<p>I was thinking about writing an essay about how I am, to put it simply, the sole conservative at my school. A teacher rec will probably mention how my views are different from those of my classmates. The question is, then, will this hurt me in admissions at schools which are predominantly liberal?</p>
<p>No. Just don’t be closed-minded.</p>
<p>ppl tend to dislike ppl who favor policies that favor the rich. In the last 8 years, 50 percent of america’s economic growth has gone to 1% of ppl, and there is now what seems to be the largest gap between the hyper-rich and everyone else. Being a conservative will likely make you seem greedy and elitist.
It used to be that the government would take the ppl’s money and cheat ppl if it was too strong. Now the govt is weak and corporations can just get away with letting the ppl pay for the things they destroy. Not like I’m anti-business, but the world is ready for some govt regulation.</p>
<p>Since KFM didn’t answer your question – you just need to demonstrate clear and cogent thinking rather than appear reactionary or just to defend causes for the sake of their supposed “conservatism”. </p>
<p>The adcoms are professionals who want great people, not to fill their ranks w/a certain type of political bent. Although my HYP alma mater enjoys a “liberal” label, I found a wide and healthy spectrum of political and philosophical dialogue. </p>
<p>Basically ditto to what dchow said.</p>
<p>i know a kid who wrote his essay about being the only conservative in a liberal town. it was very well done - its all about taste.</p>
<p>it can make you look bad, depending on what kind of conservative you are and your family background.</p>
<p>It shouldn’t make you look bad as long as the teacher’s rec itself is good. If the teacher says that you have well-thought out opinions, are respectful of your classmates’ more liberal views, stand up for yourself in debates without being rude and articulate clearly, then you look good to the college. If the teacher says or implies that you are argumentative, closed-minded or disrespectful of those who disagree with you, it doesn’t look so good.</p>
<p>I honestly don’t think you should be worried. Admissions counselors are professionals, and they know that your political leanings have no bearing on your qualifications for admittance. They’re not going to hold a grudge. There’s even a chance, however slight, that you would be seen as helping to add diversity to a more liberal college. Just make sure that you come across as someone who is thoughtful and respectful of the other side.</p>
<p>Besides, think about it for a minute: if a school would reject you when you deserved acceptance, solely on the basis of your political affliation, is that really a place you want to be, anyway?</p>
<p>Yeah, one of my ultra-conservative friends believes that Western civilization is better than all the other “non-democratic primitive cultures,” even though he doesn’t know much about non-Western civilization. He also believes that men are superior to women and that men should be more respected than women. To quote him, “I’ll listen to them when they say something worth listening to.” He claims that losing a chess game to a woman is embarrassing. In our AP Lit class, he refused to read Jane Eyre because it was too feminine for him and called the book garbage even though he hasn’t read it yet. I told him that he’s going to have a hard time in college, and he responded that in good colleges professors won’t require students to read stuff like Jane Eyre. All he ever talks about in class is the Battle of Salamis and how wonderful the West is, but he never really tries to absorb the opinions of other people. He wanted me to look at his college essay. He talked about how important history is, but he was clearly speaking from the Western perspective, using “we” to refer to Western people. I’m sure his teachers talked about this in his recommendations. He applied to several big-name schools, including Williams, but was rejected by every single school except one, and that’s where he’ll be headed.</p>
<p>It wasn’t even just his political views, but his closed mindedness that shut him out.</p>
<p>Haha, no I don’t think so. As long as you emphasize the fact that you’re open-minded or that you enjoy hearing other perspectives, colleges will probably appreciate the diversity you’ll add.</p>
<p>^dchow08. Your friend pretty much sums up all the things that people tend to dislike about conservatism. A lot of people, whenever they hear that someone is conservative, automatically think of these eurocentric, misogynistic, homophobic, irrationally patriotic people. What all these characteristics have in common is their closed mindedness.</p>
<p>By definition, to be conservative is to be “traditional”, adhere to the status quo and be resistant to change. Because of this, I think it’s pretty hard (but not impossible) for a conservative to not be closed minded and for them to be open to other viewpoints because of this affinity with the status quo. </p>
