It is said that Model UN is a harrowing journey, and my experience only confirms it. I was introduced to Model UN in my ninth grade, when I attended my very first environmental conference. I was nervous at the opening ceremony, and listening to the grand speeches made by the chief guests did little to relieve my anxiety. I tried my hardest during the two days of intense debate, supporting relief operations and countering accusations and arguments only to have...

Tell us about an experience, in school or out, that taught you something about yourself and/or the world around you. (maximum 200 words) Three weeks ago, on a car journey, I witnessed a strange event- a married couple violently fighting on the roadside, locked in a brawl. What shocked me more than this was the sight of a crowd gathered around the couple, not offering any kind of aid. In the fleeting two seconds I could watch, I only wondered...

Be it inside or outside of the classroom, what have you done to challenge yourself intellectually? Describe an issue, topic or area of study that you have investigated or pursued. (maximum 200 words) The way that all organisms of the same species can speak various tongues, making different sounds to communicate different things, is what makes languages so fascinating to me. Additionally, I was brought up to speak English along with my mother’s native language, Tamil, and therefore, I was...

Rutgers requires that you provide a short essay that is your original work. Please reflect on what you consider to be an important personal experience... How will this experience prepare you for success at Rutgers? (3800 characters) The beauty of language is something that evades many students, instead presenting itself as a burdensome “graduation requirement” To me, however, languages are friends. I compare each language I’ve picked up throughout my life so far to a human being, someone to help...

All of my essays are real, true reflections upon some of my most treasured passions and interests. Mostly all of them revolve around a central theme- communication. I spoke about learning languages, meeting new people, solving problems, and writing, all of which I'm extremely passionate about. My aim was to let the universities and colleges know that when I'm interested in something, I look for depth, not breadth. This is why I didn't heavily include some of my more out-of-way...

I always looked down upon the thought of attending my state school. I wanted in on the big leagues, like Princeton, NYU and Fordham. During the application process, I prayed that I would get into these schools with good enough financial aid packages to attend (my family has a strict no-loan policy for undergraduate studies), while my state school was a top-ranked public university with an incredibly affordable tuition. However, now that I've enrolled at Rutgers, I'm honestly...

If I could change one thing about the way I went about my college applications, it would be the scheduling of the tasks I needed to complete. I was a heavy procrastinator, and...

I only interviewed with one school, and that was Princeton University. I'd been suffering with a migraine all day before my interview (2:00 PM EST translates to the middle of the night in IST) and wasn't in the best of moods, which I knew my interviewer could identify. However, she was lovely, and we had a nice conversation (that, surprisingly, felt nothing like a formal interview), given that she was also an IBDP graduate in subjects similar to mine. My advice for prospective interviewees is to just relax. Most college interviews- A. proceed like how mine did- in an informal, conversational...

I would highly recommend looking for an internship or even part-time entry-level work experience in the field that you are interested in. In case you don't know what to do yet, go internship-hopping. Look for flash internships (programs...

Personally, I feel that my work and volunteer...