I am a different person than I was two months ago. Before the summer, even during the summer, I was convinced it wouldn’t happen. I couldn’t understand why, but the program wasn’t “working” on me; I wasn’t having the life-changing experience past fellows had promised. And yet, here I am - I’ve changed. Our summer English assignment had been to create an anthology of three poems that “deserve to be read for as long as...

At the University of Michigan, everything seems possible. A large school with countless opportunities, divided into smaller schools and communities with personal relationships between students and faculty, Michigan offers all one can ask for from a university. Michigan students are happy. Statistics such as the high retention rate, along with the overpowering school spirit I have seen, show that beyond great sports teams, Michigan is a place that caters to the students in a way that makes them love their...

I grew up in Watertown, a town that received a lot of attention this past April when the younger of the two marathon bombers was found hiding in my neighbor’s boat. I live in a small town, and I have known many of my friends since age five and most of the two hundred students in my graduating class since middle school. Parents have been friends since childhood, and many are related to one another. We are a town...

At six years old, I opened my first business: Becca’s Best. I sold homemade ice cream, “delivered to your door” and gave any profit to my local library. I even distributed business cards and looked for leasable space. My six-year-old business plan wasn’t advanced enough to last, but at Brown I hope to learn to develop one that is. The Business, Entrepreneurship, and Organizations concentration combines my interests in math, management, economics, and relationships into one field. Those...

At Brown University, I will learn, practice, and succeed. Brown’s open curriculum will allow me explore my interests, ranging from math to music. The flexibility will also provide me with opportunities to enroll in interesting courses I might not find, or have time to take, elsewhere. The task of designing my own curriculum suits me, as I’ve always known what I want. When I was younger I demonstrated this in my clothing styles. These days, my decisions are...

Last winter, I was selected to join the Tufts Health Plan Foundation Future Philanthropists Initiative. The Foundation had given us $20,000 to allocate to Healthy Aging. Over the course of five months, the sixteen other students and I met weekly to learn about non-profits and different ways to contribute to their success. We heard from several influential philanthropists, non-profit directors, foundation heads, and journalists. Once adequately prepared, we requested and read grant proposals, visited five finalists, and deliberated where to allocate...

At Vanderbilt, 50% of the freshman class is...