<p>These characteristics are what adcoms hate to see. They hate closed mindedness, but all too often closed mindedness is the lens through which conservatives see the world. </p>
<p>Now I know that not all conservatives are like this. I am in no way trying to bash conservatives in this post and I’m not prejudiced against conservative ideology. If you’re able to show that you genuinely are open minded and are willing to reevaluate the status quo (which, in an environment comprised of people from all over the world, you’ll pretty much have to) then you’ll be fine, regardless of political affiliation. </p>
<p>Just don’t let yourself fall into the clutches of closed mindedness that so many conservatives do, simply because of their natural tendencies and beliefs.</p>
<p>Yes. The big liberal establishment has all the admissions officers gagged and locked up in closets. They’re making all admissions decisions now. If you haven’t expressed explicit support for Dennis Kucinich’s presidential bid in your applications, you can forget about the Ivy League. </p>
<p>Of course not. The student bodies at elite schools are more reflective of the kinds of students who apply rather than any sort of political bias. First off, let’s say about 50% of the country votes Republican. 25% of the country is evangelical. Most evangelicals vote Republican. Most evangelicals also prefer solid Christian schools (Pepperdine, Baylor, Patrick Henry) over the “godless” Ivy League. So in terms of applications, there goes half of America’s conservatives. </p>
<p>Also, statistically, the higher degree one holds, the more likely one is to be either liberal or libertarian. Judging by your screen name, I’m going to guess that you’re a “left-libertarian” like the people at Cato. Honestly, you wouldn’t be all that out-of-place at an elite school…while some might find your views on economic issues disagreeable, assuming that you’re fairly socially liberal it won’t be that big a deal. So at Yale, considered one of the more “leftist” schools in the country, you’re not going to find too many people who oppose gay marriage and don’t believe in evolution. However, there are a fairly substantial number (certainly a minority, though) who support more conservative fiscal policies.</p>
<p>diversity.</p>
<p>schools love it. see you can still benefit from affirmative action!</p>
<p>Being a conservative won’t hurt you, though I think you should question whether or not you want to go into the bastion of liberalism that is the ivy leagues.</p>
<p>No, it won’t hurt you, and as others have said, depending on how you craft your essay, it could help you.</p>
<p>I hear the Soviets have infiltrated the Ivy admissions committees. They’ve got reds in there making sure the next generation of American elites is comprised exclusively of communists. I hope they can’t trace this IP…</p>
<p>No, it won’t hurt you, but your paranoia might.</p>
<p>And, for the record, I’m a lefty liberal, and I think that Western Civilization, taken in full, is superior to the other great cultural traditions, similarly evaluated. Semper SPQR.</p>
<p>^You seriously need to read Guns, Germs and Steel by Jared Diamond. It’s an amazing book and it debunks many of the beliefs that eurocentrics tend to hold of the world.</p>
<p>There is always a chance of the bad luck of the draw- having someone read your application who you just rub the wrong way. I wish I could say be honest and let the chips fall where they may, but I can’t. Be honest about something else.
The only conflict I had with my son in preparing his college applications was that he wanted to talk about how he got a charge out of playing paintball. This is just such a red flag among some people that I fought him tooth and nail. I forget who won. If it were central to who he is, that would be one thing. But he has played 3 times in his life, and not at all since he was 16.</p>
<p>IMO, if you write about the effect being the only conservative in your town had on you, not on WHY being conservative is the best, you will be fine.</p>
<p>I agree with entrancestone ^^^^ Don’t defend being conservative and say how difficult it is, but show how the struggle has impacted you, shaped who you are, allowed you to really stand up for what you believe, be a strong willed person not giving in to peer pressure, etc.</p>
<p>In my experience, schools don’t love these seventeen or eighteen-year old kids who think they have life completely figured out and know exactly what they believe politically and ideologically. If you’re a normal high school senior, you have a whole lot left to learn about, well…everything. Acting too confident in your views or promoting them in too aggressive a way (whatever those views may be) makes you look arrogant. </p>
<p>Honestly, I wouldn’t suggest writing an essay on your conservative convictions for two reasons. First: writing about polarizing, controversial topics that may leave a bad taste in the reader’s mouth is just a bad idea. Second: you’re a high school senior. It’s very unlikely that the political views you have now will be very much the same even, like, two years from now. Write about a more lasting, consistent part of your identity.</p>