Cooking is my slice of heaven. On a Wednesday night, you can find me tossing basil, garlic, mushrooms, tomatoes, onions, and green bell peppers into a large pot of deliciously simmering red pasta sauce. As I stir the sauce with an easy rhythm, guiding the ingredients into a collective nirvana, I sometimes read a passage of hot Catullus the way it was meant to be read – aloud. (Vivamus, mea Lesbia, atque amemus!) Other times I sing a piece I’m...

I was born in Australia. Or perhaps I should say Australia was born in me. The first four years of my life were happy ones. I remember venturing excitedly with my friends into the small woods behind the nursery. I remember the delicious aromas of my mother’s kitchen. I remember going on a family trip to the Outback and silently marveling at the red hues of the earth. Australia wrapped me in a happiness and an excitement that seemed...

I have some key advice for writing your essay. In this process, not only should you try to understand yourself better, but you should give some thought as to what these colleges are looking for. This is not to say, however, that you should necessarily tailor yourself to what these colleges want; rather, you should have a loose understanding of your audience. Remember not to mythologize admissions officers: these are imperfect (and potentially stressed) human beings pouring over (and sometimes skimming) your essay. However, you can speak to them through your writing, you can turn their hearts and minds, and...

I interviewed with all of the schools I applied for (Harvard, Yale, Princeton, and Columbia). The interviews were surprising in a number of ways. Note that alumni are conducting most of these interviews so there is not much consistency among them. Nonetheless, some themes emerged as I talked to others about their experiences. The alumni view it as a way of giving back to their alma mater while getting to see the lives and stories of inspiring young people. In many ways, these alumni reflected the philosophies of their respective schools. I found that Harvard's interview (at the Harvard Club...

In terms of the activities you want to do to best position yourself for college or anything else for that matter, I have some somewhat non-traditional advice. I go by 5 short and unspoken rules, and I think you should reflect upon these. 1. Don’t view people’s advice as being absolute. All advice is autobiographical. People know one way of doing things that works well, and they try to advise you in that direction, but in most situations, there are actually many ways of doing things that all work well. Even worse, what worked for them might not work at...

I think three things really set me apart from other applicants. 1. I spent a lot of time of my essay and really thought my voice (and whether I was getting that across). The next advice section talks a lot more about that essay writing process. 2. I really dedicated myself to my standardized tests - I was almost obsessed with getting perfect scores, and I did on nearly every single...

I spent a lot of time on my college applications, but in retrospect, I think there are a number of things I could have improved in my application process. In my personal essay, I initially wrote a lot about my activities in a rather heavy-handed manner. My essay was almost like a resume or activities list crammed into essay format, when it really should have been a narrative - a story. It took me a while to edit it, and I...