sat和gpa基本条件达到以后,真正能拉开距离的东西是essay。文如其人,essay能反映很多很多东西。
男孩写作和EQ一般比女孩差,所以小中男会比小中女吃亏。
老中推孩子集中在学业数学和科学竞赛钢琴提琴游泳网球上,这种扎堆而且有限的经历使小中们写的essay很容易cliche, 难以出彩。比如弹钢琴的孩子最可能写的就是如何坚持不懈,这样写得再好,也是俗套。
essay的题目看似简单直接,但不少老中父母都未必能完全理解,在这上拼爹时比较容易输给白孩父母。比如这个题目:
In addition to the essay you have written for the Common Application, please
write an essay of about 500 words (no more than 650 words and no less than
250 words). Using one of the themes below as a starting point, write about a
person, event, or experience that helped you define one of your values or in
some way changed how you approach the world. Please do not repeat, in full or
in part, the essay you wrote for the Common Application. “Culture is what presents
us with the kinds of valuable things that can fill a life. And insofar as we can recognize
the value in those things and make them part of our lives, our lives are meaningful.”
Gideon Rosen, Stuart Professor of Philosophy, chair of the Council of the Humanities
and director of the Program in Humanistic Studies, Princeton University.