<p>Title kind of says it all.
I'm thinking of creating some sort of art...I don't really want to write down an explanation because I feel like I would probably mess it up and cheapen the entire thing. Plus, there isn't one motivating force or message behind the thing...nothing profound, it's just representative of everything in my life that makes me smile and gets me through the day.</p>
<p>Nope I don't think so. I"m sure it helps, but I don't think it's necessary.</p>
<p>Read somewhere that at times it's somewhat helpful to have a reference - perhaps an artist's statement kind of thing -- unless it's plainly self-explanatory.</p>
<p>Hi 3.7! <em>waves</em> lol.</p>
<p>It's not necessary, but Dan said some of the explanations provided were "wildly helpful" (verbatim, if I remember correctly).</p>
<p>Ah okay, thanks for the input, guys!</p>
<p>To quote (myself):</p>
<p>
[quote]
You can do basically whatever you want. If you choose to explain what you've done, do your level best to keep your 'mini-essay' mini, but I had a couple of explanations sent with the 8x11s that I found wildly helpful.
[/quote]
</p>
<p>If it doesn't need explanation, than **DO NOT **include an explanation. Less is more, usually, but some of the 8x11s are pretty out there. Yours sounds like it's fine on its own.</p>
<p>Read the conversation in this thread: <a href="http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/tufts-university/608600-optional-part-using-paper-create.html%5B/url%5D">http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/tufts-university/608600-optional-part-using-paper-create.html</a></p>
<p>DanAdmiss@Tufts, how do we upload it to the website? or do we have to send it in by mail?</p>
<p>Two reasonable options for submission:</p>
<p>E-mail a PDF (or other properly sized document/image file) to our office.</p>
<p>Snail mail it in. </p>
<p>We are plenty capable of printing it out and making sure it gets sorted in your file, but our volume is too high to print them in color, so your OE will complete its journey in black and white if you submit electronically like that. If color part of your piece, you can mail it in (since you can print in color). I know, snail mail is very 1998, but then you can be sure of how it looks when it finally rests in your file.</p>
<p>If you mail it through post, make sure that you attach your name, high school, and birthday on it somewhere (or put it on the back, or in a corner, anywhere will do).</p>
<p>Does the optional essay have to be postmarked/submitted online on Jan. 1 or before the 1st? Or is there an extended deadline? And is the email <a href="mailto:admissions.inquiry@ase.tufts.edu">admissions.inquiry@ase.tufts.edu</a>?</p>
<p>^Oh no, I just mailed mine in this morning but I only put my name on it! :(</p>
<p>Do you think this will cause a considerable holdup in putting it into my file?</p>
<p>Holdup? Perhaps.</p>
<p>So long as no one else has the same name as you, however, it'll make it in there eventually.</p>
<p>^Okay, thanks, Dan! Luckily, I don't have a common name.
Now I just feel silly for not including all the info.</p>
<p>hey danadmiss@tufts, if I send in a music score, would they bother getting someone to play it or something? or do they just kinda look at it? thanks :)</p>
<p>^^^^ Superb question. </p>
<p>I would peg the likelihood of someone actually playing a score at pretty close to zero. Now that I'm thinking about it, it would be pretty awesome if we had an office piano. The thought of some of my co-workers doing lounge-style performances with it just made me laugh out loud.</p>
<p>I had an applicant ED who composed a score and who e-mailed me an MP3 of her performing it. Her Optional Essay was much more about the concept behind her composition than the technical artistry of the composition itself. And I think that's the right approach. But being able to stop for a moment in committee and play the MP3 was a lot of fun.</p>