<p>In my “Why Brown?” essay I talk about a recent Brown grad I had as a teacher and how her passion is indicative Brown’s Open Curriculum. The essay is at first anecdotal and then becomes more philosophical, so I’m wondering if it needs to describe more concrete reasons for wanting to attend Brown.</p>
<p>Could I PM some of you guys? Also it would be nice if you could say who you are (applicant, student, alum, etc.) in your comments below. Thanks!</p>
<p>I’m a fellow applicant who has already submitted my application, so I wouldn’t mind reading it!</p>
<p>Mine starts off anecdotal, too! I’ll read it.
I’m an applicant.</p>
<p>i’ll check it out as well. I am a fellow applicant who has pretty much finished up Brown application. pm it to me!</p>
<p>sure thing, just pm to me</p>
<p>i already finished all my apps, so i can read if you want</p>
<p>PM me. I’ll read it :P</p>
<p>Actually it seems like a pretty unique response and thats good! </p>
<p>Best of luck in your application.</p>
<p>just submitted today so feel free to PM me!</p>
<p>Could I also read it</p>
<p>Hi!</p>
<p>I’ve been looking over a few friends’ essays for Brown for grammar and flow lately, and would be more than glad to do the same for you.</p>
<p>You can pm me if you still want someone to look it over for usage, grammar, flow, etc.</p>
<p>if you have to ask yourself that question, the answer is probably yes</p>
<p>Well I was accepted 
So, NO!</p>
<p>Your “why Brown” essay (or why anywhere essay for that matter) should describe your passion, what you have done to pursue that passion, and how Brown will help you further you interest. Brown, more than most, wants to see that you have some purpose in mind and they want to see that you acted consistent with following that purpose. For example: “I’m committed to community service and helping people make the best choices about what they eat. I have worked at the local food bank for three years and set up a committee to work with our purchasers and nutritionists to select the healthiest foods possible. I hope to work in nutrition and public welfare fields. I have learned that this type of work is being done through Brown’s Swearer Center believe that the ability to participate in the Swearer Center’s program and perhaps concentrate in public health will help me achieve my goals.” Lose the philosophical. You want admissions to say, “Wow, this kid is seriously interested in this stuff and we can really help her to get where she wants to go.”</p>
<p>^that’s not true, as the results have indicated. </p>
<p>I think mentioning the open curriculum is severely over done by too many applicants. I didn’t mention it in my essay and it turned out fine… is the open curriculum really the MAIN reason people apply to Brown? There are so many other, more interesting things to mention as well, which I think the adcom will find better since it’ll show that you did your research instead of just stating what every single other applicant has also said in their essays.</p>
<p>Of course, I might be wrong since i’m not an admissions officer, but that’s just my take.</p>
<p>I think the Admissions Committee is looking for students who can handle the responsibility of the open curriculum and would not waste the wonderful opportunities it offers.</p>
<p>Admissions officers know full well about the open curriculum, so I agree it would probably not be worthwhile to spend time describing it to them. But whether or not an applicant actually uses the words “open curriculum” in the essay, I think an essay that shows that the applicant would thrive in the open curriculum environment would be helpful.</p>