Being snowed in for the weekend, I had a lot of downtime. I got down the rabbit-hole of college admissions and decided to look into what applying to college even feels like today. For instance, would I even get admitted to my alma mater (my gut tells me yes, but Illinois' engineering program has gotten far more competitive in the ~20 years since I graduated). But why just dip your toe in the water when you can dive in headfirst? So here's my application essay for U of I.
The Prompt: Explain your interest in the major you selected and describe how you have recently explored or developed this interest inside and/or outside the classroom. You may also explain how this major relates to your future career goals. If you're applying to the Division of General Studies, explain your academic interests and strengths or your future career goals. You may include any majors or areas of study you're currently considering. Limit your response to 300 to 400 words. (https://admissions.illinois.edu/Apply/Freshman/essays)
I didn't quite 'stick the landing' on this one. The end of the essay sounds kind of awkward. Still I wish I had the ability to articulate myself as a 12th grader as I do now. I could've saved myself hours of editing. Anyways, here it is...
My response:
When you come from a family of engineers, its tough to explain exactly when the engineering bug hit you. But as far as I can tell, it’s always been there. My first deepdive into the world of electrical engineering happened at the tender age of two years old. Armed with a battery, my mom’s car keys and unfettered access to an electrical outlet, I learned three important lessons that day: 1) I had not figured out how to charge batteries; 2) the doctors at Washington Adventist Hospital are wonderful people; 3) I needed formal training in the subject. Clearly, I didn’t have a great start, but my desire to tinker and build never left me. When my parents bought our first computer in middle school, I quickly took to learning to program in QuickBASIC. As one of my prouder achievements, I built a Connect Four game on a snow day at school. When my sister bought me a musical keychain from her alma mater, it was only a matter of weeks before I disassembled it and connected it to the home stereo, blasting her school’s fight song for most of my neighborhood. When we (and everyone else), first got internet access at home, I taught myself HTML and Javascript, and eventually used those skills to build a one-of-a-kind interactive calendar for my high school’s website. Outside of the fun side of engineering, I’ve shown myself capable in the classroom. I’ve taken every Math, Science and Computer Science course available to me at school, and I’ve excelled in them, earning AP credit in multiple domains. Between my intellectual curiosity and my academic capabilities, electrical engineering has always been a natural fit for me.
So why Illinois? In short, Illinois is the perfect fit for this amazing journey.
The engineering program speaks for itself. But it’s also a place where I can see myself getting “lost” (in a good way of course). I’m looking forward to what I will learn and do academically, but as a sports fan, I’m also looking forward to Saturdays and Memorial Stadium and Big Ten basketball. As a musician, I’m looking forward to shows at Krannert. And as a keychain afficionado, I probably owe my parents’ neighbors a few bars of, “Illinois Loyalty,” from a rewired musical keychain.