I’m currently a rising senior (so applying to college this fall). I immigrated to the US when I was almost 8 and didn’t know any English when I came here. I subsequently got really interested into English and writing, winning writing awards and getting published in numerous lit magazines. Considering I’ve been here for almost 10 years now, is this (i.e. huge improvement in my language skills?) something I should emphasize somewhere on my apps?
DEFINATELY. Especially the “getting published part”.
Haha. Where do you think is the best place for it though? I’m not sure I can write an essay about it without coming off as overly proud of myself (since I’m listing my achievements).
I think one kid who got into all 8 Ivies had a similar situation to yours. He didn’t understand a word when he came here, but he later got amazing grades and test scores. I don’t know if it was a 10 year span but still judging from that guy’s results, I’d definitely put it in an essay (about coming to America and how your english progressed).
List it on the bragsheet for your GC and state it in the additional information box. But I doubt it’ll be huge since 10 years is a long time - top colleges are used to this.
@MYOS1634 That was what I was thinking! But the first writing competition I entered and then won international finalist for was when I was 11. Is this something that I should emphasize, since it was only 3 years after I first learned English, or is it irrelevant because the award happened in middle school?