I didn't see many rainbows in India. They hide in the monsoon rains, or are too frightened by the hot, stifling climate. Likewise, I was terrified of showing that side of myself in a homophobic country, especially to the host family I had grown to love. "Why India?", my friends would ask. They knew the cruel, anti-gay laws in that country. I knew I had to go anyway. I felt an obligation to see what life must be like when...

Harvard asked for an optional essay about anything we wanted to write about! I wrote a comedic poem in iambic pentameter and Shakespearean language about my experiences performing Romeo and Juliet.

BE CREATIVE. TAKE RISKS. My dad told me when he read my unique supplemental poem that it would either make or break my application. I went for it, and I'm so glad I did. I was inspired by a friendly sophomore who I talked to after my tour. She had written a rap as her supplemental essay, and it worked out for her!

I'm a white upper-middle-class kid from suburban Massachusetts. There's nothing advantageous in that. If you're like me, you'll have...

In September, I wasn't even looking at Harvard. I was self-handicapping--"I have no chance, I haven't saved a small African nation". My parents (thank goodness) convinced me I had a chance, so I applied Early Action Single...

I was not one of those "apply to all 8 Ivies" types. My list included University of Maryland and McGill in Montreal. Here's why: unless you are much wealthier than I am, or could get a lot of...