Undergraduate / Princeton BSE Essay: "Why Princeton Engineering?" [6]

If you are interested in pursuing a B.S.E. (Bachelor of Science in Engineering) degree, please write a 300-500 word essay describing why you are interested in studying engineering, any experiences in or exposure to engineering you have had, and how you think the programs in engineering offered at Princeton suit your particular interests.

When I first saw that corn popper toy as a baby, I immediately wanted to know how it worked. How did moving a lawnmower toy cause balls to bounce inside it? I pressured my father to dismantle it so I could see the things inside. I was completely dumbfounded when I saw that the wheels moved a little cam that loaded and released the spring that launched the balls.

This discovery is what first got me interested in the structure and function of things. I wanted to know how things worked instead of being content with the results of the clever engineering that created it.

Not surprisingly, this initial interest translated into an interest in Lego Technic models. I would save up lots of money just for these awesome models. When I did have enough, I would spend it on huge builds with over a thousand pieces. I would spend hours upon hours spinning wheels or twirling tiny gears as I built the models just to see how they would interact with the rest of the pieces. Frankly, it never got boring.

In high school, this interest took on a new edge when I became interested in PCs and computer technology. Even if I couldn't afford any of the pieces, I would spend hours upon hours researching, reading about the Z87 architecture or the GTexel/s output of a GPU. All of this research never got boring because there was virtually limitless knowledge out there.

Now that I've experienced all of this technology, I want to go further and build it. To me, it's genuinely interesting that a tiny change in the architecture of a CPU can affect all sorts of things like power consumption and efficiency, or how tiny gears work with an engine block to push a 2000 kilogram car. I want to take it further and fiddle with designs in my own way. I want to be able to make all sorts of cool things with the knowledge I gain.

I think that Princeton's Engineering program will help me reach my goal. The department will guide me to necessary courses like ELE203 where I will get the foundation that I need from enthusiastic professors like Mr. Chou. These people are masters in their field and really love what they do. They'll give me an excellent foundation of knowledge and impart the same ideas to me. The preceptorials will certainly help with that too.

From there, I'll be able to take the reins and do what I'd like. I will get to do all sorts of independent research for the senior thesis. That's where I'll be able to take the strong foundation and put it to use as I always wanted.

Princeton will give me the tools to succeed and then let me choose my path to really foster the creative thinking that it's all about. Princeton will satisfy this demand. And who knows? Maybe with a Princeton education, I'll be able to solve P=NP...

I'm not that good at expressing ideas, so please feel free to tear it to shreds.