Undergraduate / Speed/ Humane; Northwestern Supp;Unique qualities [3]

Please be as harsh as possible! I will appreciate every single word of your criticism!

What are the unique qualities of Northwestern-and of the specific undergraduate school to which you are applying-that make you want to attend the University? In what ways do you hope to take advantage of the qualities you have identified?

When I open the window of the classroom, a warm, glistening waves of the lake say "hello". Freshness of trees and grass soak through my nose, and green campus relaxes my eyes. Combination of antique and modern architectures with nature presents harmony between past and present, and even the future. The Northwestern campus in Evanston is where I call heaven - the place I can be truly comfortable in the middle of nature and humans. Yet, the unseen highlight of the heaven is its unique education system.

Speed is the vital part of my life. I love speedy house music that instills energy to me everyday, and speedy running that gives fresh wind upon my body. As the speed maniac, I will definitely enjoy quarter system in Northwestern University. During short, but many terms, I can attain more knowledge and valuable experience from outstanding courses. Previously, I have never imagined of double major in Economics and Political Science due to time management, but in Northwestern University, my dream will come true. The speed of learning will provide a new kind of fuel for my life.

The quarter system does not only instill energy to my education, but it also grants me many chances of internships and other experiences outside the campus. In high school, I have had few opportunities to participate in internship due to my language barrier; however, I have been longing for the internship related economics and politics, which can provide me chances to apply theories to real-life circumstances. Also, I would also love to join local charity or community service organization, to help low-class people including the homeless. I want to become "more humane" and . The fact that the huge city Chicago is very close to Evanston will enrich my out-campus experience.

Diversity in Northwestern University is another attraction to me. Its community itself is already diverse; students come from different countries with different backgrounds. I am excited to share my diverse experience and listen to their stories, hence broadening the range of my perspectives. From an international school, I am well aware of the importance of diversity to my life. In addition, Northwestern University's distribution requirement presents diverse academics. Picking two courses from six different fields, I can taste bits of other courses and reconsider whether my prospective major is really the most intriguing to me or not. Diversity of people and academy will enhance my college life to more meaningful one.

Finally and most significantly, the university provides outstanding education regarding economics. The academic strength in the Northwestern University's economic department is already common sense. Studying economics with excellent faculty including 2010 Nobel Prize winner, Professor Dale Mortensen, is my mere dream. Additionally, Kellogg School of Management, as my possible extension from Economics, will offer international trips such as Global Initiatives in Management for me to understand more deeply about business and leadership in real experience.

Northwestern University is the heaven, where I am eager to enjoy its wonderful campus and magnificent education.

Thank you for reading and commenting in advance :)

Undergraduate / SCARS; YALE Supp / say more about you [8]

Please be as harsh as possible! I will appreciate every single word of your criticism!

Please reflect on something you would like us to know about you that we might not learn from the rest of your application-or on something that you would like to say more about. We ask that you limit your essay to fewer than 500 words.

"You were amazing, so take it easy and feel happy!"
My friend talked to me after I finished my impromptu speech in the final. I replied, "Not really, I did a poor job this time, honestly. It could have been much better."

What my friend said was true to some degree. Even though I did not win a medal, it was an honor to be in top five speakers qualified to compete, and it was well above my expectation. Many people in my position would be satisfied with the result and not be disappointed with the final round. However, I wasn't complacent.

I could not forget my final speech easily. I closed my eyes and rewound back to the moment when I picked up my impromptu topic. In slow motion, I observed my tensed body and soul. As I watched my own imaginary video, I was talking to myself:

"Why didn't I hesitate and be more careful about my topic selection?";
"I could have used this example!";
"Why didn't I explain the details at that moment?"
The three minutes of the speech stretched to thirty minutes on my 'video player'. Play, pause, rewind and replay, but no fast-forward. There was pain, the pain that squashed and squeezed my heart, shaking my head upside down. Not only my speech, but also speeches from others placed above me were recorded in my video player, so I could discover skills that the finalists used. For instance, I noticed that they approached to impromptu topics in creative ways, used famous quotes suitable to the topics and changed their tones efficiently. I bitterly acknowledged my competitor's superior performances.

