Undergraduate / "One Decision, Lifelong Benefits" - Common App [3]

Please help with grammar and critique any comprehension problems as well. It's been a while since I've written these sorts of essays. Thank you so much!

Evaluate a significant experience, achievement, risk you have taken, or ethical dilemma you have faced and its impact on you.

I was a characteristic All-American teenager. I thrilled in the fact that I knew the lyrics to all of Taylor Swift's songs and was captain of the junior varsity cheerleading squad. My biggest woe being the difficulties of Pre-Calculus, this sun-kissed, fifteen-year old version of me had little to no complaints. Yet, being the typical teenager I was, I considered that contentment mundane. Armed with that belief, I found myself applying to a boarding school in my parent's home country of South Korea. In all honesty, I had wanted simply wanted a change of scene, but I am lucky to have gotten that and so much more during these past two years.

Understandably, it all changed for me on the first day of school. That was the day I found out I knew nothing about being a Korean teenager. The popular music, celebrities, and colloquial language of South Korea were all lost on me, so it shouldn't have come as a surprise - yet it did - when the greatest obstacle I faced at my new school ending up not being academic hardships like I had assumed but instead a cultural barrier with my peers. It was not the fifty-minute class periods that stressed me out the most, but instead the ten-minute breaks in between classes where I struggled to not be left behind. Thankfully, this confused, sixteen-year old version of me learned a big something about perseverance, wiped the tears away and started slowly learning from her more-than-willing to help friends.

Fast-forward nearly two years later and I can say with the utmost honesty; I am not a characteristic All-American teenager. Granted, I still know all the words to Taylor Swift's songs, but due to my continuous off-tune singing, many of my friends now know them as well. Pre-Calculus will never be my favorite subject, but through all the ups and downs that have come as side effects of my decision to move to Korea, as I near the end, I wholeheartedly believe it was the single greatest decision I could have ever made during my high school career. The whole experience has shown me that there is more out there for me and opened up my eyes to a heritage and culture that I never realized was a part of who I am. Now as the two-year mark grows near, I sit in my room once again writing applications during the holiday season. Though it seems as if I have come full-circle, I am satisfied in knowing that the mere two years I have spent in Korea have changed the way I want to live for the next sixty. Now as a chapter of my life closes, all this hopeful, seventeen-year old version of me needs is a campus of higher education to show her how much more she has left to grow.

-hopeful11

Undergraduate / 'notice to become a School Ambassador' - Common App EC Short Answer [3]

Grammar and overall flow critique would be a great help! Also if anyone could look at my complete common app essay that I have on my other thread, that would be great! Thanks a lot everyone :)

Please briefly elaborate on one of your extracurricular activities or work experiences in the space below (1000 character maximum).

I am a strong believer in seeing all that a school offers and as a student, passing it on to others. Therefore, as an eager 10th grader beginning high school, an interview notice to become a School Ambassador was just the sort of prospect I had been looking for. My beginning tasks as an Ambassador were mainly campus tours for prospective students and their parents. I enjoyed these tasks because I met with many hopeful middle school students, reminding me of how I was a year prior. However, the most rewarding aspect of being an Ambassador came during my 2nd year. During this year, I was promoted to team leader and led a group of fellow guides. Most importantly, I was held responsible for Q&A sessions with foreign officials from countries such as Denmark and Finland, providing information about our student life and education system. Through my work as a School Ambassador, I have grown to learn the importance of school pride and giving back to schools that give all to their students.