Undergraduate / Bowdoin essay - Intellectual engagement in Vietnam and the US [3]

Bowdoin students and alumni often cite world-class faculty and opportunities for intellectual engagement, the College's commitment to the Common Good, and the special quality of life on the coast of Maine as important aspects of the Bowdoin experience. Reflecting on your own interests and experiences, please comment on one of the following:

1. Intellectual engagement
2. The Common Good
3. Connection to place

I choose to write about Intellectual engagement

If I have to define intellectual engagement, I would say that it is the way that a student learn and gather knowledge. I believe that learning style is intellectual engagement. As an international student coming to America from Vietnam, I had had the opportunity to observe the difference in learning style between American and Vietnamese students. In Vietnam, I went to Le Hong Phong High School for the Gifted, one of the best high schools of the nation. I would assume that the majority of students at my school have high intellectual ability. However, the students usually depend largely on teachers to learn. Very few can learn independently.

In contrast, students in America actively engage in their learning. They are not afraid to question or discuss a problem with their teachers. On the other hand, the teachers always make sure that every student is participating in class.

Furthermore, I have noticed that students in America do not compete with each other for grades. I think that this is very good, since students should be intrinsically motivated to learn rather than be motivated by grades. For example, in America, only parents have the access to the grades of their students. While in Vietnam, at the end of each semester, the teacher would read out loud the GPA of all the students in a class. I myself dislike this method, as it always sparks the competition between students in a same class.

How would you guys think of my essay?

Undergraduate / Why do I want to study Biology at Cornell - Cornell supplemental essay [2]

Please help me as my deadline is coming soon (Jan 1)

College of Arts and Sciences:
Describe your intellectual interests, their evolution, and what makes them exciting to you. Tell us how you will utilize the academic programs in the College of Arts and Sciences to further explore your interests, intended major, or field of study. (fewer than 500 words)

I had been in love with science for as long as I can remember. When I was young, I kept asking questions such as "Where does the sun sleep at night?" or "How can fish live in water?" I was always my parents' curious little girl. I love to discover the way all the wonderful creatures of the nature work. I love science in general and biology particularly for their amazing ability to answer a lot of my questions.

In high school, I am especially interested in sciences. I have taken AP Chemistry, AP Biology and AP Physics and they are absolutely my favorite subjects. Even as a high school student, I still keep my curiosity. However, my questions have become more and more complex. Sometimes even my textbooks cannot answer the questions that come to my mind. Since tenth grade, I started go to the library twice a week to read science books. Learning sciences, whether from school, from the books I read in my spare time or from the observations I make in real life always fascinates me. I am always excited to learn new things, whether it is how to play a new instrument or the way that DNA replicates.

Although I did not have a chance to visit Cornell, I had taken the Cornell's virtual tour several times. I feel that Cornell is the right place for me. It is a place where I can satisfy my passion for discovery and delve deeper into sciences. Cornell is also famous for its researching program and I know that there are a lot of researching opportunities for undergraduates at Cornell. As a science lover and future scientist, I am eager to take the research opportunities that Cornell will provide me.

Cornell's commitment to diversity has assured me that at Cornell, I will be valuable as an individual since Cornell is a place "doesn't just tolerate differences but treasures them; and providing rich opportunities for learning from those differences." I know that at Cornell, I will have a chance to meet and learn from people who have very different backgrounds from me. The diversity of the community at Cornell really attracts to me to the university.

I want to study at Cornell's College of Arts and Sciences as my goal is to become a biologist. I believe Cornell's College of Arts and Sciences and I are a perfect match. I am looking forward to my next four years at Cornell University, a place where I will be surrounded by people who may have very different backgrounds from me, but we will all share a thing in common: a thirst for learning and exploring. I know that Cornell University will not only give me a world-class education, but also a warm community to call home. (465 words)