Before this summer, I had never had the desire to become a teacher. But I applied for the AID (Assisting Individuals with Disadvantages) Summer Taiwan teaching program. AID Summer Taiwan is a program for students located around the world; students aged seventeen to twenty-one come together to teach English to elementary students in remote areas of Taiwan. Out of over fifteen hundred applicants worldwide, I was accepted with four hundred other students. I found that I had been assigned with...

My interest in sustainable development began with my passion for cars and motorcycles. Tesla Motors and Mission Motorcycles caught my eye with their unparalleled performance-powered by electricity alone. Both companies have distinctive missions to create sustainable transportation and move away from burning coal and fossil fuels by using solar power and electricity. As I learned more about green energy, I wanted a practical way to be a part of the sustainability revolution-I invested in growing sustainability companies like Solar City,...

Describe yourself in three words: Initiator, immersed, community. Favorite Food: Lobster Favorite Fictional Character: Richard Parker Greatest invention of all time: Hot pockets What do you like to do for fun: Frisbee Golf Role Model: Elon Musk Favorite Book: Life of Pi Best Movie of all time: Inception Favorite musical performer/band or composer: Ingrid Michaelson

Carnegie Mellon University: My home airsoft company is something I truly take pride in. Selling airsoft guns, parts, and accessories to an online niche market is anything but easy. My job is filled with angry customers, a rapidly changing market, and competitors, but I relish seeing my own creation grow from an idea to reality. But having run my company for over four years, it has become part of my identity. I closely analyze my inventory and budget to offer...

Please tell us what you find most appealing about Columbia and why. (300 words or less): The swim test has long been a requirement for nearly all Columbia University students to graduate. Columbia, along with just a handful of other schools, maintains this tradition year after year. Columbia tradition continues to fascinate me-by preserving tradition, students embrace the rich history of Columbia University. From the freshman Iliad presentation to the presentation of class pins, traditions like the Primal Scream, Spring Pillow...

Cornell University: 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? (Please limit your response to 650 words.) My home airsoft company is something I truly take pride in. Selling airsoft guns, parts, and accessories to an online niche market is anything but easy. My job is filled with angry customers, a rapidly changing market, and...

Dartmouth College: Every name tells a story: Tell us about your name--any name: first, middle, last, nickname--and its origin: It's true that I look like any other Asian American. But beyond my (dashing) appearance, my last name, Lee, belongs to a rich Taiwanese culture-one filled with green tea and charcoal flavored ice cream, oyster omelets, and bubble tea. Specialty eats aside, the culture exists as part of me and my family: from childhood, I saw the modesty among Taiwanese family...

Duke University: Is there something particular about Duke that attracts you? The Energy Initiative at Duke University represents an active effort to reduce carbon emissions and solve the social energy problems around the world. The initiative is an opportunity to educate others about energy in the community and energy in the world. Pursuing a certificate in energy and the environment, I would learn about and solve social problems both on campus and around the world from faculty of six different...

Harvard College Optional Open-ended essay: What is déjà vu and why does it happen? According to Yahoo! Answers, which is always a reliable source, déjà vu happens because it is “usually a glitch in the Matrix. It happens when they change something.” Internet trolls aside, déjà vu is widely believed to be a result of misfired brain synapses. It reportedly happens more often in younger people, typically between the ages of fifteen and twenty-five. It is also...

New York University: What can NYU offer you, and what can you offer NYU? (200-400 words) My interest in sustainable development began with my passion for cars and motorcycles. Tesla Motors and Mission Motorcycles caught my eye with their unparalleled performance-powered by electricity alone. Both companies have distinctive missions to create sustainable transportation and move away from burning coal and fossil fuels by using solar power and electricity. As I learned more about green energy, I wanted a practical way...

I wish that I would've applied to many more safety schools, especially those that...

Really be yourself. Don't act stilted or change your responses to fit a type of "vibe" of the school you are applying to. Most interviews don't have...

I did not use a private admissions counselor, but I have heard great things from...

Find something that resonates with what you want to pursue as a career. Don't try to do camps or activities for application "fluff". I volunteered at a local children's...

I personally think I was different from other applicants because I managed to spread myself consistently among several facets of a student....

I chose USC because of the Trojan family. Particularly for Business Administration, having that network will be useful in finding jobs and internships in the future. And growing up in a rural area my entire life, I've always been drawn...

I started with 3 safety schools, 3 target schools, and 3 reach schools. I then added all of the Ivy League schools as well as some schools...

I applied for 17 outside scholarships and received 8 of them. This will alleviate my first year costs and ONLY...

Study the culture at individual schools. Try to speak with students attending or who have attended that school. You must write about traditions that...

I applied into USC as an environmental studies major. Before orientation, I emailed both the college I was in and the college I wanted to transfer...

UIowa, UMinnesota, and UIUC were the schools that I turned down. I had not visited the first two and their programs were not as highly lauded as USC. Although I was admitted into the UIUC Honors Business Program (75 students only), I felt that the location would inhibit my career in that I would stay in Chicago. UIUC...