'The best advice is experience' - Cornell university --why cornell engineering?

Prompt: College of Engineering:
Engineers turn ideas (technical, scientific, mathematical) into reality. Tell us about an engineering idea you have or your interest in engineering. Explain how Cornell Engineering can help you further explore this idea or interest.

Thanks for your time. Give me any suggestions possible.

"Thump, crack!"

"Boom!" "Oh, no!"

Running down the stairs immediately after my electronic dictionary fell from my hand, I prayed that it was not broken. However, when I picked it up and saw the horrible cracks in the LCD screen, I knew that my eighth electronic dictionary kissed me goodbye.

Frustrated, I dismantled the dictionary with my screwdrivers after I got back home, hoping to fix it on my own. However, I realized that I was struggling in vain after the components were scattered over my desk. Everytime I encountered such an "Electronic dictionary nightmare", I wished I were an almighty engineer who could grant my baby a second life.

With frustration came inspiration. I stepped into the realm of engineering and gradually fell in love with it: I probed the working principles of our water dispenser, distinguishing between internal heating and external heating; I figured out the electromagnetic structure of our security door and tried to fix it when it malfunctioned; I frequently visited my father's chemistry lab and volunteered for my father, a chemical engineer, and performed lots of experiments under his instructions. Fascinated with new ideas and creative designs, I also had my own wildest dream of building a flying broomsticks, just like how Henry Ford dreamed of creating his "horseless carriges." I always kept my father's words in heart: "with engineering, anything is possible. It is a powerful tool that will offer you the opportunity to change the world."

Not until I encountered Cornell did I find the right place to strive to be a skilled and determined engineer. The Writing-Intensive Co-op in Engineering Communications Program will enable me not only to develop strategies for learning how to act and communicate effectively, but also integrate my skills into workplace experience. Since I aim to build up my own company in the future, the Kessler Fellows Program also grabbed my attention with its one-year work-study program that combines special educational and employment components. After I took part in UTACCEL, a entreprenuership contest this summer, I found that turning new ideas into reality and applying new designs to the business world would be revolutionary. During Jason's laser engineering seminar course, we envisioned laser technology's application in the business world, and realized there are in fact no clear boundaries between the two domains. By combining the two courses we can achieve a win-win. I hope to become a Cornell's engineering student who will have the best opportunity to challenge and promote myself. In this peaceful and exuberant campus, I will never walk backwards on my road towards success.

^Physics...and fixing electronics. how do those two things relate? And it just sounds silly when you say that this event caused you to decide what you want to do for the next four years of your life.


^Not how your interest in engineering came about, which is what your essay talks about.


^Wouldn't it be more of a thump thump crack?

There are many great universities for undergraduate education, both within and outside the Ivy League. Cornell being "a member of the Ivies" in itself does not really have much to do with it's strong engineering departmet.


Mentioning "the co-op program" is good, but you don't mention in what way it will help you.


Again, this statement is too generic and could be said about many other universities.

I advise you to go to Cornell's website and do some research on its engineering department and find specific programs or some other aspects that interest you. Then, talk about how they relate to your interest in engineering istead of making general remarks.

Nice intro, but you could beef up the rest of your essay. Elaborate on the 3rd paragraph; really dig into your interest in engineering, how it excites you, etc, and don't just list a few broad examples. Use you father's quote as a jumping point and relate your interest in engineering to how you want to change the world. Otherwise, the quote just seems out of place. You want your essay to be an inch wide and a mile deep, not vice versa. As Logical Fella stated above, you should use specific examples in your last paragraph. You're probably aware of this, but Cornell engineering is EXTREMELY selective. It's all about fit, aka how cornell fits you, how you would fit at Cornell. After all, it is the most prestigious (;

Nice essay! (I'm applying to Cornell too)
Not many problems, just found:

The Writing-Intensive Co-op in Engineering Communications Program will enable me not only to develop strategies for learning how to act and communicate effectively, but also to integrate my skills into workplace experience.

Good luck!