Before I was born, my parents and brother moved from India to the United States with the hope of tasting the economic freedom they had heard about so often from friends and relatives who visited. With their educations at India’s top universities, they knew that the US would live up to its promise of opportunity. Throughout my childhood, my parents encouraged me to explore India’s rich music, languages, and religions. Several years ago, my father noticed me drumming...

Several years ago, my family went on a trip to India to visit friends and relatives. Although I enjoyed our time there, I found some cultural differences surprising. Just after we landed in the New Delhi International Airport, my father and I found the nearest restroom and joined the line of men waiting to enter. Based on their uniforms, it was apparent that most of them were members of India’s armed forces, perhaps on their way home after serving...

My most important goal is to make a difference in my community. I wish to leave a lasting impact on the people around me, and my work with Mayor Conrad Lee on his campaign for re-election to the Bellevue City Council put me one step closer to that goal. I took the role of lead Strategy Coordinator for his 2013 campaign. I focused on devising the best strategy for connecting with the community to raise funds for the campaign effort and...

The aroma of six perfectly-blended spices drifted through my mouth as I sank my teeth into a mouthful of my mother’s palak paneer, an Indian dish made of spinach and tofu-like milk fat. I had eaten this same food countless time growing up, and yet the flavor was new and unique. The astringent sting of the spinach complemented the creamy deliciousness of the chunks of paneer. There was a general agreement in our family that my mother’s cooking...

I struggled to find a topic that fulfilled 2 criteria: 1) I had enough experience with it to write about, and 2) would sound good to an admissions officer. I shouldn't have worried about #2. It would have been better to write something personally meaningful, and not worry about making myself seem impressive.

Interviewed with most of the top schools I applied to,...

I would have started earlier and gotten a lot...

Try to find meaningful internships. This might be hard because people...

I interned with a startup my first semester at college (8-10 hours...

Get recommendations from classes where you participate and do well. It takes time...