<p>for the short answer about my interest in Brown, and why I want to go there…would it be cliche to talk about how much I loved the campus, etc. while doing the summer program for 2 weeks? and then elaborate on what I could do if attending college there</p>
<p>yup</p>
<p>but i would LOVE to hear of “why [insert college name HERE]” that are not cliche.</p>
<p>I think most people either give an answer about the open curriculum or about their experience on campus. Mine was about my experience on campus. Be honest! If that’s actually why you want to go to Brown, and your time there has already impacted you so much, then let them know. But be more specific than “It opened my mind, and introduced me to people and ideas that both welcomed and challenged me.” Make it personal.</p>
<p>Non-cliche essays are ones that are very specific to you and your interests and show that you’ve done some serious research into the school so that you provide very detailed examples. </p>
<p>Like you want to be an engineer, you build model cars and you can’t wait to become a member of the team that builds a racing car from scratch every year.</p>
<p>LOL Mine was a sentimental ploy. It ended with something about how I wanted to remember the campus map later into life.</p>
<p>It workedddd. (And it was true.)</p>
<p>thanks for the input! :)</p>
<p>
Exactly. Try and make each essay unique, something that no one else would generically write. The “challenged me”, “changed me” etc cliches are not bad in themselves, they’re only bad if you leave them general like that.</p>
<p>Your job is to give facts about yourself (directly or indirectly), and let the adcoms draw the conclusions. Don’t say “it made me a better person”, or “the open curriculum would fit me perfectly”. Say exactly who you are, what happened to you etc, so the adcoms can say for themselves “wow, she actually became a better person”, or " wow she would fit in so well here".</p>
<p>That said, my own why Brown essay was about how I’d like to remember Brown as a warm nice memory, just as I remember the cup of hot tea I had while at -50 C in Kazakhstan. </p>
<p>Trayless hot plates though are not what I had in mind!</p>
<p>OTOH, someone who works very hard at their high school to promote composting and energy efficiency could write about how inspired they are by the effort to eliminate trays and what they would do to further the cause.</p>
<p>Would it be such a bad thing if I mentioned the attractiveness of the student body as one aspect of why I like the school?</p>
<p>yes</p>
<p>10 char.</p>