<p>So I wrote my Why HMC essay, and it’s about 200 words. My dad tells me that the fact that they give a 500 word limit implies that they want me to say much more. Does it really, do you think?</p>
<p>I think you should try to use up all the words. If you can only find 200, maybe you should look into what HMC can offer you again. I don’t know how you’re structuring it but there must be unique things from your background that you can talk about why HMC’s environment would serve you excellently. Things to NOT do are talk about HMC’s merits as they know what they’re good at. I would think that you’d have trouble limiting yourself to only 500 if you look at it in this context, although your usename isn’t reassuring ;)</p>
<p>Does Harvey Mudd, like other technical schools, prefer that its applicants write their essays on their experience in the math/science fields?</p>
<p>This is only an opinion, but I think that an essay that has more relevance to math/science would be stronger than something that talks about your interest in art history. I mean if you’re so passionate and into art history there are schools that would cater to you much better than HMC even though there are classes you could take at the other Claremont schools to staisfy your interests. But you also want to stay away from the whole “I knew i wanted to go to HMC ever since I was 9 years old when I took apart my TV.” or something of that sort. </p>
<p>The best? Do you have some intellectual curiosity that you’ve actively taken steps to pursue but you always wanted to know more? Think of something that sets you apart. The “Why HMC” is in a way asking “Why YOU” as well.</p>
<p>The advice I got from one of their admissions counselors at an information session was that they look for different things from different applicants. If you’re someone with a strong history in math and science, i.e. high test scores in those subjects, all A’s, and strong extracurricular involvement in math/science activities, then they’ll probably want to see another side of your personality, so try talking about something else that’s important to you. They want to know that you’re a living, breathing person, so showing an interest in art or creative writing will show there’s more to you than just numbers, and that you’ll bring something unique to your classes. If your record is weak in math or science, or a lot of your activities are geared towards humanities type subjects, then it might be a good idea to talk about math or science and why your passionate about it, so they can understand why you want to attend their school. No matter what you decide to write about, as long as your personality comes through, you’ll be fine.</p>
<p>As for the length, I didn’t even realize there was a word limit. All of my essays were close to a thousand words. The essay is the only part of your application where you get to talk directly to the admissions officers and show them why they should want you for their school. If you don’t write much they might assume there isn’t much to say about you, and conclude that you wouldn’t add a lot to the campus.</p>
<p>so nvm about that first question, after I posted it I went back and realized I could fill up 500 words EASILY, although some of it was about the feeling the town gave me and some of it was about how the professors came out to talk to us and stuff… it wasn’t really what HMC could offer me, it was more like what I liked about it more than other colleges. but anyway.</p>
<p>would it be weird if I wrote my supplemental essay on crosswords? My common app essay is already about science, and my little EC blurb is about throwing shotput, and the prompt just said to tell them something they wouldn’t know about me otherwise. I wanted to write about Guitar Hero, actually, but realized it might not be such a good idea, lol.</p>
<p>Sure, why not. Sounds interesting. :)</p>
<p>That sounds like a really fascinating idea for a supplemental essay topic. Go for it!</p>
<p>I wrote my “tell us about yourself” essay about wanting to work in an Apple Store, so I would say don’t try to play the “what are they looking for” game too much… If crosswords are something that you’re really into and if they’re something significant in your life, go for it!</p>
<p>As an example, this is the essay I wrote for HMC for this prompt:
(Do not attempt to copy or mimic this essay in any way, shape, or form. This essay has been in the public domain for a few years now and it would be easy to track down “borrowed” material)</p>
<p>" Troubles and the World</p>
<pre><code> The prospect of college application and admission has made quandary with virtually all college-bound high school students. Even my friends and I sometimes joke about how applying to a college or university is like putting little bite-sized pieces of yourself on a huge silver platter, waiting for a college to find you appetizing, and having them come pick you up. I suppose in real-life, however, this analogy is a partial fallacy but the idea behind it is quite interesting. It is peculiar to think that someday, not too far off, I may be in a completely different setting than where I am right now. Furthermore, the proposal of what technological problems I may be faced amid my life’s work humbles me and makes me eager to conquer what may lie ahead.
Five years ago, I never would have imagined that I would someday apply for college. At the time, the idea of applying to a college seemed facile. However, as the sacred time quickly approached, the very prospect of college turned opaque. Up until last year, I knew exactly what I wanted to do with my life: aerospace engineering. However, as my knowledge of aerospace and mechanical systems deepened, my questions and curiosities were soon answered. At this point, I know only a spectrum of fields to which I would like to work; everything is truly incredibly interesting. The common ground between each possible field is the application of technology to aid in developing advances in the human species to that all-important goal of discovering our origins and our purpose.
