<p>If your kid had written an otherwise excellent essay but it referenced her faith (not in an evangelizing manner), would you let her send it in as is or would you consider having her do something else because religion is so touchy?</p>
<p>Send it in. There is no need to hide your religion in admissions, as long as you refer to it appropriately. I referred to my faith in one of my essays without thinking twice about it.</p>
<p>However, since religion is so potentially touchy, would you feel comfortable giving us the reference, with some context?</p>
<p>I would let my kid write about what's important to her, and if she got rejected for that reason, it would be clear that was not the college for her.</p>
<p>YOu guys are so smart and clear-headed. I appreciate that.</p>
<p>The context is how she reconciles her faith with being a scientist.</p>
<p>I think it's probably fine -- the context you describe is a dilemma that faces many people in science. How she resolves this could show her analytical abilities and approach to problems. In any case, I don't think that the topic of the essay is as important as how well it is written and what it reveals about the author.</p>
<p>"Would you consider . . . something else?" Yes.</p>
<p>Would I definitely DO something else? No, not at all.</p>
<p>First of all, I don't think "religion is so touchy" at all. By and large, Americans are religious -- pretty much unlike any other national group in the developed world. Every college has a lot of kids for whom religion is a big part of their lives, and it is going to show up all over their applications -- ECs, summer activities, etc. If kids like that got excluded from or disadvantaged by good colleges, it would be much, much easier to get into good colleges (for the rest of us). What's more, it's a good bet that many of the admissions people at every school are going to be people with a positive religious identity, too. </p>
<p>Second, colleges want the essay to get a sense of who the applicants are. If religious engagement is part of who your daughter is, and that doesn't come through otherwise in the application, then why isn't it affirmatively right to include it in the essay? If religious engagement is part of who your daughter is, would she really want to attend a school that would even think of excluding her on that basis? Obviously, she would rather be accepted at every school to which she applies, but this isn't a scoring contest, it's a complex, inefficient match process. If your daughter (and her advisers) are confident that the essay gives an honest, positive account of her, why make it less honest?</p>
<p>I agree that it's a good idea to make certain that her essay doesn't give any vibe of religious fanaticism, intolerance, or chauvinism. That would be very problematic at many schools (and perhaps a requirement at others, but I don't think you would be asking this question if you were applying to one of them). On the other hand, if the essay communicates religious commitment in the context of tolerance and respect for others, I think that is an affirmatively positive quality. Schools WANT to have religious kids as well as nonbelievers, but I'm sure they prefer nice, tolerant, diversity-loving religious kids.</p>
<p>Now, if she's applying to Notre Dame or Yeshiva, and the religion she's referring to nonevangelistically is Islam, maybe she should think about it more . . . both ways. If the religion she's referring to is Wicca or anything like that, disregard all of the foregoing and drop it.</p>
<p>
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The context is how she reconciles her faith with being a scientist.
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<p>I don't see any reason why that would be a problem. A religion professor at my daughter's school (definitely NOT a school that attracts a lot of evangelicals), recently published a book detailing how religious teachings can serve as a blueprint for addressing global environmental issues. </p>
<p>An essay that addressed that sort of connection between religion and science in a thoughtful way (especially if it specifically referenced the professor's book!) could be a fabulous essay for her college.</p>
<p>What you would want to avoid at all costs is proselytizing -- unless you are applying to a college that has proselytizing as a core part of its mission statement.</p>
<p>It truly sounds like a thoughtful essay, definitely the type to send in. And if she does get rejected and it looks like that essay was the cause, she wouldn't have been happy there anyway.</p>
<p>I also see absolutely no problem sending in the essay. I tried to write on a very similar topic (how I reconcile being a geologist and a Christian) for a diversity essay for a PhD application, but decided that when professors are directly responsible for admission, religion is best left out (there may be a thread in the archives about it in the Parent's Forum from about a year ago). However, for an undergraduate application where professors are likely not to review the essay (more likely admissions counselors), I believe it is fair game. </p>
<p>If she has encountered a time where her religious beliefs have been come into question, say at church, due to her belief in evolution or the likes, I believe it would make a very interesting essay. It is unique to be a scientist who regularly practices religion (or at least in my field, I know of only one in my MS department), it would increase diversity of thought on campus.</p>
<p>Here is the thread I opened in December about my possible essay: <a href="http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/showthread.php?t=123531&highlight=religion%5B/url%5D">http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/showthread.php?t=123531&highlight=religion</a></p>
<p>Best of luck to your daughter!</p>
<p>zooser,</p>
<p>I don't think religion per se is touchy. I think it is the behaviour of some folks of faith (and certainly of some folks of no faith) that gives the impression of sensitivity. In other words, some people's behavour can be controversial, even conflict creating. </p>
<p>I do think the risk of religious references are that they can come across not as religious, but rather as dogmatic or intolerant. But they can also come across as very thoughtful.</p>
<p>I would be careful. </p>
<p>Religion, as faith, is probably a bit taboo--perhaps even being perceived as anti-intellectual, which for admissions purposes is heresy, if not apostasy. More so if it is Christian; more so if it is Protestant Christian; more so if it is evangelical Protestant. I do not think that being a Christian, per se, is a negative in admissions. However, if Christianity comes across as the focus of your life and academic curiosity, as in an admissions essay, you could risk offending the sensibilities of a particular freethinking admissions officer, though not all admissions officers. </p>
<p>It’s not worth the risk. </p>
<p>As to the comments that suggest that it would be a good thing to know about such a prejudice before committing to a particular school, I disagree; the admissions committee is not the school itself…thank god :)</p>
<p>My essay referenced my faith inasmuch as it referenced my life, but it is none of the above. </p>
<p>If the essay communicates a questioning of faith due to scientific curiosity, as a topic, it would be a homerun…especially if it questioned the faith of your family/parents. </p>
<p>Honestly, I would consider another topic.</p>
<p>I think it sounds like a great topic
I don't think that colleges- are looking for students to sanitize and bland up their essays ( at least I hope not)
We already have textbooks in this country that teach little because they dont want to "offend" anyone
Not that I am for offending people, but if emotion is backed up with reasoning- how could anyone be offended?</p>
<p>I don't think most schools, would turn away a student writing a well crafted essay on a thoughtful topic.
