choice [3]

As I walked into a room with white and green striped walls, I saw toys on the floor and a TV showing one of my favorite cartoons. I sat down and waited until a woman wearing flower-printed clothes called my name. The man wearing a white overcoat gave me a helpful shot (even though my first impression was that I would be harmed). The idea of helping others through challenging times made me want to become a doctor. However, becoming a doctor was only the first stepping-stone to what later matured into me wanting to become an entrepreneur. With the same intention of helping others, I want to own a business that will allow me to positively impact the world while also allowing me to have autonomy and independence in my efforts.

Learning anything by trying to teach yourself, otherwise known as trial and error, takes time that I am willing to give. When I was young, I can remember sitting at my desk in school looking at everything on my assignments, trying to use every little minute I had to get my work done. I paid attention to detail in order to obtain a full understanding. My patience allowed me to become a student capable of being well above average. Being an entrepreneur will definitely require the same level of listening, skill, and tolerance that I achieved at a young age. A business takes time to form, and with time I see ideas coming alive in my head.

My hard work was never a finished product. For instance, I developed a fresh understanding of the world every day. Keeping in mind that nothing really ends, I picture my business like a building that keeps being added to. The materials are the products or services that improve with time. In that case, I know I could start a business such as one that aids kids with disabilities, one that manages and promotes musicians, or one that is simply based off of something that is constantly interesting and demanding new ideas.

I enjoy the idea of continuing projects based on a foundation that I lay that can be built upon from the ground up. For example, even though I want to study business, I also maintain an interest in mechanical engineering, because I believe that I can build something for the betterment of the world. I am fully aware that several areas of knowledge are required to start and continue a strong business. I know I will direct people, present new marketing plans, and that my colleagues and business partners will feel like my work lights up their minds as if the sun came into the room. That being said, my business will add only to positive goals and by no means support the negative energy that some big corporations embody.

To culminate my vision, the idea of becoming a doctor made me feel like I could truly rise to the occasion of helping others, but my interests have become more specific to that of leading a business that gives back to the community in a way similar to successful health practitioners. I will learn the tools of wisely using time, great focus, and a deep understanding of methods that actually provide for people. Nothing will make me feel better or more accomplished.

Undergraduate / Influence, Dreams, Work Experience, and Scholarship-Syracuse Supplement [2]

I need help revising this and it would be highly appreciated, thank you.

1. Who or what influenced you to apply to Syracuse University?

At the end of my junior year and at the beginning of my summer break, I went to a four-day workshop hosted by a program named College Summit. Once acquainted with a college counselor named Ms. Terri, I started to receive assistance with my college search. She helped me by asking questions about my future, postsecondary plans, and college preferences along with the colleges that I already found interest in. Based on my responses, Ms. Terri created a list of recommended colleges for me. With New York as a place of familiarity and affinity, Syracuse University quickly caught my attention. Time Square, having the convenience of everything being close by, and the diverse people and culture of New York City has made it and the state itself an attracting place to me. So the idea of living and going to school anywhere in New York appeals to me greatly. After researching Syracuse, I found it as a college of opportunities and academic and personal growth. When I learned about Syracuse's prominent reputation for its business and technology programs, I was driven to learn even about them. Soon after, I discovered Syracuse's dual student program. I realized studying the aspects of technology and business at the same time would truly challenge me, forcing me to tear down any walls that may hinder the reach of my goals. From then on, the curiosity that grew in me turned into an itching desire to apply to Syracuse.

2. Who is the person you dream of becoming and how do you believe Syracuse University can help you achieve this?

For a great sum of my life, I have always dreamt of becoming someone of great significance by going into the field of business. With that, I aim to create a business not for myself, but for the things and people around me. Knowing that I needed a niche, I looked at several things that could serve to form the foundation of this dream. To fulfill that role, I plan to use my prowess of computers and technology in order to create or provide a useful service or product. By doing so, I'll have a grasp on my dream of becoming a commendable entrepreneur. Syracuse University's mission to take students out of the class room and into the real world will broaden the possibilities of my dream by transforming it into a reality. With the purpose of this mission, turning what I do outside the classroom into something significant, will add onto the impacts other students bring to the community and the rest of the world. As for my dreams of entrepreneurship and innovation, creating something as an actual necessity, in the long run, will result in my own legacy. This "legacy," will illustrate my true dream of becoming an icon, or at least a contributing figure to the betterment of society and condition of living.

3. If you have had work experience, what skills and/or knowledge did you gain?

The work experience I have stems from my engagement of volunteering at a resource room in my local area. During my time at the Resource Room, I swept and mopped floors, cleaned tables and chairs, gave assistance to their summer camp, and participated in a workshop. When kids arrived in the morning for summer camp, it started the most engaging part of my volunteering. They started with doing math and reading assignments, where I helped with whatever they needed. If they ran into problems with understanding what they read or figuring out math problems, I explained the stories to them in a creative way, and taught them basic math skills when necessary. Moreover, volunteering became even more active when the kids were taken out to parks or a skating ring in the afternoon. At the skating ring, the younger kids always stumbled and hanged onto the rails when they skated. If any of the kids ever came close to falling, any volunteer including myself made sure to stop them from doing so. We also always taught them how to skate properly and maintain their balance. As for the workshop, learning about communication skills and how to implement them effectively gave volunteering even more value. All in all, cleaning may have seemed like an unfulfilling responsibility, but I learned how every person needs to do their part in order to make things work. My whole entire time volunteering at the Resource Room was nothing but a learning experience, a way for me to network with new people, and a constructive thing for me to do over the summer.