Skepticism quickly sets in when I think about this ‘origins and purpose’ proposal; the odds are that we have stemmed from billions of years of amino acid stewing and from evolutionary genius. We humans are like every living entity on this planet yet we are the only species (within our knowledge) that have ever been able to build complex machines and communicate through written languages. It is not only a privilege to use our technology but it is our responsibility to utilize the human mind. We must utilize our minds to cure disease. We must utilize our minds to make a better society not only in the United States, but in the world. We must utilize our minds to explore our world and stars - to lay eyes upon the wonders of the universe and unknown. I only could hope to contribute to this advance.
The world around us is changing, as it always has been. Contemporary becomes classic and the cycle continues. The concept of progression-regression was first introduced to me in my Harmony/Composition course junior year in high school. Our teacher, a quite liberal musician who does not believe in usage of mathematics (!), was showing us how the progression of music over time has mimicked a pendulum swinging back and forth over the course of many years. However, looking back in history, the period of this trend has been like a big sinusoidal wave. Gregorian chant evolved to medieval music which evolved into renaissance, baroque, classical, romantic, 20th century, and everywhere in-between. As we approach the 20th century, the period’s interval evolved from one thousand years to less than thirty years. These days, in the 21st century, a period could be as small as a couple of months. Virtually every person in the United States of America is aware of cultural and musical trends in the last fifty years. Music has been shown to reflect the culture of (in large part) the youth. As the youth grow and become the working class for the economy and the basis for all rule in the world, so will the trends of what is important to those individuals and what the prime focus in technology is for the economy. The pendulum has swung to the biological sciences and is now submerged in the prime of DNA cracking and stem cell research.
It is my belief, that we will soon witness a new technological revolution in the United States, if not in the world. This revolution will fuel the fire of exploration that may lead us to Mars or beyond. In these years, when one attends Harvey Mudd College, he/she is receiving the education that will fuel this journey to the Stars. With the mindset and support this small Claremont School has, I have no doubt Harvey Mudd College will have a definite technological foothold in the world of tomorrow.
Already, I have started to implement the technology that I have personally harnessed through my life. Besides calculating, designing, building, testing, and flying advanced home-build rockets that have gone over 10,000 feet in altitude, I have started building a portfolio of interesting technologies and bridges between old concepts and new ideas. Among these was a small experiment I conducted in April of 2002. Here, I successfully created a mini-voltaic cell based off of Earth’s natural technologies; electron transfer in photosynthesis from chlorophyll to nicatinamic acid to a piece of nickel metal. This technology, similar to photovoltaic cells, may someday be implemented on space missions as it may have potential for higher efficiency than current crystalline or amorphous photo cells (Further extensive research possibly in the future).
The troubling enigma is how one is to represent his or herself for college admission through essays and personal data. Harvey Mudd College, as well as all other colleges, accepts those who the college feels would embody the school. Harvey Mudd College is renowned for its Honor Code, exemplary math/science/engineering education, strong humanities integration, and diverse community. Rather than telling you, the admissions team, of what I am and what I am not, I would be more comfortable stating that I am what Harvey Mudd College stands for.
</code></pre>
<p>The question is,</p>
<pre><code> “What can I do for the world?” And, “How is Harvey Mudd going to help me with this journey?”
And the pendulum swings… "
</code></pre>
<p>Don’t feel discouraged if you are not designing rockets in high school. That sort of thing is not expected, and while several incoming freshmen are involved in research or design projects already, you will have plenty of time to get involved once you go to Mudd. :)</p>
<p>Looks like there have been a lot of responses to this post, but I’ll just throw in a little tidbit:</p>
<p>The application process has structure to provide some uniformity and order to how candidates are evaluated, but by no means to you have to stay rigidly within them–for a small school, such as Mudd, anyway.</p>
<p>For instance, there is a 500 word “limit” on essays. If you really need a 1000 words to say what you need to say, then write 1000. That said, don’t feel the need to 500 words either, if you said everything you needed to say in 200. (Rachmaninoff used to lament that he “could not say on the piano in 9 minutes what Chopin could in 2.”) </p>
<p>And if you want to some along a little bit of extra material because there wasn’t a good place elsewhere in the application to talk about it–ie your essay on crossword puzzles-- then by all means submit a little something extra.</p>
<p>At a small school like Mudd, the applications actually get read front to back to really try to get to know you.</p>
<p>The whole idea is that the admissions committee is trying to get what have you accomplished, and what really drives you? of course at a tech school like mudd they want to see that you are seriously interested in math and science, but if you are really into music, mountain biking, are passionate about sampling dipping oils for bread–whatever it might be-- then by all means, let the admissions committee know that.</p>
<p>Bottom line: make yourself be known.</p>
<p>Good luck to all.</p>