<p>Meliora: 'Ever better' - The University's motto, Meliora, directs our focus toward continual improvement through research, understanding, and collaborative efforts. Offer and example from your personal experience of an obstacle you faced or a problem you identified. Describe the actions you took and the result.</p>
<p>I wrote about an obstacle i faced in my common app essay and I was wondering if i can write about it again. I could talk more about the actions i took instead of how i changed from that obstacle. I am really stuck on this one obstacle and I don't know what else to write about. Would the adcoms look down on the fact i repeated the same obstacle? </p>
<p>Also, on diversity, websites about rochester say that 18% of the students are unknown. what does that mean?</p>
<p>You don’t have to report your ethnicity so some are unknown. </p>
<p>If you have something important to say in addition about this obstacle and if the obstacle is important enough to write about twice, then go ahead. They want substance.</p>
<p>thepal… Many students make a conscious decision not to report their ethnicity on their applications, and for that reason their ethnicity is unknown.</p>
<p>With regard to the supplement, I do NOT recommend spinning something small into something big (with complete respect for AudreyH’s advice). Admissions Counselors read a large volume of applications each year, and after working in admissions for even a short while, most counselors can detect a disingenuous response to an essay or short answer prompt.</p>
<p>Students face many types of obstacles, some big and some small, and all are important opportunities to learn and grow as a student. Do not feel as though you need to write about an obstacle that reversed the earth’s rotation - maybe you had to mediate an argument that occured during a group project in class, or perhaps you were struggling through a class and had to seek additional help from your teacher or a tutor, or it may be that you had to put together a set design at the last minute in preparation for a school theater performance. </p>
<p>How you respond to the obstacles you face in your daily life, however trivial they may seem, is as much an indication of your maturity and potential as is your response to a major obstacle.</p>
<p>Every essay/short answer you write is another chance for the college to evaluate you. Give them some new angle from which to see your strengths. The worst part about repeating an obstacle is the impression you could not think of anything else- or have nothing else to offer about yourself. k? MC makes a good point- it can be some small challenge or action that led to some positive or some insight.</p>
<p>MConklin - your ideas of “maybe you had to mediate an argument that occured during a group project in class, or perhaps you were struggling through a class and had to seek additional help from your teacher or a tutor, or it may be that you had to put together a set design at the last minute in preparation for a school theater performance” were exactly what I meant. Taking something small and spinning it into something meaningful for the essay. I didn’t mean he should lie or anything.</p>
<p>Thanks for clarifying, AudreyH… I understand now, and I apologize if I misinterpreted your previous advice, which is spot on. Some students do attempt to make mountains out of mole hills, and I always encourage them to avoid doing so.</p>