Undergraduate / My inspiration board - "English at Vassar" was displayed under a picture of Anne Hathaway [2]

Please read! Any feedback helps!
How did you learn about Vassar and what aspect of our college do you find appealing? Limit 350 words

While watching Les Misérables, Anne Hathaway's "I Dreamed a Dream" scene came on. Her ability to deliver such an emotional scene prompted me to learn more about her. It was the summer prior to my senior year so looking for colleges was heavily influencing my thoughts. I let that be my first source of investigation.

I looked up what school Anne Hathaway attended. "English at Vassar" was displayed under a picture of her. Vassar, the word stuck out like a familiar face you see but cannot seem to place. I went to bed that night and turned to look at my inspiration board, a place full of people, sayings and art that I draw energy from. My eyes focused on a picture in the top left corner. Meryl Streep, it all clicked. This realization intrigued me, I wanted to learn more about the school that provided the seminal experience for their careers.

I stayed up researching Vassar and found myself watching a YouTube video titled What is a "must take" class at Vassar. Hearing the students rhapsodize about the classes offered at Vassar such as "Because Dave Chappelle Said So" and Imprisonment in the Prisoner spurred a desire for me to take these same classes. Vassar's unique approach to an education sans a core curriculum will give me the freedom to be an independent student and explore the breadth of classes offered, thus fulfilling my varied interests.

The appreciation for the arts at Vassar coincides with my passions. I envision myself exploring the vast amount of artwork at The Frances Lehman Art Center and involving myself in the diverse clubs such as the Vassar Filmmakers Club and Vassar Prison Initiative. I am interested to see how the transformative college experience at Vassar will be reflected in the new inspiration board that will be hanging by my bedside in the future.

Undergraduate / "I Dreamed a Dream" scene - inspiration board Vassar [2]

Any feedback would be great! if anyone has a suggestion for a better word than reappearing that would be appropriated!

How did you learn about Vassar and what aspect of our college do you find appealing? Limit 350 words

While watching Les Misérables, Anne Hathaway's "I Dreamed a Dream" scene came on. Her ability to deliver such an emotional scene prompted me to learn more about her. It being the summer prior to my senior year, looking for colleges was heavily influencing my thoughts, so I let that be my first source of investigation. I looked up what school Anne Hathaway attended. English at Vassar was displayed under a picture of her. Vassar, the word stuck out like a familiar face you see but can not seem to place. I went to bed that night and turned to look at my inspiration board, a place full of people, sayings and art that I draw inspiration from. My eyes focused on a picture in the top left corner, Meryl Streep, it all clicked. I was back to researching this (reappearing) school. I found myself watching a YouTube video titled What is a "must take" class at Vassar. I was intrigued by the breadth of classes offered at Vassar with so many options I hope to one day take "Because Dave Chappelle Said So" or Imprisonment in the Prisoner. Vassar having no core curriculum will give me the freedom to be an independent student. I have always had diverse interests and Vassar is a place where they can all be explored. The appreciation for the arts at Vassar coincides with my passions. I envision myself exploring the vast amount of artwork at The Frances Lehman Art Center and involving myself in the diverse clubs such as the Vassar filmmakers club and Vassar Prison Initiative. I am interested to see how the transformative college experience at Vassar will be reflected in the new inspiration board that will be hanging by my bedside in the future.

Undergraduate / I had started taking Acting for Film class at the Walnut street theatre - Vassar application [2]

These are 3 of the essays for the Vassar application any advice or feedback would be great!!

Please briefly elaborate on one of your extracurricular activities or work experiences in the space below. Limit 350 words
It was the second day of the Acting for Film class I had started taking at the Walnut street theatre and my teacher had us still unfamiliar and uncomfortable students pull up our chairs to face one another. There were five students on one side five on the other and a chair at the end to observe. The first time we did the exercise I was the observer. I watched as these strangers sat across from each other and just stared into each others eyes trying to convey a specific emotion. No words were spoken nor even slight gestures used to indicate a feeling, just the expression in the eyes. I was uncomfortable, thinking I would just look foolish staring at someone who has no idea what I was trying to convey.

I remembered being a sixth grader and stopping in the hallway to read a flyer for an upcoming audition for a school play about hillbillies. I was interested and turned to my friend to see what she thought. Her reply was, " Well thats weird, who would talk like a hillbilly? That's so embarrassing."

