<p>I’m stuck and I have two weeks during break to write my personal statement. I want to go into engineering. Not sure which one yet so I checked undecided for the privates that deadline in jan.
I’m stuck between two subjects. I can either talk about my reef tank which I’ve been into for two years or I can talk about my tutoring job.</p>
<p>I’ve had my reef tank for a while and I’ve done a bunch of stuff with it that sort of has to do with engineering I guess. I’ve built equipment for it, I’ve done research on equipment, new corals and fish, and so far it is thriving. It has been a solo project by me. I also have an ec with my hobby as well. I’m part of the bay area reefers which is a reef club in the bay area.</p>
<p>The other thing I can talk about is my job. Five days a week it’s me and 5 or 6 middle school kids who I tutor. I have an experience with one student in particular who I can write about. She has ADD and it is a big challenge tutoring her and helping her in her schoolwork. I have worked with many kids before but this experience was totally different from what I’ve done before and I think that I can write a lot about that.</p>
<p>Which one would colleges like more? I’ll be applying to UNC, Georgia Tech, and USC.</p>
<p>I am no essay pro, but I like the reefing idea, it definitely stands out compared to tutoring kids. Describe what you built and how it led you to the interest of engineering, etc…</p>
<p>Hey I wrote about what kind of engineering I am interested in…Like I wrote about biomedical and effects on the world, and why I would be a good candidate for that program.</p>
<p>I think both ideas could be interesting and it is hard to choose as it depends on how you develop them. The tutoring story could show off your people skills and contrast with the image of the ultra science oriented engineer type. But you need to write it in an interesting way to counteract the more common subject. Still, any kid with ADD could give you alot of great anecdotes to relate!</p>
<p>The reef tank is something you have already mentioned as an EC. So if you are going to discuss the tank, you need to develop an angle. Did you do anything out of the ordinary in developing the tank? If it was just buying stuff at a fish store, then I wouldn’t go there. If you developed a unique way of filtering your tank, and successfully bred a rare species of African cichlid then you might have a story to tell. </p>
<p>In the end, look at each area and think- what did I learn from the experience? What obstacles were encountered? How did I change or grow? Is there anything I learned that I will apply to my college experience? Try to figure out which topic allows you to tell the most interesting and authentic story.</p>
<p>Thanks Westchester. That reply is deep and very helpful. </p>
<p>I had already started writing about my fish tank and now reading your post and reading what I had written I think I’m going to write about my tutoring. It will be a lot more difficult writing about my hobby (being so technical) than my work with someone with ADD. Maybe if I really develop an angle for my fish I’ll write about that but for now I’m sticking with people skills. </p>
<p>You can work in some of your technical side in your tutoring essay if it’s appropriate. For example, you might discuss how a certain skill came easily to you, and you took it for granted, but then you discovered that for your ADD student, it was a struggle… </p>
<p>Just remember, in your essay, show- don’t tell… meaning fill your essays with specifics and examples that set the scene and tell the story. Let us really get a sense of what your student was like and what the tutoring sessions were like and how you felt about them. Again- talk about problems encountered, solutions and successes. Also- you mention that your ADD student was different from any other kid you tutored so automatically I know you had a new experience… and I know you must have learned about how ADD affects a student. What personal qualities did you have to develop/draw upon in dealing with her? </p>
<p>Writing about your hobby could also be very interesting but again, it is all about the angle on the story and what your reader will learn about you from reading the essay. If the rest of your app shows off your technical abilities, the fish tank might not show much more. I think however, that both topics are interesting and fertile!
Good luck with your writing.
When you’re finished, if you want a reader, you can PM me if you want.</p>
then you might have a story to tell. </p>