HARVARD and JHU Supplement - general? What's the difference?

When they ask major would u chose and why did u choose the way u did, it has to be general, doesn't it? Like no mention of Johns Hopkins ....just why I want to take Bio and be a doctor???

Also for Harvard supplement about books that have affected you...u just have to describe the effect of those books only...nothing new...nothing Harvard-related...???

i dont know for JHU, but im thinking it should be general. say why you want to be a doctor (maybe some past experiences that influenced you to do so) but also mention a bit about why you chose JHU as the college you want to go to- why you think THAT one in best for you. don't make the whole answer about JHU, but "why did u choose the way u did" sounds to me like "why you chose here". lol so in short, say why you want to be a doctor for most of the essay, include why JHU in the conclusion maybe.

as for the harvard book thing, im doing the same one. i described the lessons ive learned from the book- dont make it a book report, because the AO probably won't have read your book. mine was fairly short, but i talked about how the book had shown me how your actions can have reprecussions long after they are done, and then i said something about how it made me grow as a person. "opened my eyes to the world" or along those lines- i talked about how this (awesome) book affected me as a person. i didnt do anything harvard-related (like "oh i read the harvard admission manual or w/e and it changed my life" =p) and they cant honestly expect or want people to be suckups by bs'ing it and only blabbing on about harvard. make it true- if no book has had a profound impact on you, don't choose this topic.

I don't understand the first question, but the word "general" scares me. Don't do anything general. General is not interesting or inspirational. This is an age of specialization! Moreover, people who are very passionate about something naturally form detailed visions of the future.