"Yeah," I replied.
It was my turn now as we rotated seats. No longer an observer, I was given a scenario to unveil with my eyes; a woman having a conversation at lunch with a friend. I was surprised by how easy and exciting it was. I never realized the power of my eyes. The detail I found myself conveying by thinking something or slightly moving my eyes made me aware of an important part of self expression. I now focus on peoples' eyes and try to uncover the story playing in their minds. By staying in that room and not walking away from a passion out of fear I found something I really liked. I had pushed away a part of me and was finally letting it be expressed. As the weeks progressed I found myself portraying a person having a schizophrenic episode running and screaming around the classroom oblivious to the audience around me, fully absorbed in my passion.

MOD comment:One essay at time please

Writing Feedback / The Starry Night and city life NYU supplement essay [5]

NYU is global, urban, inspired, smart, connected, and bold. What can NYU offer you, and what can you offer NYU? (200-400 words)

Can you check for any grammatical errors.
I was also wondering if it would be appropriate to include a picture of The Starry Night within the text box on the common app essay.

A replica of Vincent Van Gogh's The Starry Night is taped to my bedside table. The shades of green, blue, yellow and white come together to shape the arc of the wind swirling across the sky above a small sleeping town. I can almost feel the breeze in Van Gogh's night sky allowing thoughts to flow through my mind. NYU can offer me this same serenity when I am sitting under the ivy laden shade trees or participating in the Mindfulness Projects, allowing me to expand my awareness. The Starry Night is composed of unique bold strokes all used to tell a story with each one adding dimension to the painting.

In my small sleepy town I have acquired certain ideas and perspectives of the world that I will bring to NYU. I will mix the primary colors of my town with the vibrant shades at NYU, with students from over 100 different countries all contributing their own hue, fusing together to create a tapestry. Van Gogh said, "Great things are done by a series of small things brought together."

I am a shade of light yellow found in the stars and wind of Van Gogh's painting. Yellow represents joy, intellect and energy. Yellow sings too loud, thinks too much and never stops moving; yet yellow has a creative energy that emanates onto everything around her. These are the qualities I will bring to NYU.

The plethora of academic choices offered and the variety of students at NYU bring together both intellect and creativity providing an atmosphere for growth. The creative energy and love for the arts and self expression coincides with my own interests. I look forward to visiting the Grey Art Gallery and exploring the city. When I am lying in my dorm at NYU the city lights outside my window will remind me of the light Vincent brought to The Starry Night and inspire me to actualize my true self.

(323 words)

Undergraduate / From the Window Seat; the train was a capsule that served an emotional and physical role in my life [3]

Describe a place or environment where you are perfectly content. What do you do or experience there, and why is it meaningful to you? (250-650 words)

Suddenly the train stopped. No platform. No people. Just trees. This is not how I wanted my first train ride to go. I was already unsettled by the unfamiliarity and the loud sounds of metal on metal emanating from underneath the train. Now the train was not moving. I had signed up for acting classes in Philadelphia hoping to expand my ability to express myself but in order to get there I had to overcome one obstacle, public transportation. I looked around to see how the other passengers were reacting to our sudden interruption but no one seemed alarmed. The conductor said it was just a problem with the brakes and we would be moving again soon. I think this was meant to be comforting but I was still on edge. I tried to relax and sunk back into my window seat as the train began to move again. I started to pay attention to the details of the train. As I looked outside my window I started to feel a sense of contentment.

The wind blew through the trees outside my window causing the leaves to become like dancers leaping through the sky. The sounds of the train caught my attention once more and I noticed it had a rhythmic quality to it that I had not heard before. It was like a song being conducted by the train, changing tempo as the train sped up and the leaves continued to stay on beat. I was mesmerized by the hidden beauty. I put on my headphones and listened to my favorite songs which formed an accidental duet with the trains own sounds. My mind went to a place of introspection. I gained clarity about the direction my life was taking and the things I hoped to achieve. As I came out of my reverie I realized the uneasiness I had felt before had completely disappeared.

The train was now full of strangers, all of us very different from each other yet we were all drawn to the same location. I wanted to learn more about these strangers. I watched from my seat to gather information about who they were. I would overhear their conversations and piece together all the information in my head, letting my mind fill in the details to create an identity for each person. The man sitting across from me clutching his briefcase and adjusting his tie became a businessman headed to the most important meeting of his life and the woman in front of me nervously twirling her hair was on her way to her first date with the man she will someday marry. We all had different reasons for being on the train yet it was the vessel transporting us to our destination. The strangers became real people as I added depth to their persona.

I realized that you can look past your initial anxieties and see the potential for growth in any experience. The train was a capsule that served both an emotional and physical role in my life. I was learning more about myself and others as well as traveling into an unknown territory. Coming from a small suburban town I did not get the chance to see the world in the way I found myself seeing it from the window seat of the train, a place where I could get lost in my thoughts and learn about people with all different stories connected by one common thread, the train. For me true contentment is this place where my inner thoughts connect with the outside world and I am inspired.