The Michigan prompt reads: Everyone belongs to many different communities and/or groups defined by (among other things) shared geography, religion, ethnicity, income, cuisine, interest, race, ideology, or intellectual heritage. I hold onto my time as dearly as my Scottish granny holds onto her money. He does this through specific images and objects. And Grace, my fears relieved...”. Not only did I improve my listening skills, but I began to consider the big-picture consequences my engagements could have. In a world where we know very little about the nature of “Truth,” it’s very easy—and tempting—to construct stories around truth claims that unfairly legitimize or delegitimize the games we play. Here, I could nerd-out about warp drives and the possibility of anti-matter without being ignored. Together, we emptied our cups while the smell of coffee lingered. I wanted to see new places and meet different people. Suddenly I started scratching my neck, feeling the hives that had started to form. As I gained weight, my health started to deteriorate, and my grades started to drop. How did you apply the lessons you learned in and outside of that community? Bird, human, human, bird. Throughout those days, I created a new-found sense of home in my head. The next morning, our patch contained twelve new pumpkins. Now, a Chemex and teapot are both on the end table. To find out if your essay passes the Great College Essay Test like this one did, go here. However, the host dad Greg’s asthma got worse after winter, so he wanted to move to the countryside. My grandma’s specialty always dominated the dinner table as kimchi filled every plate. But I can use them to improve the present. For my senior project, I am using my story and experience as a young Transgender man to inform local schools, specifically the staff, about the do’s and dont’s of dealing with a Transgender student. Now, I am the alarm clock for the 1,428 students of Fox Lane High School. The community service essay is an essay that describes the initiatives you have taken outside of the classroom to benefit your community. Meditation over a flaxen sunset with a friend and parmesan-topped spaghetti for dinner — “14.” Assignments piling up on my desk as a high fever keeps me sick at home — “3.” Taking a photo excursion through downtown Seattle for a Spanish project — “15.” For the past 700 days and counting, the Happiness Spreadsheet has been my digital collection for documenting numerical, descriptive, and graphical representations of my happiness. “These monsters are a sign. I realized then that punk rock is not about music nor is it a guy with a blue Mohawk screaming protests. Some essay samples below are by students who chose to write about a challenge, while other examples may be helpful if you’re looking to write about yourself more generally. Can I be both? I still have the first photo I ever took on the first camera I ever had. Other times, the battery is depleted, and I am frustrated by writer's block, when not a single melody, chord, or musical construct crosses my mind. My brain and my body competed. Young hipsters, a high concentration of seniors, Italian & Irish middle class families, and a growing population of Middle-Eastern Americans help to comprise a district that I have begun serving as the first teenaged member of my local Community Board. With every valley, I force myself onward and with every mountain's peak, I recognize the valleys I’ve crossed to reach the summit. What did you learn (skills, qualities, values)? Only after years of practice did I become an ambidextrous writer who could translate my incomprehensible writing. We thought the practice would last only a couple of weeks or months at most, but after reaching 700 days, we now wonder if we’ll ever stop. The spreadsheet began on a typical school day when I left my physics class following the most confusing test I’d taken. The Dirksen family had three kids. Then, in high school, I developed an enthusiasm for Chinese. Translation means reinterpreting my Calculus teacher’s description of L’hospital’s rule into a useful tool for solving the limits. A few years back, I would have replied: “Neither.” The frustrating moments of miscommunication, the stifling homesickness, and the impossible dilemma of deciding between the Korean or American table in the dining hall, all fueled my identity crisis. But then the chicken notices a jagged gray line on the otherwise flawless egg. Over time, I found it difficult being my family’s glue. All I knew was that I felt sick, and I was waiting for my mom to give me something to make it better. The Chinese mass, the resounding amens, the flower arrangements. Studies have shown that there are winning strategies to rock-paper-scissors by making critical assumptions about those we play against before the round has even started. After one year’s extensive research and hours of interviews, I came to America for 9th grade and moved in with a host family. I helped the kids make presentations about their places of origin, including Mexico, Guatemala, and Honduras. It is an antagonist to the conventional. But wait, the slight fluctuation of its chest, the slow blinking of its shiny black eyes. “But here, in Nature, it is of no use. My school was part of the US Consulate in Dhahran, and when I was in the 8th grade it was threatened by ISIS. We made pizza