good topic?

Jimgotkp · 08-01-2007, 07:43 PM

i dont want to get too stereotypical but im korean and im not that smart so i thought this topic is interesting.

how i get made fun of that im not a typical asian since i dont excel in math and science. i dont have a high gpa and how other korean parents look at me and dont really think of me as a korean.

Robotab · 08-01-2007, 07:52 PM

I think it almost seems as though you yourself are stereotyping koreans by saying they're always strong academically when the purpose of your essay is to try to show how you resent this label.

I don't really understand where you're coming from, though if you can defend this idea, then go for it. Personally, I would write about something that's unique only to you-- childhood experiences that influenced you are always great if done well.

Jimgotkp · 08-01-2007, 07:59 PM

didnt really have anything that impacted my grades. since my grades that that great... i dont know. i thought about what influences me into working hard when i get made fun of due to my physical traits. but its a joke when admissions counselors read it and then see my grades. "that kid gets influenced to work and gets C's!" so i dunno...

like if i were defending that stereotype.. then i can say about how when people look at me i feel degraded and feel as though I am not an asian?

Robotab · 08-01-2007, 08:12 PM

I almost think it's disrespectful to say, "yeah, all asians are book smart, but aren't able to look past that." You should be showing the adcoms what it is that makes you special (as cliche as that sounds) not what makes you feel out of place in your society. Like, I'm sure that there's something that you excell in-- write about that! They love to see kids who are 17 and already have found something that they're passionate about.

I think it's a mistake to stereotype people of your own culture. For example, one of my friend's parents used to look down on me b/c I enjoy life in general and never get uptight about anything. She basically thought I was a moron. Then, she found out I did very well on my SATs-- much better than her child had done. Then, she started being really nice to me.

Would I write about that? No way. Adcoms don't want to hear how corrupt society is-- they want to think everything's great! Also, stereotping others will make you look a heck of a lot less appetizing as a candidate. No one wants to choose a student who of all things in existence, chooses to write about how people stink. It's just not fun to read about.

If you have a passion, write about it. If you don't, then pick a childhood experience that really shows who you are.

Jimgotkp · 08-01-2007, 08:36 PM

i dont really have a passion or a childhood experience that really shows who i am.. this is sad.. i been trying to think about it but really i dont think i have anything in any of those two topics..

ses · 08-01-2007, 08:50 PM

It's been done 10,000 times. Ditto with the stress of maintaining academic excellence.

Don't waste your shot to sell yourself.

Robotab · 08-02-2007, 12:03 AM

have you seen the movie garden state? It's one of my favorites-- I definitely recommend it-- but basically it's about how life is just a state of mind. That the mundane is the same as the extraoridinary. Basically, I'm using this analogy to say that you may not think you've had a life shattering experience, but those experiences are what make up life. Each one is just as important as the next, and somehow they shape who we are to become.

For example, I wrote about art and the missing link between what I create (the physical entity) and the emotion. Yeah, nothing earth shattering, but it was basically a way for the admissions committee to get a quick peek inside my head and into my line of thinking.

Anything can be a great essay-- write it well and be true to who you are and they'll love it. Also, write it in the present tense-- makes your reader feel as though they're experiencing the action first hand.

docketgold · 08-02-2007, 12:24 AM

You'll make your life easier if you pick an actual experience and start from there. So if you can come up with a specific time at which this notion you're describing either became apparent to you or this stereotype was thrust upon you (or, oppositely, you disposed of it once and for all) then that gives you an excellent place to build off of. If you can't, you'll probably end up writing a poor essay that really doesn't go anywhere.

Jimgotkp · 08-08-2007, 07:14 PM

i been thinking so that I don't have to have an overused topic:

how my life "changed" after I moved from my hometown that I lived since I was born to another town during my junior high school year?

or

how medical reasons led me to change my actions as in eating or smoking.

skp21 · 08-08-2007, 07:21 PM

don't confess in your essays that you did drugs/alcohol unless it was legal in your area. Both topics are a bit commonplace but, depending on the writing, can turn out to become great essays.