<p>Hey I was wondering if any admitted SFSers would mind answering the following questions for me:</p>
<ol>
<li>Should the SFS essay relate back to you, or should it remain purely analytical? </li>
<li>Should the solution to the issue in the SFS essay be the most emphasized part of it?</li>
<li>How long were your essays?</li>
<li>Did you make your activities essay relate back to a more "IR" related extracurricular like MUN or debating?</li>
<li>How was the interview? Did the interviewer ask a lot about international relations or was it more focused on your courseload, ecs, and other traditional interview questions?</li>
</ol>
<p>These might be really basic questions, but I haven't been able to find good answers to any of them!</p>
<p>Hey! Entering SFS freshman here.</p>
<ol>
<li><p>Mine didn’t relate back to me at all. No “I”'s! You can allude to something that you experienced if it helps (I used a book we read in English class, but the adcoms don’t know that), but do not make it personal. Like I said, do not use “I”.</p></li>
<li><p>I think so. My essay was 5 parpagraphs. The 1st was an anecdote, the 2nd stated the problem and my solution in like 2 sentences. The thrid broke the solution down. The 4th was an example further supporting the solution, and the 5th was a conclusion (I’m looking at it right now I didn’t even realize I structured it like that. When I was making it I honestly just wrote whatever came to mind lol)</p></li>
<li><p>About 1 page single spaced. 600-something words.</p></li>
<li><p>I don’t remember an activities essay… I remember my SFS one and the essay where I had to talk about myself. If that’s the one you’re referring to, then I would reccomend it, although my essay was not on an activity, but it still emphasized my global perspective. </p></li>
<li><p>LOL, my interviewer was in the business school and honestly did not ask any school-specific questions. Just questions about Georgetown as a whole. He asked A LOT of questions about myself and my personality, and he also asked the forbidden question: “What other schools are you applying to?” I always hated that question on a college interview. But yeah, all those traditional interview questions were in there too. </p></li>
</ol>
<p>General Interview tip:
When they ask you if you have any questions, make sure you ask “What did you like the most and the least about [insert college here]?” It always throws them off and they don’t want to admit anything is a negative. It also shows that you like to factor in everything. </p>
<p>Hope I helped! GOOD LUCK!</p>
<p>What did you say about the “other colleges” question?</p>
<p>Also, the three day no post drought is finally over!</p>
<p>HAHA I went back through my flash drive and found the activity essay you were talking about. It was a short essay and I finished it in like 1 day which is why I don’t remember it. I talked about cheerleading, so it doesn’t neccessarily have to be IR related. Just talk about something you know for a fact you are passionate about (I LOVE cheering). I even cleverly made an analagy to Georgetown NSO and cheerleaders. </p>
<p>But the other essay (the one that asks you to talk about either yourself or a diverse communtiy) should definitely show why you have a global perspective.</p>
<p>@CSIHSIS I was honest. I tried to not name any colleges that were ranked higher than Georgetown, but Northwestern accidentally slipped out. (The interviewer didn’t hesitate to write that one down!) LOL I thought I f’d up my whole interview by naming Northwestern, but I guess not. Also, don’t tell them your safety school. I was like “UD, (University of Delaware) but that’s my safety school.” His face expression showed that he thought I was a little elitist.</p>
<p>I’ll pretty much just say GW and American xD</p>
<p>Why would naming a college that is ranked higher than Georgetown negatively affect one’s admissions decision?</p>
<p>They would assume you’re using Georgetown as a safety and if accepted to the other school would choose that over this so why bother accepting you anyway.</p>
<p>So what would you recommend saying? I’m exclusively applying to uofm, msu, yale and gtown… should I just not say yale?</p>
<p>^^ Not necessarily as a safety, but they would assume its not your first choice school if you have schools that are higher ranked. And, like CSIHSIS, they think that you would choose that school over Georgetown if accepted. (People who apply to top schools are usually rank-crazy) </p>
<p>I honestly wouldn’t recommend stating Yale. There is an obvious prestige gap between those two schools and if I was an interviewer, that would be a red flag for me.</p>
<p>Hey LoveEssence thanks for all the help!!</p>
<p>I was also wondering how you made your essay more interesting? Right now, my essay feels pretty raw and boring, and I can’t imagine anyone but a hardcore IR nut being interested in it. I was also wondering if you made a conscience effort to keep your ideas concise? I’m having trouble trying to balance the amount of detail in my essay, so that I include enough but not too much.</p>
<p>I didn’t make an effort to keep my ideas concise because I’m a naturally concise writer (at least, that’s what my English teacher said). I honestly think the more detail, the better. Especially if you have a relevant example or theme you can extend throughout the whole essay. (Ahah! That’s what will make it interesting) Just make sure you are not paraphrasing your thoughts. Every one of your sentences should be a new idea, not one that was stated in the previous sentence. The only time you should paraphrase is in your conclusion. My extended theme was a quote that had a very direct correlation to my essay’s solution. Don’t choose a quote that is only tangential. </p>
<p>Oh, and if you do choose to use a quote, DO NOT start your essay with it. If you do that, you are letting the speaker of the quote introduce your essay rather than yourself, which lessens your authority (think… a principal introducing a scared teacher to a class of rebellious students. Once the principal leaves, the class goes wild). I learned this from my
English teacher as well, lol I love her. </p>
<p>Also, please take my advice with a grain of salt. I am only one person and Georgetown is very holistic in their application process so nothing I say is set in stone.</p>