Hi, all!
I saw that Duke had an optional diversity/cultural background supplemental and I was wondering if I had a compelling enough idea to answer it.
Essentially, my essay would be a little bit about my German and Russian heritage (and how that’s kind of ironic, historically) and how I’ve been pretty Americanized. Although I visited Russia as a child, I don’t speak the language and I find it hard to connect with my Russian grandparents/relatives. So I feel like I’m not only missing out on this culture, which disappoints my mom, but I’m lacking some of that family support.
Or something like that, anyway. Do you think that’s relevant enough to justify answering the question?
It could be a good topic. I would focus on the struggle and success of how you have maintained your heritage while “assimilating” to the american way of life. Make sure the essay is compelling and memorable and have multiple people read it before you submit. Good luck!
Not sure, but I suspect that this essay is primarily a method of identifying URM applicants. Not sure of any benefit that may arise from discussing one’s ancestry outside of this objective.
Interesting. If that’s the case, I wish they were more clear about it. I certainly don’t want to overstep my boundaries and pretend I have to face some kind of race-related issues when I most certainly do not. That being said, I don’t want to be penalized for not writing this supplemental.
Write the supplemental essay so that you feel that you have put forth your best effort in applying to Duke.
As illustrated in your original post in this thread, I do not understand the diversity issue, but the cultural background might interest some readers–especially if planning to double major in Russian and Eastern European History.
“missing out on a culture” is not generally what they are looking for, which is how might you add a different culture perspective to the class discussions. Since you admit to being “Americanized”, I’d skip it.
So my daughter applied last year and her guidance counselor’s advice was that the essay was absolutely not optional - unlike the gender identity essay. I also think that by not posting the entire prompt, you’re missing some of what they’re looking for - which I believe is more than just URM:
Duke University seeks a talented, engaged student body that embodies the wide range of human experience; we believe that the diversity of our students makes our community stronger. If you’d like to share a perspective you bring or experiences you’ve had that would help us understand you better, perhaps a community you belong to or your family or cultural background, we encourage you to do so here. Real people are reading your application, and we want to do our best to understand and appreciate the real people applying to Duke. (250 words maximum)
It’s another opportunity for the AO to connect with you as a person and opportunity to show that you’ll add to the Duke community.
Duke student here. For this essay I agree with @Darcy123 that you should write it since the only required one is the Why Duke. I remember writing about my interests in sustainable living and how my actions impacted my community & changed my views. You do not have to mention race and culture if you feel that doesn’t fit here.
I agree that you should not skip it. They want to hear who you are and what you will bring to their campus community.
We attended an Exploring College Options program with Duke and other top universities. The admissions officer from another university at the program said this, “We want some understanding of what diversity you bring to our campus. Think broadly as diversity can be cultural, racial, ethnic, linguistic, geographic, life experiences, etc. Every student has a different story to tell. Who are you? Where are you from?. What are your ideas and interests?” Hope that helps a bit.
Okay! I think I’ll write it. I’ll have to brainstorm the topic, though. Thanks everyone!