<p>Just wondering if an immigration essay might be bland to colleges.</p>
<p>It definitely made a big difference in my life, but maybe about every other immigrants are writing one?</p>
<p>TOO generic. A LOT of people write about moving and emigrating and stuff.</p>
<p>i am thinking about showing my resilience and love of learning... is that still to generic?</p>
<p>Sounds cliche to me.but if you can make it truly unique, go ahead.</p>
<p>Sounds like a bore.</p>
<p>I came to America, the land of opportunity. I worked hard, and will continue to work hard. The End.<br>
You, and thousands of others, had that brilliant essay</p>
<p>i was more thinking like "i wasn't the brightest kid, when i finally got better, i had to move to US for a year, during that year i not only had to learn English but also keep up Chinese and math after school by myself, when i moved to US for the second time, this time permanent, still have lots of trouble with English, but took pride in math. then i moved to Cali.. i was shocked to see 1/4 of the school was placed in a higher math class then i am. so i worked hard and self taught myself algebra 1 in 7th grade and precalc in 9th grade, by 10 grade i was taking calc bc and placing at many contests" cuz MIT wanted to see resilience and initiative to learn... iono how else to show it</p>
<p>OH NO, please don't write that.not to be mean or anything, but that is beyond generic and oh so boring.find something else to write about.what is the topic?i may be able to to help.</p>
<p>from your # of post how long you've been a member and your stats from your chance threads i certainly don't trust your opinions. not to be mean or anything i want to near it from someone more experienced with the top tier schools... maybe i should have just asked on the MIT thread
from all the MIT admit essay i read one is one moving, one is on math, and one is on making airplanes... OH I BET THEY are beyond generic too! i mean 1/3 of applicants must have written about math... not that many immigrants actually apply to MIT</p>
<p>I'd say it depends. </p>
<p>For instance, there's the standard "Why do you want to attend College X," question. Most applicants' answers will go along the lines of how College X is a great intellectual institution, has a great environment, is able to provide growth, has X specific program, etc. Pretty standard answers. Sounds boring. But it's a basic truth that you want to attend for the intellectual experience, etc. It's how you handle the essay that will make it good or just dull. </p>
<p>So, applying this anecdote to the idea of an immigration essay, yes, it's been done before, but can you make it any more insightful? </p>
<p>Is there any conclusion that you can draw that is more surprising than the fact that you have worked hard and will continue to? </p>
<p>It's not a matter of what you'll do, it's more a factor of self-discovery. If you can answer the blank in "I learned I am ___ from immigrating to America," the essay will be more interesting. </p>
<p>In order to make it better, you'll need to depend on your language a lot to tell a vivid, enticing story. If you're not confident with your abilities in style, your essay may become boring no matter what. </p>
<p>I'd say mention your faults if you feel compelled to do so but really focus on a positive message throughout. Many colleges look for naturally bright students as well as hard workers so the "'i wasn't the brightest kid'" angle might be negative if you word it that way. </p>
<p>This essay is wholly, is completely about you. If immigration really defines you (as in, if this is the first idea to pop in your head and is an obvious one, have you thought any deeper?), and your essay will really give a taste of who you are successfully, I'd say go ahead. Just don't make it a bore.</p>
<p>i guess i'll write one for the immigration thing ( shows i have self motivation, and resilience to do well even when i am down, because appearently MIT doesn't want people that won't survive without always being #1)
-one for how i first burnt my hand with the soldering iron at the age of 4 and when i was 5 i ws facinated my the lil black chips my dad put on the PC boards and helped dad with that, and can make random electric circuit and lots of working model cars and airplanes and boats, also liked solving math problems and and see how things work ( lots of math awards and president of a very competetive high ranking FIRST robotics teams to back it up, and can show hands-on and taking opporunities)
-and another on just on robotics, what i learned and all the things like grants , machining, and finances stuff involved and what i learned and the robotics course i taught over the summer(the volunteering teaching goes to making a difference toward technology, and team show leadership, teamwork and abillity to adapt and learn new things like grant writing)</p>
<p>grr too much to write</p>
<p>male asian mathematicians are commonplace though. i would suggest writing additional ones to separate yourself from the asian mold</p>
<p>I think that you can still write an immigration essay as long as you approach it in an unconventional way. yeah, I'm still trying to think of a way to incorporate my immigration experiences into a unique essay. I read oncethat you should avoid the overused topics of immigariton essays such as the value of hard work or an education.</p>
<p>i am not a guy though >.<...i thought my username is girly enough to show that i am not a guy.. lol</p>
<p>still asian. Don't focus on math. If you want to stand out, focus on another part of yourself. Your ability in math will be apparent by the non subjective stuff.</p>
<p>um.. like putting together my dresser and bookshelf? LOL
or painting while getting lead on my skin and possibly consuming some XP
or accidentally cutting myself with the de-burring tool at 11:30 pm cuz i was falling asleep
or somehow got the servo on one of the robot to stab me with a very sharp un-filed wire while i was testing the thing i just programmed haha i am soo clumsy</p>
<p>thanks for all your opinions i need more time to decide what to write</p>
<p>What are some ideas for an immigration essay other than the common "I had to work hard"?</p>
<p>Burnt hand with soldering iron at age 4, but was still fascinated with the chips, etc. Link to had a painful time immigrating . . .</p>
<p>lol >.< the burnt hand was an accident!!! i CHECKED if it was plug or not... and it WASN"T ( i guess it was still pretty hot)
and according to my dad i never miss placed pin 1 i always put in the IC chips in right even though i never knew which way to put it.. (HAHA PRODIGY!!! YEAH... jkjk >.<)
i think i might only minor mention immigration on how i had less time on math/science stuff because i had to learn english or something
i have better things to write like living with my grandma in rural part of china when i was little while my mom writes her PhD thesis and my dad working on some patent . ( i am pretty sure no other applicant to the colleges i am applying to had that kind of experience) i guess i can link the rural stuff to appreciation of technology and fascination and motivation to make new technological advancements to make people's lives easier. (how cliche! LOL)</p>
<p>*sorry for the verb inconsistency. my brain is kinda fried from rewriting our robotics team grant because this year's PR person is too incompetent to write a usable one. As the president, i have to pick up after everyone to make sure the club still have fundings....</p>
<p>Don't let people stereotype you into the Asian math geek genre. But don't make your essay stereotypical either. You can write about your love for math, but make sure that your essay conveys your own experiences.</p>
<p>Above all, don't write something like, "Moving to America taught me to work hard." Show, don't tell.</p>