Hi I had an idea for my college essay to UPenn and wanted some feedback on whether or not this is a good idea. I’m thinking about writing on my experience of memorizing the Holy Quran, from start to finish. It’s my primary extracurricular and it’s taught me lessons and persistence and determination. Does this topic sound too generic or is it original?
I think it sounds like a great topic and very unique! For what it’s worth, here are some suggestions:
—Link the determination and persistence the memorization took to at least one other academic pursuit. As in, you have these traits and they can be transferred to another discipline.
—Mention how highly valued memorization of the Quoran is in your religion. Alternatively, you could use this in a short answer about being part of a community. I like how this highlights the diversity of your culture and shows that you bring a different perspective to the class.
—Br sure to link this to your career goals. Penn is heavily pre-professional and they tend to like essays that talk about goals.
—If possible, mention that your goal was not simply to memorize the information, but to understand it as well. It could be effective to talk about wrestling with a passage and trying to understand it, and that you used persistence until you understood. Obviously, this links back to your course of study in university, that you will not only strive to understand the information, you’ll enjoy the process of learning it and wrestling with it, etc. They love to hear that you enjoy learning for the sale of learning.
Anyway, great topic and I wish you the best of luck!
Probably neither unique nor original nor generic, but it should be interesting.
Thank you for tips @GoldPenn!
I dont think its a good idea to talk about religion in your essays. You never know if the AO that’s reading your essay has strong views on the matter. The same goes for politics and other subjective topics.
I don’t think that the personal views of a potential reader should concern you. And I doubt that the reader regardless of his or her personal views is going to judge one’s application essay from a biased perspective. That is not what application essays are about.
It doesn’t sound to me as though the OP is trying to convert anyone. It sounds like an essay about an academic exercise that happened to be centered in his faith. If a reader could or would be offended by such an essay, then the school should reconsider who it chooses to be a reader.
It sounds to me as though it could be a strong essay, one that would tell the reader a lot about growth, about sacrificing time that could be spent hanging out with friends on something you thought was important.
I say you write at least a rough draft and see how it goes.
Ok I will