Undergraduate / 'being a American' - Common APP Achievement Essay [8]

There are many achievements a person can accomplish in his or her lifetime that he or she will remember forever. For me, it certainly is being a American. It has been a while since I've achieved this, but I began working towards this goal back in the rural state of Punjab in India. I was inspired by the images that came on the English television channels. I wanted to be like the people I saw there. I would dream of speaking like them and living in a place like the ones on TV.

I got my break when my dad applied for our visa and it was accepted. In 2003, I came form the land of the Five Rivers to the Garden State. This is a culture shock to most people but not me. In fact, I had been anticipating this moment for a long time. This was probably one of the happiest moments of my life.

Being in American was not enough, though. I had a long way to go. I wanted to be a regular American kid. I wanted to speak like my peers and eat like them also. I had the dreams, but I barely spoke enough of the language to make them come true.

I asked myself how could I possibly learn this language. This is when I decided to fall back on what started my dream. I started watching a lot of American television. I used characters like Fez off That 70's Show to guide me since he was in similar circumstances. I also decided that I had to speak more to learn more, so I talked a lot in class at school. I would say random stuff to my classmates that I picked up from the TV. I knew I was making progress because I got their attention. They were paying attention to me, not only because of my strong accent, but because we enjoyed some the same TV shows.

I feel I have accomplished this goal now. I know this because not too long ago, my sister and the rest of my family said I was too American. This would be a insult to some people because they think that losing their traditional values is like the end of the world. I loved hearing this, though, because this was how I knew my hard work had paid off. I have no accent fit in with my classmates at school perfectly now. Most of them think that I was born in the US and are surprised when I tell them I was born in a village in India. Have I mentioned how much I love a good burger and pizza?

Undergraduate / 'getting the ball into the hole' - Common APP Short Essay [7]

As they say, everybody needs a stress reliever; golf is my stress reliever. It is the perfect way for me to end a stressful week due to school projects or the constant nagging of parents. It enables me to get away from all of this and into a world of my own. In this world, I no longer have responsibilities like cleaning my room, which is so annoying. My only focus is getting the ball into the hole in the fewest number of strokes. When I start off with the beginning drive, I usually imagine the ball is something that has been bothering me, like my dirty room. I stare at it and scold the ball thinking it is that dirty room. When swinging, I unleash my fury at the maximum level. As violent as it may seem, this course of action brings great pleasure to my mind because, theoretically, I have cleaned my room and my parents are happy. This continues for all 18 holes, and by the end of the day, I have 18 things less to worry about.

Undergraduate / 'Enrichment program and 'unique' solution' - BU Supplement - Diversity [13]

This past summer, I attended an enrichment program at the University of Mississippi called Apex Leadership Conference. Although this program was developed to increase the critical thinking of raising seniors and teach them leader ship roles, I learned the importance of diversity.

At the conference, individuals were divided into groups which were all given the same community problem to come up with a unique solution. The community problem was about a fictional town on the gulf coast of Mississippi. This town was economically hurt by the recent BP oil spill because tourism to the city's beeches was the main economy. In addition to the oil spill, the town was seeing a raise in teen crime rate and a high dropout rate. Each group was to come up with one solution that would suffice all three problems. Each group was required to at various locations around campus distant from other the groups so that no two groups could listen to the other group's solution development to the problem.

When the time came to present our 'unique' solution, something very ironic happened. Every group had the same solution of cleaning up the town's beaches by requiring community service. I was amazed at how the similar every presentation was. When thinking back to this experience, I realized that most of the people excluding me and three others were of the same socio-economic background and had similar personalities. This was evident through the individuals' .

One thing was very evident, the program was not diverse at all, not only pertaining to diverse races, but also diverse personalities. I often contemplate on how the whole experience could have been different if there was a person from Africa or South America who has been through poverty. This person's different perspective could have impacted his group to come up with a very different solution from the other groups.

In retrospect, this one activity made me realize the vital role that diversity plays in shaping our world. To fully reach my potential, I think being in a very diverse atmosphere is very important. A diverse atmosphere will allow me to be introduced to people who think very differently from me. As they say, surroundings pay a very vital role in the development of a person. What better way to develop myself than being in one of the most diverse places on the face of this earth?

Undergraduate / 'a college booklet about any schools of my interest' - Emory Supplement [2]

Supplement basically asks What makes Emory Special and how are you going to use this?

Whenever I receive a college booklet about any schools of my interest, I thoroughly look at everyone and read all of the information. For Emory booklets, though, It is very different. They somehow have some mystical uplifting qualities about them. This is because whenever I have a bad day at school and then come home to see the Emory booklet waiting for me, my mood is suddenly blissful to say the least. Then, I say Emory university in my head and the tremendous amount of stress about choosing the best college for me completely vanquishes. Saying the name brings the images from the booklet of the picturesque marble campus to my mind, which then soothe it. Moments like these have made me realize Emory University is my top choice. The aesthetic qualities and other qualities like the atmosphere, the quality of education, and the location assure me that attending Emory University would be a experience like no other.

