Please provide a statement that addresses your reasons for transferring and the objectives you hope to achieve. (250-650 words) Have you ever repotted a plant? Generally when you see roots coming through the drain hole, it’s a sign that your plant needs a new home. I’ve helped my father repot our lemon tree a few times, and I often wondered why it was necessary. My father told me that it was to give the plant an ample space...

What in particular about Yale has influenced your decision to apply? (Please answer in 100 words or fewer.) During freshman year, I battled with Organic Chemistry. Reactions flew above my head and I quickly got tired of harassing my professors during office hours. That’s when I discovered the Yale Open Course recordings of “Freshman Organic Chemistry” taught by Prof. McBride. Following his hilarious and ingenious approach, I grew to love Organic Chemistry and found myself asking questions and coming up...

Stanford students possess an intellectual vitality. Reflect on an idea or experience that has been important to your intellectual development. Sweat droplets hung onto the ends of my hair. My legs trembled; I was about to collapse. A voice looped in my head: "Five more steps. Just five more…." I was eighteen, ill and alone, hiking in Austria. The sun had started to set and I was far from the top. "Should I give up?" My determination was weakening. It...

[Virtually all of Stanford's undergraduates live on campus. Write a note to your future roommate that reveals something about you or that will help your roommate -- and us -- know you better. (100 to 250 words)] I’m pretty crazy about chemistry, so it only makes sense that I introduce myself in chemical terms. Acidity: I’m an acid; acids are proton donors and I, too, am a giver! I love to provide care and support to people around me. I�...

  What matters to you, and why? (100 to 250 words) When I was eighteen, my mother went on a lonely journey. I saw her lying cold in the bathroom, unconscious, and I remember screaming in horror. I didn’t know what to do. Tears rushed down my face, and all I could do was desperately shake her stiff body while calling for help. There was the greatest woman in the world, on the edge of her life, and I couldn’t do...

Reflect on your experiences and personal development since your last application. (250 word limit.) Reflecting on a three-year time scale isn’t easy. The most surficial difference is that I’m no longer a teenager stuck in high school uniform and that I have to worry about what to wear before going to classes every day. Also, I don’t get discounts on public transport fares anymore. With such changes comes transformation in deeper level too: I’ve become independent. Living...

Tell us what you'd like to major in at Cornell, and why or how your past academic or work experience influenced your decision, and how transferring to Cornell would further your academic interests. 650 My academic interests are primarily in chemistry. I have taken a broad range of chemistry courses at ANU, studying organic, inorganic, organometallic, physical, material and biological chemistry, and I believe that I am now ready to focus on the more specific fields within chemistry such as theoretical...

In your personal statement on the Common Application, you explained why you are seeking to transfer. Please explain in detail why you wish to transfer to Johns Hopkins University specifically. (1-500 word limit) Undertaking science at ANU, I was required to regard science as a way of life and leave everything else behind. After taking science courses back to back for two years, I’ve come to realize that this all-or-nothing type of learning isn’t for me. I have...

When I think of UChicago, the first thing that comes to mind is Ben Miller, my Airbnb host in Chicago. Couple of months ago, I travelled to Chicago to celebrate Christmas with a friend, and Ben gladly had us at his house in Hyde Park. He was a writer and a graduate of UChicago, and had a cool vibe that made us get along very well. He introduced us to the chilled yet vivacious life of Chicago, and often enlightened...

In my chemistry lab, acids and bases are kept locked up in a yellow cabinet with a big sign that says “Warning, nasties in here!” Concentrated acids and bases are indeed hazardous; they are corrosive to human tissue, meaning that they can burn you like you’ve never been burnt before. Hence, it isn’t unusual to think that being acidic or basic is a bad thing. However, to a chemist, acids and bases are amazing companions. In organic chemistry,...

Please respond in 250 characters (roughly 40 words) or fewer to each of the questions below: What excites you intellectually, really? Thinking about what it is to be alive. We’re alive, but if we physically pick ourselves apart, we’re no more than aggregates of atoms – which aren’t alive. Then what makes us more than our bodily composition, scientifically and philosophically? Think about a disappointment you have experienced. What was your response? I sulked a bit then cheered up over...

I say get to know your teachers from early on and scan them. Try to find someone who you personally like and can connect to and make sure you work on building that relationship. That probably means going...

I absolutely loved chemistry from high school and it continues on to college. I really...

morning-lecture-haters, caffeine-freaks,...

Well first of all, I transferred internationally - and that's a big deal. It was a last minute decision and I was rushing everything. I had to prepare all these essays, research about each school, take the SAT, get recommendation letters, get all the documents I need for admission...etc. IT WAS A NIGHTMARE and I was so stressed and unhappy. I was working in a lab from 6am - 10pm too, which didn't help at all. SO, my advice to you is to START EARLY. Think about why you want to transfer. You need to have a damn good...

I think it's a combination of these factors 1) I'm Australian. You don't get many Aussies in America 2) I had tonnes of research...