together, watched Shrek on their cozy couch together, and went fishing on Sunday together. This mélange of cultures in my East-meets-West room embodies the diversity that characterizes my international student life. Other times, we exaggerate even the smallest defects and uncertainties in narratives we don’t want to deal with. When I speak with people in their native language, I find I can connect with them on a more intimate level. After a few months I realized we weren’t the best fit. And where do scissors lie in this chain of symbolism? Not sure? I asked my dad about it the next day and he said, "It was a mistake I made that has been resolved." The long drive, the green hills, the white church, the funeral. I was raised in “The Pumpkin House.” Every Autumn, on the lawn between the sidewalk and the road, grows our pumpkin. However, the restaurant tore apart my parent’s relationship. When he reveals each lesson at the end, one after the other, we sense how all these seemingly random events are connected. An essay on a strange talent (like juggling while jogging) or an obscure interest (like historically accurate baking, for example) might be more apt to catch the reader’s attention. The best feeling in the world is falling in love with a dish and then learning all the health benefits that it provides the body. I quickly pulled my clueless friend back into the bush. Using my taste buds as my textbook to learn which flavors work together and which ones don’t helps me educate, as I’ve found that information tends to stick in a person’s mind once they’ve experienced healthy, delicious foods with their own senses. I stroked the bird with a paper towel to clear away the blood, see the wound. In a 2018 survey of 264 admissions leaders across the US, 58% said that community service is a tie-breaker between students who are … I often find myself feeling pressured to choose one side or the other, one extreme over the alternative. Instead of simply listening, I shared my experiences as a club president, a community leader, and a volunteer. At five years old, I couldn’t comprehend what had happened. Just as I’ve learned to understand and bridge the divides between a rich tapestry of cultures in order to develop my familial relations, society’s leadership must also do the same on a grander scale. No, please, not yet. My opponent and I, brooms in hand, charged forward. The audience can relate to the story in many of the same powerful ways that I do. I’m able to identify their real feelings beneath superficial words by translating hand-gestures, facial expressions, and tones. Frozen in disbelief, the chicken tries to make sense of her harsh words. Two summers ago, I travelled to Ecuador to live with a friend’s family and teach Spanish theater to third graders. I explained how lost I felt, how confused I was, how “I think I’m Transgender.” It was like all those years of being out of place had led to that moment, my truth, the realization of who I was. So many apologies. Once you’ve completed that exercise for several of the communities you are a part of, you might start to see one community seems to be the most obvious one to write about. Imagination ran wild, characters came to life, and I became acquainted with heroes and lessons that continue to inspire me today. Want one-on-one guidance on your college applications and essays? Baseball in Spanish, for example, is béisbol, which looks different but sounds nearly the same. Sure, there are scientific variables such as proximity to heat sources and how many grams of sugar to add. My Calculus teacher often told me, “It’s not until you can teach math concepts to somebody that you understand them completely.” Before I discovered the joy of teaching, I often explained difficult math concepts to my friends as a tool for reviewing what I’d learned. Word spread, and people came to our house to share in our dismay. That exercise asks: What did you actually do in that community? As we faced the French window, my father would share the news he read in China Daily: the Syrian civil war, climate change, and gender equality in Hollywood. While sharing my coffee, I listened to a story from an older Chinese man who told me, in Mandarin, how he had been abandoned by his children and felt lonely. How has it shaped your perspective? By teaching me English, nine year-old Cody taught me the importance of being able to learn from anyone; the Martinez family showed me the value of spending time together as a family; the Struiksma family taught me to reserve judgment about divorced women and adopted children; Mrs. Ortiz taught me the value of discipline and the Dirksen family taught me the importance of appreciating one another’s different qualities. I am alive. And I know that oatmeal isn’t the sexiest superfood out there, so here’s my sales pitch: I’m going to make oatmeal the Beyonce of the breakfast world- sweet, sassy, and power packed. After each meeting, we shared buttermilk coffee-cake. For analysis of what makes this essay amazing, go here. Unfortunately, I can’t argue for a convincing one. I’ve learned to accept my “ambiguity” as “diversity,” as a third-culture student embracing both identities. We collided and I banana-peeled, my head taking the brunt of the impact. She had recently delivered a baby, so she was still in the hospital when I moved into their house. Deep down I