When my parents told me we were adopting, I had no idea how to be a sister. There are no classes on how to be a good older sibling. They're no books in the library, no Honors Sister classes in my school handbook, and definitely no Sister for Dummies book. I'd had nine years' practice on how to be an only child. I was used to being love-spoiled by my parents. Being loved was something expected. Though I loved them...

Describe two or three of your current intellectual interests and why they are exciting to you. Why will Cornell's College of Arts and Sciences be the right environment in which to pursue your interests? One of my main interests isn’t a specific subject, but instead how different subjects come together. Throughout high school I've taken as many interdisciplinary classes as possible, mainly through our "Modern Global Communities" program, which links English and history on a global scale. My favorite...

I’m not the typical Cornell student. I didn’t break 2100 on my SATS, I’ve gotten B’s and a B-, I dropped math Senior year, and I only took one AP in High School and got a 4 on it. So if you’ve heard all the hype about what people do for college, you must be pretty confused right now. My school is a classic suburban Ivy League pressure cooker. I have a lot of friends who did everything they were supposed to- almost straight A’s, perfect SAT scores, community service- who got into the school of...