In a stuffy elementary school cafeteria in rural Vermont, horsehair scraped against steel and tungsten. Kids sat on floor mats or swayed to the heavy, hypnotic beat. I could not hear myself playing the cello over the uproar of the drums; nevertheless, a smile crept across my face. As I shredded away, I lost myself in the tones and harmonies. I felt on the edge, walking a tightrope of creation. My band, SoundCheck, was performing songs about social justice issues...

Low Strung, a rock and pop cello ensemble, epitomizes why I am applying to Yale. As a cellist and lover of the instrument, I want to join an ensemble that showcases the cello’s versatility beyond classical music. Low Strung is a community of witty, fun-loving musicians who describe themselves as “orchestra dropouts” and who know how to take advantage of the many unconventional opportunities Yale has to offer. By arranging classic rock and pop tunes for a dozen moody...

It was the first week of middle school, and I thought too highly of myself. I was going to be the sixth-grade hotshot in a class that eighth-graders feared: Algebra Seminar. It was an accelerated course intended for only the brightest eighth-graders, and I was eager to prove myself. The stakes were high. Adding to the legend of the class was the teacher, Mr. Laush. I had heard many things about him: that he was an All-American college wrestler and...

I am drawn to Dartmouth’s Social Impact Practicum classes, which are representative of Dartmouth’s commitment to public service. By taking these project-based experiential courses that help meet local needs through partnerships with nonprofit organizations, I hope to learn how to integrate service into my academic interests in education and public policy. I am also drawn to becoming a Learning Fellow because I could help my peers succeed academically and support Dartmouth’s dedication to constantly improving their educational...

Thanks to an incredible orchestra program and music teacher, Mr. Valyou, I started playing cello in fourth grade and fell in love with its somber, emotive tones. Yet, when I got to middle school, I realized that not all students were so fortunate—based on where students lived and what schools they attended, the quality of education could vary greatly, leaving out opportunities to learn an instrument, a foreign language, or even computer skills. This pointed to a larger problem...

It is late March—the first “nice” day in many months—and while other students are playing Ultimate Frisbee on the main quad, I am curled up in my UChicago dorm doing homework. But this is not an ordinary assignment—today is one of those days when homework involves playing Mario Kart, not just studying it. I race a track with a few different vehicles, intentionally crashing into walls. I notice that karts have greater recoil and deceleration than bikes,...

As I walked by an eclectic mixture of Gothic and modern architecture into the main quad of the University of Chicago, the atmosphere felt excited, buzzing—even in the early morning—as students held spirited conversations about Plato, the political destabilization of the Middle East, and multiverse theory. On my student-led tour, I met the most engaging tour guides who told entertaining yet relatable stories about appreciating having a common book to talk about with nearly every student on campus...

I started Classical Music Encounters (CME), a library concert series that introduces classical music through performance and commentary, to bring arts education to diverse audiences throughout my home state of Vermont. With my twin brother, I prepare our program with pedagogical aims in mind and practice our solo and chamber repertoire for piano, cello, and violin. During the concert, we teach listeners about the historical context of the pieces and share their relevance for audiences today. One concert-goer told me...

I am applying to Swarthmore because its many resources and opportunities would help me use data and mathematical modeling to analyze social issues and develop appropriate policy solutions. I value math for its precision, objectivity, and modeling power, but I know it cannot reveal the full scope and nature of complex issues like racism, global inequality, and migration. At Swarthmore, I hope to complement math courses like “Modeling” and “Statistical Methods” with sociology courses like “Urban Crime and Punishment” and...

I am fascinated by origami on an intellectual level because it is an exercise in both linear and abstract thinking. When I fold a crane or a water bomb, there is a distinct set of steps to follow to achieve the same result each time. Yet, being art, origami is also an exercise in creating my own shapes and forms. The interaction between creation and limitations helps me understand how one reinforces the other: I can only create new shapes...