knew I had to get the chip off my shoulder. During the debate, something strange happened: I realized that we are a special breed of species, that so much effort and resources are invested to ensure mutual destruction. It reaches the yellow dashes. Both were the same. She made me do chores: I fixed dinner, fed their two dogs Sassy and Lady, and once a week I cleaned the bathroom. To me, Jon was just cocky. If you'd like to share a perspective you bring or experiences you've had to help us understand you better--perhaps related to a community you belong to, your sexual orientation or gender identity, or your family or cultural background--we encourage you to do so. Coming from the dusty, people-packed backstreets of Thiruvananthapuram, India, he guides me in looking past the chaos and noticing the hidden accomplishments that lie in the corners. The moments of Saturday mornings remain ingrained in my mind. I would give a weekly report on new technology and we would have hour-long conversations about the various uses a blacker material could have. I even ate fishcakes, which he loved but I hated. I became fascinated by the new perspectives each person in my life could offer if I really took the time to connect. Perhaps the narratives I spoke of earlier, the stories I mistakenly labeled as “semantics,” carry real weight in our everyday decisions. Then, I ran for Student Government and failed. Here is a secret that no one in my family knows: I shot my brother when I was six. Getting along with other people is necessary for anyone and living with five families has made me more sensitive to others’ needs: I have learned how to recognize when someone needs to talk, when I should give advice and when to simply listen, and when someone needs to be left alone; in the process, I have become much more adaptable. I organized raucous late-night discussions about everything from medieval war machines to political theory and  randomly challenged my friends to “say something outrageous and defend it.” And whether we achieve profundity or not, I find myself enjoying the act of discourse itself. This awareness incited a passion for statecraft within me – the very art of balancing different perspectives - and therefore a desire to actively engage in government. Shared by admissions staff, these essays stand … After all, it is quite possible my future job doesn’t exist yet, and that’s okay. However, a simple walk on a hiking trail behind my house made me open my own eyes to the truth. I appreciate the emphasis Spanish culture places on relationships, the way siblings take care of each other, and how grandparents’ wisdom is valued. Here, I could fix all the mistakes. In any case, I won 1st place at the tournament, but as the crowd cheered when my name was called to stand before an audience of hundreds of other debaters, and I flashed a victorious smile at the cameras, I couldn’t help but imagine that somewhere at that moment a nuclear bomb was being manufactured, adding to an ever-growing stockpile of doom. My eyes just gazed at the fleeing object; what should I do? It replays the incident in its head. But the best dimension that language brought to my life is interpersonal connection. The second to last paragraph answers the “So what?” question. With John’s advice, I started checking in on Akshay, spending more time with him, and coaching him before and after he talked to his parents. Then the man reaches into the wooden coop, his back to the entrance. Are those eggs that the nice man takes away babies? We all tell slightly different narratives when we independently consider notions ranging from rocks to war to existence. In a nearby tree, the chicken spots two adult birds tending to a nest of babies--a natural dynamic of individuals unaltered by corrupt influence. It became clear that the English language, one I took for granted, is the central feature that brings groups together. (250 words). It was my turn to take the shovel, but I felt too ashamed to dutifully send her off when I had not properly said goodbye. On rainy days, Michael, Jen and I would sit on the porch and listen to the rain, talking about our dreams and thoughts. Maybe it’s all a metaphor for larger ideals. That year my father was found guilty and imprisoned for the charges related to his Army support contract. Show 3: "the Struiksma family taught me to reserve judgment about divorced women and adopted children.". Cancer, as powerful and invincible as it may seem, is a mere fraction of a person’s life. I would stumble into the kitchen to find my grandma squatting over a large silver bowl, mixing fat lips of fresh cabbages with garlic, salt, and red pepper. Go with the one that you feel gives the best chance to help you share more about yourself. Today, I still have the travel bug, and now, it seems, I am addicted to language too. When gifted dresses I was told to “smile and say thank you” while Spiderman shirts took no prompting from me, I’d throw my arms around the giver and thank them. I was getting everything right. With a deep breath, the chicken steps into the swathe, a world of tall beige grass made brown by the darkness. Emotion wrestled with fact. Through my work, I can accept the shovel without burying my grandmother’s memory. Sophomore year, I started an engineering club and found that I had a talent for  managing people and encouraging them to