Application Essay Excerpts

​I walk out of Dance of the Photons, my first-year physics seminar, animatedly discussing Zeilinger’s book with a fellow classmate. As we talk about entanglement and teleportation among other mysteries, I can't help thinking that I have everything I could ever want academically at Caltech...

I’ve wanted to study science since I was seven years old. When I was in fifth grade, I joined Science Olympiad, eager to explore topics beyond the depth covered in school. I competed in events related to optics and geology, but Science Olympiad’s crowning glory was its astronomy event...

I typed away eagerly on my computer. Right before my eyes, I watched the story of a mother manipulating her computer-savvy son to take over the world come to life...

I sat down to complete a writing assignment for my astronomy class. “Read a pre-1960 article that discusses a theory of solar system formation,” the prompt read. “Discuss the evidence used to bolster it, and any problematic facts mentioned by the author.”..

"Integrity is the ability to stand by an idea." - Ayn Rand, The Fountainhead. The quote summarizes the theme of Rand's story about the struggles of an architect. The protagonist clung to his perspectives about architecture even as experts demeaned his ideas and his peers stole them, completely violating artistic integrity and spirit. In the end, he achieved success by staying true to himself rather than conforming to the standards of his profession...

"Vas a hacer que?!" my dad burst, grinning in disbelief. Despite how much doubt he would sow, the decision had already been made. "Voy a ser vegetariano" I firmly declared. At dinner ropa vieja steamed from the plates of my parents, pungent with traditional Spanish scents and flavors. As I contemplated my Spanish roots and Malthusian catastrophes, I stared at the unsightly mound of arroz congris on my plate...

Fatigue seeped into every pore; my legs got heavier by the second. The sun beat down on my face; the mask weighed down on my head. Sweat soaked through my white pants, white socks, my ballestra. It drenched my white jersey, white shorts, my cleats...

I have led my class as class president for the past three consecutive years and it has undeniably been one of the most defining aspects of my high school experience. It has made me confront difficult situations, taught me the value of professionalism through my constant interactions with faculty and school management, and has helped hone my communication and social skills...

Heroin. Cocaine. Crack. My ADD medication. If my parents could smoke it, snort it, or inject it, they would abuse it. I was six years old when I became aware that my parents were desperately dependent upon these poisons--so desperate that my clothes and toys became quick trade-ins during late-night drug runs...

In the streets of Ypsilanti, Michigan, I, at only eight years old, was regularly offered drugs by children just a few years older than me. I always refused their overbearing offers, but it is with this corrupt opportunity that my only brother followed my parents' paths of drug abuse...