Nevertheless, I did not unhealthily cling to my video player. After the sufficient re-evaluation, I decided to turn the player off. Then, I cheered myself, "Come on, I did quite well. This is the end of this competition, but I will have more opportunity. I can, no, I will do better next time!" Soon, the pain disappeared, and I found myself smiling again.

Sooner than I thought, a week after the final, I had the "opportunity" to redeem myself from the mistakes: Yale Model Government Europe. During YMGE, the lingering pain from the impromptu final emerged again and constantly awakened my mind and protected me from repeating the mistakes. Using both my strong techniques and newly learnt ones, I eventually won Outstanding Delegate award. My video player this time captured the sweetest moment, when hearing my name, I excitedly jumped to the front and shouted at myself, "yes, I did!"

Ironically, the disappointing memory of the impromptu final still resides in my heart, and that is not the only scar I have. Many other experiences, but the same kind, remain within myself as well. Nevertheless, I rather want to maintain those scars, because they push me to the way to top as vital engines of my life. With my lifetime scars, I will always stay hungry to achieve and learn more.

Thank you for reading and commenting in advance :)

Undergraduate / Common App Extracurricular -- "Fantasy about Rock-band" 1000 Characters [3]

Please be as harsh as possible! I will appreciate every single word of your criticism!

Since I was young, I had a fantasy about a rock band such as Muse. So, as a singer recognized by my mother, I asked my friends to start our own fantasy, and five-member band, (NAME), was finally organized. I listened and hummed to the songs for our debut concert everywhere, every time.

The judgment day finally came. All excited, yet nervous, the members walked into the stage. The drummer counts in to the fantasy: "One, two, three, four". While performing, we started recognizing each other's mistakes, which released our tension, and we found ourselves laughing. Singing aloud, running across the stage, jumping higher than ever, and sweating heavily. The performing time passed in a moment. (BAND)'s debut was not perfect like Muse's concert, but perfectly enjoyable for us.

With inextinguishable passion, our practice and performance continued; eventually, we have even performed in local rock-cafes. The fantasy developed me to a more ardent, adventurous and confident dreamer.

(998)

Thank you for reading and commenting again :)

Undergraduate / Consciousness; U ND Supp/ Perspectives at Notre Dame [6]

Question 1: The British philosopher, John Stuart Mill, states that "in an imperfect state of the human mind, the interest of truth requires a diversity of opinions." Given that a plurality of voices is crucial to broadening our educational experiences and cultural awareness, what is one view that you hold-large or small-that would contribute to the variety of perspectives at Notre Dame?

One of TOK studies divides truth into three categories: I-truth, we-truth and it-truth; in my opinion, they represent the evolution - the truth justified by myself, my society, and universal respectively. The "truest" truth among them is it-truth, where everyone, regardless of its background or society, can agree on. Therefore, my viewpoint, "internationalism," -- the world as one -- will surely contribute to the society of Notre Dame.

By suggesting internationalism, I don't mean we should eliminate our valuable cultures. Instead, I mean that internationalism should be on our prior viewpoint. The idea that nation's interests should be secured first, instead of understanding neighbor countries, harms our societies eventually. Yet, nationalism is still the perspective on the top of our paradigm today. This narrow perspective does not only cause small and large conflicts such as Israeli-Palestinian, but also hinders us from approaching to the "truest" truth, since nationalism doesn't concern other communities' thoughts. Therefore, we need development of ideology to achieve global harmony.

Question 2: What is consciousness?

Consciousness is usually seen as an ability to think and feel. Then, what does it mean by 'think and feel?' As Rene Descartes said, "I think therefore I am," thinking is directly related to our existence as humans, while feeling is equivalent to emotion, a way of knowing others and myself. Too often, we think consciousness is 'knowing myself', hence easy to gain, but consciousness in our society is actually 'knowing myself and others,' extremely difficult to achieve.

One of men who clearly had consciousness is Martin Luther King Jr. Shown in our history, he continuously thought about the best way to make people 'conscious' - think and feel about the persecuted black people - throughout his life; he kept his 'dream' for the world where everyone would be conscious. However, despite King's sacrifice, his dream didn't seem achieved yet completely. Therefore, I want to contribute to bring the 'dream' to our society.

I would appreciate any harsh criticism :D