1. My sister, Sara, is seven years older than I am. She has set a framework for my life that I have followed, and she has inspired me in more ways than I can remember. Looking at my sister's high school life, it closely resembles mine. She was in IB, she was section leader in marching band, she played in pit orchestra, she took the highest level math, and she was extremely skilled and dedicated to her language. Additionally, she was...

When I first learned about Duke, it was on CollegeConfidential. Duke was recommended to me because I wanted a warm, coastal climate with an excellent biology program that was highly ranked in other areas, as well. I decided Duke sounded intriguing, so I read the Duke Admissions blog- all the posts, from years ago to now. What I loved about Duke was the intellectual atmosphere I gathered from these blog posts. I was especially excited by the lemur center and...

Being biracial is very close to my identity. I am half Japanese and half white, and I have found that this quality separates me from people who I would otherwise relate to- I have never felt fully at home with either white people or Asian people. Being biracial is confusing. When people call me Asian and stereotype me from that, it is puzzling, for am I not also white? I enjoy rice and eating with chopsticks, but I also am...

There is a certain joy in discovering a word that perfectly describes you, your thoughts, or your habits. When a complicated aspect of your life is summed up in one word, it transforms the conception of self into something slightly more tangible, more compact. Words like these connect people because what used to feel personal and incommunicable suddenly has a word, an accepted medium to transfer the idea from one person to another. A word that does this for me...

One of my favorite aspects of UChicago is the Core Curriculum. I find the focus on a liberal arts education to be extremely refreshing and inspiring, as more and more universities and colleges focus on preparing for a career. There is nothing wrong with focusing on a career, but I fear I have too many interests and possibilities for my future career to commit to one just yet. UChicago’s Core provides the chance to discover what truly interests me...

As of 2010, less than 1% of the Colorado population is of Japanese ancestry. My significant connection with the Japanese culture, therefore, is immensely valuable to the diversity of CU Boulder. I am half-Japanese, and I am very involved with my Japanese heritage. I have both embraced and immersed myself in Japanese culture and brought it to the people in my community. In seventh grade, I began studying Japanese in school. In eighth grade, I began participating in the competition called Japan...

One unique aspect of Yale that has me really excited to attend is the residential colleges. I love the idea of living in a smaller community that creates a permanent Yale family. It is very familiar to me, as I am in two special, smaller communities at my school. The IB program at my school has about 60 people in my grade, and it functions as a family within my high school. Marching band is the same way, especially my particular...

I had to write a variety of admission essays. I reused a lot, and I had a few topics that I knew I wanted to write on ahead of time. I had a google doc with all the college essays I had ever written, and if I needed more or fewer words or a slightly different focus, I would edit these. I had a list of my favorite books, authors, films, and artists in case that was needed for an...

I did not use a private admissions counselor. I was confident enough in my ability to get in, and I did not need...

Do something fun and enriching! Most of my summers were spent doing marching band, which...

I believe my leadership roles, high test scores, and challenging coursework set me apart from other applicants. I was in IB and I took classes like AP Calc BC. I also had a 4.0 at the time I applied. My declining grades senior year occurred after I was already...

University of Washington: This was a very near choice. I did not choose it ultimately because, although I got a scholarship, it was too much money to pay for a compromise in location and academic quality. Minerva:...

I do not know yet, but I definitely want to apply for...

My main issues in deciding where to go were financial and weighing of potential. Financially, I should have gone to Oklahoma, since I received many financial benefits for National Merit. Boulder was also cheaper. I got a scholarship at UW, but it was still more expensive than these two. Finally, Minerva was actually quite cheap because it's an experimental for-profit school with extremely low tuition. Basically everything was much less expensive than my first choice, Berkeley (except Duke). Weighing potential was also important. How would my future look? Would I have a better future with much less debt, as Oklahoma...

I do not have to take out loans yet. My parents are able to pay, right now, for college....

Because I wanted to major in a science field, I made sure one of my recommenders was a science teacher. The other was just a teacher who...

I would have spent more time applying for scholarships. As it is,...