In Norway every teenager above 18 has to spend at least one year in the Norwegian army. Therefore, from January 2016 I to January 2017 I will be in the millitary. After that I will apply to different colleges in the US. My dream college would be Yale, Princeton, Columbia or Cornell.
But do my millitary service affect my acceptance to one of these colleges, do you the admission office will like this? Can I for instance use my millitary service as an extracurricular activity?
And also, after checking Cornell statistics, I noticed that in the past ten years, there had only been one norwegian undergraduate student, I sent them an email asking why, and they replied that they dont get any norwegian applicants. Do you think this will boost my chances, since Norwegian applicants are so “rare”?
You might consider writing about it in your essay - what you learned, how being a soldier shaped you, etc. That way you’re still making “use” of the experience. As for your question whether being Norwegian will give you a boost - maybe. Keep in mind that for a school like Cornell you still have to be an outstanding applicant, and competition from other Nordic-countries candidates could still be a factor. Good luck, and take that chance: you certainly won’t get in if you don’t try!