You can count on top colleges wanting a lot of the same qualities: seeing and taking on a challenge, resilience, self awareness, the right sorts of drives, and (much) more. And understanding the basics is part of matching yourself, not just, “Here I am. I want you.” My nag is a warning against the typical focus on what the kid wants, missing that the college has goals for the class.
It’s not faking. If a college wants a level of, say, activation, you have it or you don’t. If you have it, show it. Choose to. Not writing about something off the top of your head, meaningful to you, maybe, but not going to advance your chances.
“Global” doesn’t only mean international. It can refer to one’s perspective (another magic word,) as opposed to just the “me” or “my high school success” most think (eg, misunderstandings about “passion.”)
Marvin, I don’t doubt your success. But you have a better idea what makes a match than most hs kids. I believe you know how to filter, to find what’s relevant, the story that shows that. Eg, no sense proclaiming one’s “intellectual curiosity” if nothing backs that up.