Undergraduate / 'the campus is one of the most unique qualities' - Emory Supplement [4]

Prompt: What are the unique qualities of Emory University, and the specific school(s) to which you are applying (Emory College of Arts and Sciences, Oxford College, or both), that make you want to become part of Emory University? In what ways do you hope to take advantage of the qualities you have identified?

There is something about Emory University that stands out for me. I haven't been able to figure out just what, but when I look at the booklets or the website, something just feels right. It may be the beautiful and awe-inspiring campus filled with new marble buildings or the unique academic centered atmosphere.

To me, the campus is one of the most unique qualities Emory offers. This campus is absolutely inspiring to me because of the marble buildings. The white color theme gives it a heavenly feel that is astonishing to say the least. As a aesthetically inspired person, I can utilize the beautiful campus to relieve stress or bad temper before a major exam or project. By focusing on the beauty, I would be able to eliminate the negative thoughts and concentrate on new uplifting and positive thoughts.

At most colleges, I feel that a lot of the students tend to only focus on class only when it is in session. Emory students are different, though. The school's academic centered atmosphere is exactly the kind of atmosphere I want to be around. Emory provides a community of scholars that know the importance of academics. These scholars tend to continue their studies and become professionals in various fields. By attending Emory, I will be able to meet outstanding students that make a significant impact on our society. I will be able to look back and know that I was once in the same class as the Einstein of my generation.

Scholarship / 'I lived in New Jersey' - important life event [3]

prompt: Discuss an important event in your life that changed or impacted you significantly. Explain how and why (no more than 700 words).

In a certain time of my life, I lived in New Jersey and this was actually the first placed I lived in the United States. Being new to the country then, I had to make adjustments in my lifestyles so I could be successful here in America. Back in India, I was the very shy kid who would keep to himself all the time. Somehow, I still managed to make a few friends even with my socially introverted personality.

When I arrived in New Jersey though, I only knew three people: mom, dad, sister. This was a total nightmare because even though I was very shy, I still liked having friends to have fun with. In addition to the isolated conditions I was dealing with, I spoke very minimal English at the time.

For about the first month being in the States, I did not venture out of our apartment and during this time, the only people I talked to were the members of my family. I also arrived during summer vacation so I was not able to go to school and hope that people would notice me and come talk to me. Also, since my mom was very culturally attached to our homeland, she only made Indian food. Back in India, I had the theory that I would eat American food often. The only real American food I had eaten so far were the french fries my dad bought me at the McDonald's in the airport.

Certainly, I was in a very miserable circumstance. I grew tired of my isolated conditions and wanted a change, and after contemplating for about a week, I finally decided to venture around the vicinity of my apartment complex. On this adventure, I discovered a restaurant right behind my apartment complex. I then quickly ran home to get money to eat at the restaurant.

When I was first about to enter this restaurant, the same introverted personality was staring to come back and had second thoughts about going into the place. I buckled up and convinced that it would not be so bad. Having gone through the doors, I went to the counter and ordered the first thing on the menu with a very heavy Indian accent: a slice of cheese pizza. After eating the first one, I fell in love with this new triangular shaped bread. I then departed the restaurant but promised myself that I would be a frequent visitor.

On my way back, I continued to adventure around my apartment complex. I yet again, made another interesting discovery: a community swimming pool. My day came to a close, though, when I realized that it was getting late and my mom would be worried. I then finally departed home.

I continued to adventure around for most of the following days. Finally one day, I met my first friend at the swimming pool who also Indian like myself but spoke both English and Punjabi. He is the person to show me around the whole neighborhood and also helped me with English.

In retrospect, that one day single when I set aside my shyness, my life to changed. My old socially reclusive and introverted personality transformed into a open and adventurous personality. I was not afraid of meeting people, but sought after kids my age whom I could befriend and play with. I think if it wasn't for that day, I still would have not been able to make as many friends that I currently have and would not have tried as many delicious foods.

Undergraduate / 'the global perspective' - WHY Emory [3]

As a prospective student, I inquired thoroughly about Emory and Oxford College, and after my inquiry about both schools, I have became very enchanted by the qualities the schools have and the opportunities that the undergraduates have being students of their respective campus.

Emory University's combination of a liberal arts education and the resources of a major research university, its students are better trained to be part of our globally diverse and interconnected society. After Emory I plan on attending medical school, and with the high competition, a applicant must be unique. At Emory, I would be able to conduct research while having a broad educational background which would distinguish me from the rest. Furthermore, the diversity of the student body truly adds to the global perspective. This diversity would enable me to learn about different cultures and lifestyles by having direct contact. Also, the campus's attraction of many guest speakers like Salman Rushdie (one of my favorite authors), President Jimmy Carter, and the Dalai Lama would be a great experience for me to enjoy.

With only about a thousand students, Oxford College has a close-knit small community setting. This idea was really intriguing to me because it would enable me to be in a family like atmosphere where I could feel at home. Also, since Oxford college has no senior or junior class, the freshmen and sophomore are in charge. This unique feature of Oxford would give me leadership experience which I would then apply at the main campus in Atlanta. In addition, with a ratio of 10 to 1, my educational would be become very personalized with the attention I would be able to receive from my professors.