Now if you were applying say to BYU, you probably wouldnt turn in an essay on your minority sexual orientation, and I acknowledge that if you are a science major who doesn't believe evolution, then you are going to have a tough time at most colleges, but just writing about how your religion keeps you centered ( or whatever), is going to be a refreshing change from reading about their trip to Mexico to build cisterns ( stopping off in Cancun on the way)</p>
<p>"Heresy, if not apostasy"</p>
<p>Don't you think that's going a bit too far? I think it's fine to acknowledge that you're Christian, especially if you're talking about how you reconcile that with science. To show that you're grappling with issues of intellectual contradiction shows that you're a thinker, and that's great.</p>
<p>I've heard Harvard admissions officers complain that students don't take enough risks when writing their essays. Unlike what many students here assume, "taking risks" doesn't mean talking about one's sex life or drug use or bizarre behavior. "Taking risks" means writing an essay that really shows who you are -- what's important to you, what's in your heart and your soul.</p>
<p>Too many students, instead, write bland essays saying what they think that colleges want to hear. Colleges want students with the guts to have their own thoughts, interests and personality -- even if their peers may not care about those things. </p>
<p>And if a college doesn't want a student who has honestly written about something that they feel passionately about, the student is better off not going there, but going to a place where their passion, interests and personality will be welcomed.</p>
<p>The subject of the OP's D's essay sounded very thoughtful, honest, and important, revealing a great deal about the D's heart and soul. I think that it's the type of personal take on a subject that most college adcoms wish they would read more of.</p>
<p>My d's essay appeared to be very well received at the LACs to which she applied. The essay did not speak directly about her religious beliefs, but told a story about an event at our temple that influenced her greatly.</p>
<p>FountainSiren, I think you are way off base. Yes, a student whose essay indicated that the student was a biblical literalist who was not willing to learn about things that might be inconsistent with Holy Writ would be severely disadvantaged in the admissions process at most selective colleges. But a student for whom religious faith of the Protestant Christian variety (even evangelical) is a central element of character, alongside intellectual curiosity . . . that's well within the mainstream, even in Hanover NH.</p>
<p>Even in Hanover New Hampshire:</p>
<p><a href="http://www.dartreview.com/archives/2006/06/11/church_and_state_at_dartmouth.php%5B/url%5D">http://www.dartreview.com/archives/2006/06/11/church_and_state_at_dartmouth.php</a>
<a href="http://www.dartreview.com/archives/2006/06/11/the_charge_of_the_academy.php%5B/url%5D">http://www.dartreview.com/archives/2006/06/11/the_charge_of_the_academy.php</a>
<a href="http://www.dartreview.com/archives/2006/06/11/riner_06_welcomes_the_class_of_2009.php%5B/url%5D">http://www.dartreview.com/archives/2006/06/11/riner_06_welcomes_the_class_of_2009.php</a></p>
<p>food for thought…</p>
<p>FWIW--agree with FS, but most definitely depends on the school.</p>
<p>I agree with Northstarmom, and think the essay topic is very thoughtful.</p>
<p>I would disagree with a religious topic that was obviously partisan or divisive (abortion, stem cell research), or too based in fundamentalism, or too rigid. Such essays could offend adcoms, potentially.</p>
<p>It doesn't sound as if that is the tack that Zoos's DD is taking at all; on the contrary, she is revealing a reconciliation of a personal conflict, a topic which interests adcoms a lot.</p>
<p>"
The context is how she reconciles her faith with being a scientist."</p>
<p>LOL. One of the many, many books with sample college essays had a pretty nice essay on just this subject! It can definitely be done.</p>