Applying to Columbia College with a Focus on Extracurricular Activities - Admission/Application Essay Example

Please briefly elaborate on one of your extracurricular activities or work experiences in the space below (250 words) I dedicate much of time to sports because I am an athlete. I believe that sports are the best way to practice endurance. Because of this belief, I participated on the basketball and swimming teams each year in high school. Within the Hong Kong basketball field I received several accolades from Nike, TAC, Inter-Schools, and also from my own school. Through playing basketball I have learned that trust, teamwork, and focus are fundamental life concepts of life. In eleventh grade I focused for one semester completely on basketball field in order to practice for the competitions. My team was eliminated at the semi-final stage and did not win the championship. However, my family was proud of me because I set and worked hard to achieve my goals. I am thankful to my family because many traditional Chinese families focus on academics more than athletics. When I arrived at DeAnza College I was focused on swimming and diving. Swimming is more of an individual sport than basketball, as I am in control of my own performance and can be the one to dictate the outcomes of my efforts. The freestyle event is my favorite part in swimming since it helped me to win many awards in the community and through my school. I am currently working hard this year to prepare for the California State Games in April. Because I am not afraid of facing failure and learning from the mistakes that I make, I believe that I will become a valuable person to society. Please provide a statement (350 words) that addresses your reasons for transferring and the objectives you hope to achieve. There are many reasons why I wish to transfer to Columbia. My primary goal is to build upon what I already know and learn about sociology in greater detail. I also wish to classify many of the social problems of the global communities in which we live. These are educational reasons, but a more practical reason is the fact that I believe I will receive more opportunities at Columbia than I would elsewhere. It is important to point out that the competitive nature of the American education system produces students than are far more competitive than those from other countries. Because of the success of the education system in the US, there have been many attempts to recreate this system all over the world. For this reason alone, students who graduate from American educational institutions can earn incomes in order to maintain a high standard of living in the country. However, at the same time they can also give back to the society that was responsible for their upbringing and supported them when they needed it most. I admire this model and hope that it is one day replicated all over the world. For now though I have to be content with studying in the United States because of the great career opportunities that will be on offer to me. When I graduate from university in the future, I hope that I can work with many non-governmental organizations so that I can assist those who did not have the same educational opportunities that I did.. The reasons that I want to help them is that this is my goal in life. In capitalistic societies education is becoming more expensive and the take-home pay of workers is remaining stagnant. Although the government may try to take care of all of the poor people, there are still some people who fall through the cracks. I want to deliver my knowledge to them so that society can get rid of inequality and there will be equal opportunities for everyone. List the required readings from courses during the school year or summer that you enjoyed most in the past year. (100words) (1/2 context ,1/2 own ideas) One reading that I enjoyed greatly was the novel Ceremony, written by Leslie Marmon Silko. The novel reflects her Native American background and focuses on her attachment to her culture. is a beautifully written story The book shows the importance of cultural and traditional values in a person’s life and how a person can recover from deep troubles if he or she properly understands his or her culture and sticks to his or her traditions. The story has strengthened my beliefs with regard to family and culture. I could relate to many important aspects in the story as the difficulties and struggles that Tayo faced reminded me of my own difficult times and eventual recovery. List the books read for pleasure that you enjoyed most in the past year. (100words) One book that I particularly enjoyed was titled Respect, In an Age of Inequality and authored by Richard Sennett. This book talked about the issue of respect and how it is viewed depending on our relationships. Sennett talks about how important self-respect is and how we can balance it with our need to respect others. He said that we live in an unequal world and so we do not have the same level of respect for others. I thought that this was interesting and it made sense to me. With so much inequality in the world, it is no wonder that our self-respect and respect for others is not the same. List the publications you read regularly, including print and electronic sources. (100words) Each day I read American news on the internet after school. Even though I may be busy with homework, I still try to take half an hour to look at the news. The main reasons why I watch the news is to have a better connection with the world around me. When I decided on taking sociology as my major, I believed that the media can reflect the actions and activities of our society. I enjoy reading the latest cartoons in newspapers because they directly reflect the hottest social issues right now. I can learn a lot through these cartoons and self-reflection on them. List the films, concerts, shows, exhibits, lectures and other entertainment you enjoyed most in the past year. (100words) Lincoln is my favorite historical drama film because it shows how hard Abraham Lincoln fought with some states over the issue of slavery. The movie also showed me how important sociology opinions are and how different kinds of ideas helped him to form an opinion on the issue. President Lincoln is one of my icons. I want to be successful like him because he fought for his dream and never gave up, even when facing certain defeat. I want to use my knowledge that gain from my sociology major and use it for the betterment of society. Please tell us what you found meaningful about one of the above mentioned books, publications or cultural events. (200words) Of the news sources that I read, the most interesting to me is the New York Times. This newspaper has an online version so it is easy for me to read it after school in my spare time. I try to read as many news stories as possible, particularly about world affairs, so that I can keep update about the happenings in the world. I would have to say that my favorite part of the New York Times is reading the opinion pieces on current global issues. The authors of these pieces make compelling arguments that force me to think outside the box when it comes to certain issues. In my mind I always try to come up with argument against the author because it helps me to process what the author is trying to say and reaffirms my position on the issue. Please tell us what you find most appealing about Columbia and why. (250words) The thing that sparked my interest and attracted me to apply for Columbia was its motto “In Thy light shall we see”. When I had just graduated from high school, I did not know what major I would pursue. When I arrived at college, I was lost as to which major I should study and what type of job I could have in the future. Last summer I visited New York City and was fascinated by what I found there. Columbia is a classic university in that it has its very own community inside a modern and vibrant city. One thing that stood out to me was the dedication and hard work of the students. Almost every student was working hard in the library. They were also sharing their academic issues with each other in the cafeteria. Overall I felt that every student was very friendly to me and made me feel like this is a place where I could belong. I do not just want to go to university to receive a degree and get out of there; I want to have the whole college experience. The motto of the school attracted me to pursuing my goals at Columbia and the friendly environment made me want to stay here and build up my relationships with the other students. I believe that Columbia is not just a school but a friendly community that will help me grow as an individual, succeed as a student, and offer me many career opportunities. For applicants to Columbia College, please tell us what from your current and past experiences (either academic or personal) attracts you specifically to the field or fields of study that you noted in the Application Data section. If you are currently undecided, please write about any field or fields in which you may have an interest at this time. (250words) Nothing has been more fulfilling than travelling across the United States. In this regard, I have acquired many unforgettable experiences that surpass anything that I had ever obtained in any of my previous travels. It is like my travels has enabled me to bring alive the information that I had only read in books but always wanted to experience for myself. It has always been my dream to travel. This dream has led me to such places as California, New York, Pennsylvania, Texas, and Nevada. I went to learn about the operations in each state. I noticed that each state and city had different elements that were distinctive in their own way. This explains the differences in the society and economies of these states. For example, New York City has the highest transit utility in the United States and a successful financial market in terms of Wall Street. On the other hand, San Jose has a large freeway system to support the third most densely populated city in California; there are also the high tech companies located in the Silicon Valley region. In view of this, my enrollment at DeAnza College to take classes in economics and sociology helped me to create a foundation that ensured I became more aware of my personal doubts. From next year, I hope to build on the fundamentals that I learned in college and broaden this knowledge further at Columbia so that I can become a force in the sociology and economics areas. Read More