create an idea even if it failed. Next up, language settings. The "Coffeeshops + Coffee" College Essay Example. It was through exploring cultures around the world that I first became interested in language. I started eating to cope with my anxiety and gained 100 pounds in a year and a half. This past summer, I took a month-long course on human immunology at Stanford University. Cupping the bird, I ran outside, hoping the cool air outdoors would suture every wound, cause the bird to miraculously fly away. The Hsieh family huddled around the casket. The wind, the sky, the dampness of the soil on my hands whispered to me, “The bird is dead. Should your decision to go to war or to feed the hungry depend on your gender, race, creed, etc? In fact, translating is a huge part of the job of a clinical pharmacist. Before I came to America, I drank Puer Tea with my father every morning in my bedroom, sitting cross-legged on Suzhou-silk mats beside a view of the Lakeside reservoir. As storytellers, we aim to touch lives and better the world around us through our stories. I’ll never forget the time when a visiting family and I were so involved in discussing ocean conservation that, before I knew it, an hour had passed. Upon our first meeting, she opened up about her two sons, her hometown, and her knitting group--no mention of her disease. They’re telling me to go back. The Martinez family did almost everything together. Jesuit education considers the liberal arts a pathway to intellectual growth and character formation. From now on I would emphasize qualitative experiences over quantitative skills. Finally, the body  lowered to rest. And like my grandma who had always been living with us, it seemed as though the luscious smell of garlic would never leave our home. I was the king of bowling, and Dawn was the queen of tennis. I love to perform with my theatre class to entertain and educate young audiences throughout my community. This has naturally triggered many discussions, ranging from the merits of European single-payer healthcare to those of America’s gun laws, that have often animated our meals. After dinner, we would all play Wii Sports together. Keep in mind that communities can be defined by... Place: groups of people who live/work/play near one another, Action: groups of people who create change in the world by building, doing, or solving something together (Examples: Black Lives Matter, Girls Who Code, March for Our Lives), Interest: groups of people coming together based on shared interest, experience, or expertise, Circumstance: groups of people brought together either by chance or external events/situations. I won't ruin it for you, but I will tell you that there’s a moment toward the end when a crucial piece of information is revealed that triggers in the mind of the audience a series of realizations that have been leading up to this Big Revelation. The Benefits of Attending a Community College Essay example 870 Words 4 Pages A look back at the institution of education over the past 20 years will reveal that once upon a time a bachelor’s degree was long since considered the marker of ultimate success, the highest level of achievement that one could make in their lives. In the nicest way possible, I told them I had to leave. The truth is, I was always jealous of my brother. Mine will be these words. This was when I realized that I was a punk rock philosopher. It means making the best with what you have to contribute to a community. My father raised his cup of coffee and made a toast to me, “Good girl! I had been typing an English essay when I heard my cat's loud meows and the flutter of wings. If social standards have subliminally influenced the way males and females play rock-paper-scissors, than what is to prevent such biases from skewing more important decisions? Then she raises the stakes: the pumpkin was part of her family’s identity as well as that of the community. I am most enamored by ideas that cultivate ingenious and practical enrichments for humanity. Show 1: "By teaching me English, nine year-old Cody taught me the importance of being able to learn from anyone.". My room was on the first floor, right in front of Shellie’s hair salon, a small business that she ran out of her home. In one particular debate, I was assigned the topic: “Should Nation States eliminate nuclear arms?” It so happened that I was on the negative side and it was my job to convince the judges that countries should continue manufacturing nuclear weapons. They were all people my age who could not afford to be part of a record label and did something extraordinary by playing in these abandoned churches, making their own CDs and making thousands of promotional buttons by hand. Did you know beans and rice make a complete protein? Other times, I found myself pruning the orchard, feeding the school’s wood furnaces, or my new favorite activity, splitting wood. Here are all the “Show” and “Tell” moments clearly marked: When I was 16, I lived with the Watkins family in Wichita, Kansas. A diversity essay is a college admissions essay that revolves around an applicant's background and identity, usually within the context of a particular community. I embraced the pain, the hurt, and eventually, it became the norm. That’s no way to admit someone! On the wall in the far back, a Korean flag hangs besides a Led Zeppelin poster. This