What matters to you and why: (250 words) Teaching became important to me the day I helped a thirteen-year-old girl at my school understand how to solve linear equations. She declared her presence with the rhetorical query “Why am I so stupid?” before placing her head face down on her desk in a symbolic display of shame and frustration. Eager to help, I walked over to provide assistance. Her attitude shocked me. Every failed attempt at a question dented her confidence...

Stanford students possess an intellectual vitality. Reflect on an idea or experience that has been important to your intellectual development. (100 to 250 words) The Second World War always fascinated me. I wanted to identify with the heroic, rugged soldiers in the stories I read. I aspired to be like them. I saw an undeniable “beauty” in war, and fighting for one’s homeland seemed romantic. However, when I entered my Diploma Programme Literature course, the truth of war was brought to...

Pick an academic teacher who genuinely appreciates you as a student and who you know will write a stunning review. However ensure that they will...