Making the JV Tennis team in my freshman and sophomore years did not pose a challenge; in fact, I hovered on the higher side of the standings in tryouts where everyone played everyone else, vying for the limited number of spots each year. But, in my junior year, making the Varsity team was a different story. Only the top 11 would make the cut, with the rest given a handshake, and a “keep playing, and good luck next year.” Given my...

I recall checking only one box – “Business, General” – on a survey of my academic interests the first day of high school, without any authentic understanding of the intricacies of the business world nor the various careers and paths the field has to offer. Now, approaching the end of high school and after growing both academically and as a person, I aspire to be not just well versed in business as my primary focus, but also in history and psychology. I...

The essay question was as follows: "Tell us about your intellectual interests, how they sprang from your course, service, work or life experiences, and what makes them exciting to you. Describe how these interests may be realized and linked to the ILR curriculum. " Since it was such a specific question, I wanted to truly explain exactly why the school was perfect for me, using a variety of actual life experiences as well as what I've learned about myself over the...

I ended up choosing to apply Early Decision to Cornell University for a variety of reasons, both academic and personal. I visited twice, once in April and again in October ...