has allowed me to push myself harder physically, excelling in running and earning my high school Cross Country team’s Most Improved award. She had a nine year old son named Cody. 19+ Reflective Essay Examples & Samples in PDF Sometimes, it is our experiences that startled and challenged our own voyage that strengthens and improves us to be the best versions of ourselves. Many were lost and on a constant soul-search, and to my surprise, many, like myself, did not have a blue Mohawk or a nose piercing. This place is somewhere where I can express myself freely and be who I want to be. Two years after opening, my dad started coming home late most nights, plastered from “happy hour with work colleagues.” My mom, trying to balance her day job at Kaiser and owning a restaurant, poured her stress on me,“What the hell is wrong with you! Vengeance replaced my wish for heroism and I took off after the fleeing perpetrator. Another idea: It’s also possible to combine the narrative and montage structures by describing a challenge WHILE also describing a range of values and lessons. “Now!” At its own cue, the chicken scurries towards the opening and exits unseen. I finally found myself, and my mom fought for me, her love was endless. This is a college essay that worked for Duke University. As our Christmas Dinner squabbles suggest, seemingly insurmountable impasses can be resolved through respect and dialogue, even producing delicious results! Numerical Measures Aren't a Contribution . A community which prizes revolutionary ideals, a sharing of multi-dynamical perspectives, an environment that ultimately acts as a medium for movement, similar to the punk rock community. Describe the world you come from. Schedule a chat to work with me and my team. No longer was I a bystander. I needed to trust the creative side of kombucha— the side that takes people's perfectionist energy and explodes it into a puddle of rotten egg smelling 'booch (my preferred name for the drink- not "fermented, effervescent liquid from a symbiotic culture of acetic acid bacteria and yeast"). Duke’s prompt this year provides a great example of how a community essay might be worded: “Duke University seeks a talented, engaged student body that embodies the wide range of human experience; we believe that the diversity of our students makes our community stronger. I was always scared of terrorist groups such as al-Qaeda. Fifteen years and I finally realized why, this was a girl’s body, and I am a boy. On my desk, a framed picture of an Asian family beaming their smiles, buried among US history textbooks and The Great Gatsby. When I was very little, I caught the travel bug. Kimberly, the host mom, treated me the same way she treated her own son. I hope that one day I can find a way to stop allergic reactions or at least lessen the symptoms, so that children and adults don’t have to feel the same fear and bitterness that I felt. After much soul-searching, I have landed on behavioral economics as the perfect synergy of the fields I love. This is another potential structure, often times great for essays that don’t necessarily focus on a particular challenge. With white walls, comfortable sofas, and high stools, Blue House is spacious and bright. Kari has passed. It was a ritual that I will never forget. The admissions folks will admit you if they think you can handle the work and if they think you will enrich the campus community.As an applicant, you may find yourself focused largely on numerical measures; good SAT scores, a strong academic record, AP scores, and so on. Coordinating the schedule with other members in Blue House has become a frequent event. Kari Hsieh. The chicken--confused, betrayed, disturbed--slowly lifts its eyes from the now empty ground. One great way to get started is to read examples of successful essays. She scheduled me an appointment with a gender therapist, let me donate my female clothes, and helped build a masculine wardrobe. I wanted to find a solution so that nobody would have to feel the way I did; nobody deserved to feel that pain, fear, and resentment. The Happiness Spreadsheet can be a hall of fame, but it can likewise be a catalog of mistakes, burdens, and grueling challenges. From page 54 of the maroon notebook sitting on my mahogany desk: “Then Cain said to the Lord, “My punishment is greater than I can bear. I present to you, the iTaylor. The author included the following explanatory note: I plan to double major in biochemistry and English and my main essay explains my passion for the former; here is a writing sample that illustrates my enthusiasm for the latter. The bird's warmth faded away. My desire to major in biology in college has been stimulated by my fascination with the human body, its processes, and the desire to find a way to help people with allergies. I don’t remember a single time that they argued about the games. Maybe Mother Hen is right. My freshman year I took a world history class and my love for history grew exponentially. But, my new room lacked stories and cups of tea. This essay could work for prompt’s 1 and 7 for the Common App. That’s how I met the Dirksen family, my fifth family. That was how the delectable Korean dish, kimchi, was born every weekend at my home. This specific branch of debate is an hour long, and consists of two parties debating either side of a current political issue.