Undergraduate / 'the bottom of things' - Why I want to study engineering and at Duke [6]

Feedback would be appreciated, there might be grammatical errors here and there, if people would spot them out I'd appreciate it!

Prompt:If you are applying to the Pratt School of Engineering, please discuss why you want to study engineering and why you would like to study at Duke.

I've always had a certain desire to get to the bottom of things, to understand how they work and if I can, replicate them and build similar things. Engineering is a profession that interests me; it is one I want to pursue and learn, to expand upon. Ever since I switched from the basic to the advanced versions of the sciences in tenth grade, I found a liking for Physics, Chemistry and Mathematics and soon enough, figured that I wanted to do Civil Engineering. Of course, this interest stemmed not only from liking subjects, but from the environment I live in. Dubai is a city booming with architectural and engineering success, such as the Burj Khalifa and other, seemingly tall structures. I have often found myself asking: "How are they built? What keeps them standing? How do they know how much building materials are needed?" and decided that Civil Engineering would be the key to my questions. After I found what I wanted to be, I had to then figure out where I wanted to study, so I searched for the top ten universities in the United States and found Duke. As soon as I began researching the university, I decided that this is the university for me. The various student groups, clubs and programs such as the "Engineering Student Government", the outstanding Civil Engineering program offered by Duke, the vibrant white and blue colours of the Blue Devils and the numerous, fascinating researches conducted by Duke make it the university of choice. Being an avid reader, Perkins Library caught my attention; the grand library that offers many beautiful reading rooms and study areas. Not to mention the von der Heyden Pavilion, the great glass walled space that is designed for gathering and studying. I would be honoured to be a member of Duke's student body, and a contributing citizen of its lovely campus.

Undergraduate / 'Bulgarian or German' - CommonApp diversity [7]

Prompt: A range of academic interests, personal perspectives, and life experiences adds much to the educational mix. Given your personal background, describe an experience that illustrates what you would bring to the diversity in a college community, or an encounter that demonstrated the importance of diversity to you.

(250-500 words)
(Essay: 266 words)

Here's my rough first draft, some parts feel "lacking" or not clear, any suggestions or feedback would be appreciated:

"Variety's the very spice of life, that gives it all its flavour." said William Cowper in one of his poetic books, "The Timepiece". Diversity is a vital factor in education and life in general; it brings about open-mindedness, enriches the educational experience, teaches one how to communicate effectively with other people of varied backgrounds and boosts competitiveness in general. In addition to that, one might even learn something from other people in a diverse community, be it a few words in a foreign language or an understanding of an entirely new culture, but the most important thing about diversity is that it battles the common and ignorant stereotypes.

Coming from a diverse school, the importance of diversity is clear to me. It'd be quite dull if all students in a school were from one area, or all spoke the same language and shared a common ideology; however, there are many people of varying cultures, nationalities and ethnicities in my classroom, and they all bring the class to life in one way or another.

When we are left with nothing to do in class, instead of doing nothing I can turn to my Bulgarian friend, who is taking German classes, and learn a few words, or phrases, in Bulgarian or German or I can learn how to greet people and spell my name in Japanese.

By being exposed to a medley of cultures, I was able to write, read and speak a few phrases in other languages, learn about foreign traditions, familiarize myself with other backgrounds and expand my general knowledge about the many different cultures that we live with.

Undergraduate / Short Answer about voluntary officework [6]

Hello, I was stuck for ideas until I remembered something I used to do last year, which was simply "office work" for my school. I wrote something, but I'm unsure if it's good enough or not. I'm also having difficulties thinking of a good conclusion.

Any suggestions or criticism will be appreciated.
Thanks.
Prompt: Please briefly elaborate on one of your extracurricular activities or work experiences in the space below (1000 character maximum).

The rapid clicking sounds of the keyboard and the low humming noise of the air conditioner were customary to me. Feeding a computer names isn't a job people would want to do, especially in their free time, but it's one I did for two, three, maybe even four hours a week, all in my free time at school. I believed that instead of spending time doing nothing, work, to some extent, was a more productive mean of utilizing my time. I liked what I did, it taught me patience and fortitude, gave me a sense of responsibility and rewarded me with a sense of accomplishment; in addition to that, I made friends with a couple of students and teachers.