4. Our mission of Scholarship in Action, education for the world in the world, extends beyond the classroom to include engagement opportunities with our campus community, the City of Syracuse, and locations across the globe. Based on your interests, tell us what real-world experiences you might pursue during your education at Syracuse as part of this mission.

Syracuse University's mission of "Scholarship in Action", when simply read on a computer monitor, seems subtle. However, the true meaning behind it alone stands for something with much more impacting significance; transforming the effect a group places on their community into a global one. I plan to pursue a number of real-world experiences by maintaining an open-mind to whichever ones come my way. The ones I already have in mind consist of studying abroad, volunteering, becoming involved in organizations, and even starting my own community group. During my time in Hong Kong, I will learn about business from a different perspective, and then I will apply that, and other knowledge I gain to what I do back at home. In addition, I will not only volunteer in the community of Syracuse, but abroad as well. By doing this and something such as teaching natives about my culture, I will be able to "integrate" myself into Hong Kong's culture just as other SU abroad students have done. With that, Syracuse will have even more of an extension and impact to another part of the world. As for organizations and community groups, I would love to join any poetry organization or start my own, as well as an "ecology" club or any groups that promote the use of alternative energy resources within the community. Eventually, I will make it possible or assist in any way to stretch the actions of these organizations from the community to other places on the globe. With that, the impact of one student will add onto existing ones, truly making the mission of "Scholarship in Action" effective and more than a reality.

Scholarship / "Why is a healthy lifestyle important in school?" Essay Scholarship [2]

Here's the topic and guidelines for the essay:
In under 1000 words "Why is a healthy lifestyle important in school?"

Any help and tips will be greatly appreciated

On average, throughout one's day the goal is to feel satisfaction even if they do not realize it. Everyone has their own idea of satisfaction; for one person it could be buying a pack of cigarettes and for the next person it could be doing their 2-hour workout at the gym. However, the things people do to be satisfied or the habits they have dictates whether or not if they are living a healthy life. Therefore, maintaining a healthy lifestyle is essential for performing adequately in school because it enables you to avoid bad habits, to stay focused, and to work at your highest potential.

Since having a healthy lifestyle in school is significant in regards to avoiding bad habits, it is important to never take part in them. For instance, almost everyone knows of how one bad habit can lead to another; if you were to eat pizza one day it would not be a problem for you to eat Chinese food or pizza again the next day. Once a person's bad tendencies in regards to health start to accumulate, they will start heading down a road of bad decisions. This is not to say that, a student will automatically start skipping class and not completing their assignments if they don't live a healthy lifestyle, but that they open themselves up to more of a negative lifestyle, leading to a care-free attitude, which is not suitable for school at all. With living a healthier lifestyle, a student pushes discipline into their life as well, which is one of the most essential things needed for being successful in anything a person does. Exercising regularly and watching what and how you eat are things that anyone has to be cautious and competent about, which are skills school requires also.

Living a healthy lifestyle not only helps with discipline and avoiding bad habits, but it also aids one with staying focused in school and anything else. For example, scientist, nutritionist, doctors, and every-day people have all come to the agreement that exercising often and eating healthy food is good for the brain, mood, and/or brain development. With that being said, it does not take a lot of thinking to see why schools require students to take at least one year of a physical education class. Even though it is not a fact that living a healthy lifestyle makes a person smarter, it is safe to say that doing so helps with maintaining mental, thus making the daily routine of school for any student less difficult or more of a breeze.

Once a student is focused in school with the aid of their healthy lifestyle, they can constantly push themselves to work to the best of their ability. A good amount of students always wait until the last minute to complete some kind of project or homework assignment, and risk getting late to class the next morning. However, a student that tries to live more of a healthy lifestyle avoids things like this altogether. It is not only the discipline a student develops through maintaining a healthy lifestyle, but the literal benefits they get from doing so. For instance, people who work regularly and eat the recommended amount of the different food groups are said to not get sick as easily, are not prone to fatigue, and can handle the regular daily work load without feeling drained.

In conclusion, most can agree that completing your daily school-tasks efficiently and effectively and still having energy to spare can leave anyone feeling satisfied. With that, it is apparent that living healthy is not just the best way to be truly satisfied, but because of how it can support one in school and life in general. The satisfaction and the benefits a healthy lifestyle results in is what make it important for school or anything else. With a healthy lifestyle, students can avoid bad habits through the discipline they gain, can maintain their focus, and can perform to the finest of their ability.