I’m currently trying to decide on my college essay topic.
The following is a list I’ve narrowed down. Please select two or three that you think could potentially be the most interesting to read, if you were an admissions officer. Obviously I don’t have essays for all of them, so you’ll have to make do with my brief descriptions.
Thanks again. =]
1. I love art and it has become a big part of my life, especially in high school. I’d like to talk about how art in its most essential form is meaningless, but has allowed me to provoke feeling and thought in other people. And by doing this I have been able to use art as a vehicle for many of the humanitarian causes I care deeply about. It’s almost become like my outlet for expression because of its suggestive nature.
2. I’ve become entirely fascinated by Vincent Van Gogh. I’ve read books on him, seen his art, watched movies, and consider him a complete inspiration. The reason I’d like to write a piece on how he’s affected me goes beyond art. I’d actually like to write more about how his life has altered my philosophy on life. Many view Van Gogh as simply an artist, but he was an extremely passionate human being, who was very involved with humanitarian work throughout his life, and intellectual pursuits, despite constant rejection. So I’d like to uncover that side of him, in an effort to show who I have become.
3. Another possibility was the five minutes before I fall asleep. I tend to think always right before I go to sleep, and just reflect on each day. A lot goes through my mind, and it’s not something I’ve shared before, but I’m willing to for a college essay.
4. Although I’ve become passionate towards art, I’ve never been the person to really define a passion. I don’t have a single passion. I care about a lot of things, particularly why I want to attend a liberal arts institution. But anyways, I thought about possibly writing on why my passion is passion, itself. And why simply becoming a more passionate person toward all things in life has been most vital to me. (I also wanted to talk about empathy a little in this)
5. I’ve been collecting quotations for about three years now. I love quotations, aphorisms, etc. Anytime I hear something I really like, I am tempted to jot it down. Sometimes I’m confused why I do it, but then other times I feel like it gives me a source for thought. It just gets me thinking and that why I like it. So an essay perhaps on my quotation collection and its revelations about me.
6. Recently I’ve become very involved in the political campaign because I have become very inspired by Senator Barack Obama’s commitment to a better nation. I have given up so much of my time to help in this campaign in my neighborhood and local offices, despite a lot of negativity I have gotten from parents, mainly because its college crunch time. Regardless, I have continued to help in this campaign because it means so much for me to make sure this candidate gets elected, even if I can’t vote. I really think that the country we want to live in should be no different than the country we live in. So I’d like to write about my involvement, and why I have given so much time to this, and reasons a certain candidate has been able to make me care, more than I ever believed I could.
7. This is a broader topic, but its about my conscience. I think my conscience is the most direct reason for why I have given so much time to humanitarian efforts and causes, intellectual pursuits, and creative expression. So much of what I do is because of the conscience or voice that speaks to me in my head. It is what helps me realize the importance of caring for things that may not even benefit me, but someone halfway across the world. I wanted to start with an experience that happened to me, many years ago, when I started tearing up after I heard about what was happening in Darfur. It kind of changed me and began my humanitarian efforts. The fact that we release tears not only for ourselves, but for others.
8. I’m Indian, so I’m in a constant world of math/science geniuses. And I want to talk about how its been harder to prove myself within my own community, or gain respect for my humanitarian causes. Sure math and science awards are offered in multiplicities, but humanitarian work is more of a self-rewarding process, and how that has helped to shape me. I am lucky enough to understand two different cultures, the one of my parents, and the one I live in today, in America.
9. I have spent a lot of time all throughout high school involved in the SAVE Darfur cause. It kind of embodies a great deal of what I have done throughout high school in all different areas like art, school, charity, etc.
10. The last one comes from an experience I had less than a year ago at a Diversity conference in Boston. I was asked to state in an activity whether I had enough, more than enough, or not enough, in terms of the lifestyle I lived. It was a weird question
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