<p>Ok quick background - SAT Math 740 Verb 730 Writing 680
If you want more go here
<a href="http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/showthread.php?t=221810%5B/url%5D">http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/showthread.php?t=221810</a></p>
<p>So i know my scores sure as hell arent getting me in but i know they arent keeping me out so that means the essays are going to be my only chance.
So any comments on essay topic selection would be nice (especially long essay).</p>
<p>For most important EC - Writing about preparing/leading bible studies and small groups with my youth group.
For intellectual intrest - modern physics (quantum/relativity/string theory all that fun stuff) and how it led me to want to study materials science.
For roomate essay - About how i trained for and competed in a triathlon this summer.</p>
<p>And here is the one i have 2 topics that i cant decide which to write on.
For the long essay i can either write </p>
<p>1)on my two week materials science research program at clemson and what i learned about myself(motivations/future plans/desired major etc) and about what i learned about real world research (i wouldnt be writing about my specific research topic but more about what i learned in general about how the world works) </p>
<p>2)or i could write about a program ive been involved with/helped to start where we go to a neighboring city monthly to hold a bible school for past 3 years, it would specifically be about one kid i got to know especially well as he grew up from a 4 to 7 years old.</p>
<p>So it comes down should i write an essay to convey my intellectual personality/intrests or more about my religous/community service side. I know they want to get to know me as an individual im just tossed about as to which me i should convey i could try to do both but would be awkward essay.</p>
<p>The second topic sounds like it is much more likely to lend itself to an essay that really shows who you are. The first topic is likely to turn into you telling what you learned, whereas the second topic is likely to allow for more showing instead of telling, which tends to work much, much better.</p>
<p>yeah thats probaly a good thought, ill just have to make sure i dont get caught in a trap of just listing everything i did as part of the second one. Although i might just end up telling stories about the stuff me and him have done, not sure if that would show them anything that they want to know about me or not</p>
<p>If anyone else has any comments i would love to hear them</p>
<p>There are no bad essay topics. Just bad essays.</p>
<p>My advice....</p>
<p>Do not write about the topic that you think will look more impressive. Write about what you truly love doing, and the passion will come through and be obvious. When I write about something I am excited about and love, it always comes out better than something forced. So pick what you love most, and write about it.</p>
<p>I think an essay about the relationship you built with the child could be extremely revealing about your character and your passions. As others have said, make sure you don't laundry list: "I helped him with his homework, and afterwards we would have fun playing basketball. He has really improved in school these few years." That shows nothing about you. It would be more effective to express how you feel about it; you could even tell a story. Something more effective would be "My favorite moment was when we discussed X Bible story, and his eyes lit up when he realized how the story was something he could apply in real life. I felt so much happiness at that moment because that was what I wanted most - for children to understand how religion can be a guide for living a steady, noble, life." I apologize for the crummy example... I admit I'm not religious so I was fudging there =/</p>
<p>Alternatively, it wouldn't be bad to write about your physics interest. Are you really passionate about it? Does it fill you with a sense of peace because it helps you understand the universe? If you can talk about how it makes you feel and why you love it, then sure. Don't laundry list the physics you have learned.</p>
<p>Either way, I hope you get the gist about showing the reader how you feel about whatever you choose to write.</p>
<p>Thanks for the well thought out post, ive written the main essay about building the relationship with kheali (he is 6 now and 4 when i met him) and how both he and I have changed over the past two years as a result of our time together. One focus of it is how he was originally addicted/lived cartoons/movies and how over the 2 years ive gotten him more interested in playing game/arts/crafts/reading/music/looking for bugs etc. (basically anything thats not TV related).</p>
<p>Then i wrote one of my other essays (the academic one) about how i really enjoy learning about the workings of the universe through physics.</p>
<p>I tried really hard to stay away from answering the "what" in the essays and focused more on the "why"</p>