The agent hands me a narrow box with three buttons on it. One is gilded with two vertical bars and the other is gilded with two leftward-pointing, overlapping triangles. “I’ve selected you as the recipient of this controller,” he whispers. “You may use either the pause or rewind button on your life, but you may only ever use one of the two. Good luck.” With that, he walks away. I stand there, bewildered. Conventional wisdom tells me to be...

Last summer, I shadowed an organic chemistry graduate student at the University of Vermont (UVM) for a week. I helped her develop new organic reactions to synthesize complex molecules, learning about nuclear magnetic resonance spectroscopy and chemistry techniques in the process. I also attended a UVM workshop on organic optoelectronics, or flexible electronics made from small molecules or polymers. I learned how to make organic LEDs and solar cells and explored current research on organic lasers. This fall, I organized...

I started Classical Music Encounters (CME), a library concert series that introduces classical music through performance and commentary, to bring arts education to diverse audiences throughout my home state of Vermont. With my twin brother, I prepare our program with pedagogical aims in mind and practice our solo and chamber repertoire for piano, cello, and violin. During the concert, we teach listeners about the historical context of the pieces and share their relevance for audiences today. I also create promotional...

During the past two summers, I attended Governor’s Institutes of Vermont in Mathematical Sciences, Current Issues and Youth Activism, and Astronomy. I learned about the applications of math to areas such as robotics, politics, and evolutionary biology, studied the formation and progression of social movements, and conducted research on binary stars. I also attended a Biomedical Science and Human Disease course at the University of Vermont (UVM) to learn more about research careers in medicine and pathology. Last summer,...

I am interested in using mathematical modeling to analyze social issues and arrive at policy solutions. I value applied math for its precision and objectivity, yet because it cannot reveal the full scope of complex social issues, I hope to complement this interest with the Ethnicity, Race, and Migration major’s discussion-based classes and emphasis on studying the historical conditions that gave rise to today’s global issues. I want to understand how racism and colonialism have shaped our world,...

Origami, the Japanese art of folding paper, is one of my favorite pastimes. The simple act of folding is, mathematically, a wondrous thing. A crease transforms two dimensions into three. The number of basic folds is low, but from them, a world of shapes and forms emerges out of a 15 by 15 centimeter piece of paper. Folding can be used to accomplish mathematical feats that are impossible with just a compass and straightedge, like “doubling the cube” or trisecting an angle....

Thanks to an incredible orchestra program and music teacher, Mr. Valyou, I started playing cello in fourth grade and fell in love with its somber, emotive tones. Yet, when I got to middle school, I realized not all students were so fortunate—based on where students lived and what schools they attended, the quality of education could vary greatly, leaving out opportunities to learn an instrument, a foreign language, or even computer skills. This pointed to a larger problem I...

My academic interests are applied math and public policy, two seemingly contrasting fields that perfectly dovetail in my mind. I have been passionate about math from a young age—I love the feeling of solving logical puzzles and finding answers—but as I have matured, I have realized that life’s challenges do not always have elegant solutions. When I entered high school, I became interested in solving the world’s many inequalities, and I now want to use math...

I hope to contribute to the Brown community by sharing my love for music, education, and community service. Last fall, I organized a concert of classical works written during times of war and political tension to demonstrate that music can bring people together. I performed pieces like Viktor Ullmann’s sixth Piano Sonata, which was composed in a concentration camp during World War Two. I would love to organize similar events with the Brown Chamber Music Performance. I also hope...

Not many people can call their entire home state a community, but I can because of Vermont’s small population and size, and its distinct personality. Something that epitomizes our tight-knit nature is Front Porch Forum (FPF), an online network, found in every town in Vermont, that allows people and businesses to share events, buy and sell items, find lost pets, and comment on the state of their town. Through FPF, I have promoted and attended Teen Science Cafés,...

Hi! I’m very excited to spend this year with you. Here are some things about me: I’m an INFJ in the Myers-Briggs universe, which stands for Introverted, iNtuition, Feeling, Judging. This means I focus on finding patterns in the “big picture” and value social harmony. This is supposedly the rarest personality type, and I am lucky to share it with the likes of Nelson Mandela and Martin Luther King Jr.! I find that it describes me well as...