Oh Alice, you're so right. I've been trying so hard to give myself words of encouragement and advices that in the end, I never followed. There's so much things going on in my mind right now and I've been trying so hard to strengthen myself from all of the stresses that I've encountered these days. From all of the midterms, the projects, the home works, the quizzes, the not-so-good grades, the volunteer works that need to be done, the classes I must decide to take for the next winter quarter, and last but not least the UC application process and essays. I'm so sorry that I rarely talk to you these days, but I promise that I will make up to you in some times tomorrow or the day after. And for today, I'll share to you some of the lessons I've learned from the process of composing the UC personal statements.
Prompt 1: What is
your intended major? Discuss how your interest in the subject developed and
describe any experience you have had in the field-such as volunteer work,
internships and employment, participation in student organizations and
activities – and what you have gained from your involvement.
At first, I thought that this prompt will be harder than the second prompt, because it requires some analysis to be made on how my interest in Business Administration has developed through several activities and experiences I've encountered in the last couple of years. However, as I try to free write and made a draft out of it, it turns out to be pretty easy and not too difficult. In addition, what I struggled most while making the first essay was how to build a catchy introduction. For several hours, I've ended up with an introduction that even Mrs. Patton said to be quite tedious. I don't know why, but I usually have plenty ideas that crossed my mind. Oh well, I hope that the second draft will be better with the new introduction I've made. :)
Prompt 2: Tell us
about a personal quality, talent, accomplishment, contribution or experience
that is important to you. What about this quality or accomplishment makes you
proud and how does it relate to the person you are.
Like I said earlier, I thought that this essay was going to be super easy. However, as I finished typing the question, my hands literally stopped above the keyboards, my eyes fixed on the blank page, and my mind just froze in front of my laptop. And after several seconds, it seemed that a tiny voice inside my mind started to shout, "OMG!"You might think that I was weird, but it was true. I consider myself not the kind of person that remembers all the things that I'm so proud of because I'm afraid to be called arrogant. This is why, I need a lot of time to rethink about things in the past or at least a personality I have that made me who I am. But, thanks to a site called essayhell.com and most importantly, Mrs. Patton, in giving me ideas on what my personal quality or a talent I have that shaped who I really am, now, I've rewrote my paper and hopefully I can be better this time :)
Okay Alice, I'm done telling you something that I've been thinking about while writing the essays. I know that life as a whimsical girl like you is not as complicated as I am, but I know that everyone on earth has their own problems and good for you that personal statement is not one of yours. However, I hope that your days in Wonderland will be endlessly awesome and remember, never give up and keep believing in yourself, Alice! Cheers from thousands of miles away!
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| What Alice probably is doing |
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| What I am doing |
Note:
Actually, writing the personal statements requires nothing but reflecting on who you are and telling the readers about you that is beyond the application forms you've filled out or even your GPA. It just requires a lot of personal reflection, free writes, and most importantly peer edits. You may not realize that something is wrong in your paper unless you let someone edit or give advice on what should be improved. For all of you who are in the process of applying to UC, I wish you all the best, believe that your dream university is there ahead of you, and"may the odds be ever in your favor!"
Recommended Sites for UC Personal Statement Prompt #2:
http://www.essayhell.com/2012/11/how-to-nail-prompt-2-for-uc-essays.html
http://www.essayhell.com/2013/01/what-are-your-defining-qualities.html
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