<ol>
<li>write about your future plans (career/education) and if there's anything specifically that's influenced them</li>
<li>list some of the books you've read in the last year and any periodicals you read regularly.</li>
<li>write a literary analysis.</li>
<li>write about an "issue of choice."</li>
<li>write about a conflict in your life and how you resolved it.</li>
<li><p>rank the TASP seminars and give reasons for your preferences.</p></li>
<li><p>Just write what you know... Write about what are your goals and all that bs. ;) lol... it's easy because you just have to be honest.</p></li>
<li><p>List... My list was bulleted and it didn't even include the authors because I was too lazy to find them all, lol.</p></li>
<li><p>Seeing as I had NEVER IN MY LIFE written a damn literary analysis, I had to look up guidelines online and see what the heck I had to do. XD You could probably use a paper from school, but they want you to write about something you HAVEN'T read. Honestly, you could get away with it, but if you have the chance, try your best to make it a new essay about something else. It doesn't have to be about a novel... I did mine about a poem. It can be anything, really... Poem, story, novel, essay, play, whatever. Mine was "Lady Lazarus" by Sylvia Plath. ^_^ I highly recommend Wendy Rose's "I expected my skin and my blood to ripen" or something like that... It's excellent and that's the one I almost wrote about, though in the end I settled for LL. :)</p></li>
<li><p>An issue of choice... Hm! That's a new one. Just find something to talk about concerning an important choice and run with it. You could also try to explain how a "meaningless" choice can actually have a big effect later on. "The Butterfly Effect", anyone?</p></li>
<li><p>It sounds like bs, but it really isn't. Honestly, that's the essay I'm most proud of, <em>beams</em>. Just make it ORIGINAL. More than original, make it represent YOU. Make it ooze your essence from every letter. :P</p></li>
<li><p>Just make a bulleted list and explain why you want or don't want certain seminars.... Rank them so they can try to place you in your top choice. I got my top choice, so that was great. :D</p></li>
</ol>
<p>Also keep in mind that, aside from the fact that the essays basically DETERMINE whether you get in or not, that's what your interview (if you advance to the second round) will be about. Your interviewer will read your essays and profile and will ask you about them... They'll ask about the activities you're involved in and stuff, but they'll also ask about your position concerning topics you addressed in your essays and maybe even global issues. It's not like you have to be a genius or know a lot about current events, though it could certainly be helpful, but you just have to know what you stand for and be prepared to defend it with coherent, logical arguments. </p>
<p>I had my interview over the phone because I'm from Puerto Rico and they couldn't fly someone over here (and my interviewer was in BEIJING at the time! :D), but luckily the guy was FRIGGIN' AWESOME. Before the actual interview, we emailed each other and we are STILL in contact. Honestly, he is bloody excellent and I love him to death, so try to establish a bond between your interviewer if you can, especially if it'll be over the phone.</p>
<p>However, some people (MOST people) have face-to-face int. and sometimes with more than one person. Just keep your cool, be enthusiastic, and just let your true self shine through.</p>
<p>Remember that they scan for weird stuff in your essays, such as stuff that shows you're racist, homophobic, or just nuts in general. :P Personally, after reading my application, my factota thought I was going to be problematic. ***! I have no idea why, really, but hey, whatever. I still got in anyway and they wound up liking me. XD</p>