17 University of California, Los Angeles Essays That Got In

Prompt: Describe an example of your leadership experience in which you have positively influenced others, helped resolve disputes or contributed to group efforts over time.

In a world bustling with unanswered questions, the most transformative ideas are sparked by unexpected conversations. Little did I know that a simple Instagram conversation with ****, a visually impaired TikTok influencer, would not only open my eyes to the adversity faced by the blind but also instill in me a passion for developing innovative solutions to real-life problems. This unexpected chain of events happened when my team and I participated in the FRC Robotics Innovation Challenge during 9th grade. Seeking critical gaps in the market for individuals with disabilities, we discovered a scarcity of practical and affordable products catering to the visually impaired community. That was when I vividly recalled a TikTok from *******, an influencer whose content focused on visually impaired hardships. Swiftly, I reached out to Sadi and learned more about her daily life struggles and the innovations she wished someone would build. In response, my team and I devised the *******: A 3D sensor-enabled walking cane promising safety for the visually impaired that could be attached to an existing walking cane with third-party apps. I designed a product logo that integrated Braille and English, and we built a 3D-printed prototype with intricate microsensors, speakers, and LED lights. In the final stage of the competition, we presented our product and business plan to an executive from Disney. Due to a mixup, I was the only member at the presentation. Initially intimidated, I ended up having a highly interactive conversation and explained everything we had accomplished. Our efforts were rewarded when my team was recognized as a global finalist alongside twenty other teams. The experience taught me what we can achieve when we break free from traditional thinking, fueling my determination to explore novel ways to apply technology to impact other lives positively. I gained a greater appreciation for considering diverse perspectives when targeting issues, a lesson primarily learned through interactions with ****. With patience, empathy, and interdisciplinary thinking, we can collectively solve even complex problems that face our society; it is this mindset that I will bring to the University of California.

Prompt: Every person has a creative side, and it can be expressed in many ways: problem solving, original and innovative thinking, and artistically, to name a few. Describe how you express your creative side.

“We're going to the Superbowl.” I have always had a desire to create and collaborate. Ever since I was little, my imagination has been limitless, constantly attempting to create something unique. Although my toddler entrepreneurial endeavors may not always have been successful, my passion for creating never wavered. In 2020, desperate for a cure to the isolation of quarantine, my passion reignited. I began to create, combining my love for the deep roots of sneaker culture with my desire for expression. From there, I became entrenched: researching, revising, and contemplating the combination of these two passions to create something unique. With this, a love for sneaker customization was born. Months later, I was presented with a business idea I couldn’t refuse. My friend and I created Kolly’s Kicks with one simple goal: to break market barriers and enhance expression through footwear. Within the sneaker customization world, a boundary of one-to-one sales exists. However, we sought to change this and instead create for companies on an accelerated hand-made scale of production to export our creativity further. Months later, we saw our first major order from Twitter to promote their Super Bowl suite. It felt surreal as we created new designs, and collaborated with executives. Although there were many revisions and failures, the feeling of being able to express our shared passion consistently was incomparable. As each order led to another, our sphere of influence grew, and we began to work with more companies such as Taco Bell, Budweiser, and Snapchat (Eventually netting six figures in profit) . My childhood desires were finally fulfilled as I was able to utilize these companies' platforms to showcase my creativity and expression. Kolly’s became my passion project for the rest of high school as I worked vigorously to create nuance within Sneaker Culture. Creating is my escape, my moment with myself and my thoughts that prompt my ability to take a step back and think outside society’s normativity. I express my creativity by breaking social and industrial boundaries. Through my future in culture, leadership, and education I plan to leap these barriers by revitalizing subcultural thought in any industry.

Prompt: What would you say is your greatest talent or skill? How have you developed and demonstrated that talent over time?

Forty feet underwater, everything turns silent. It is just you, your heartbeat, and a trail of clownfish weaving through coral. Down there, the world shrinks to whatever fits inside a circle of glass.

During my first real dive, my mask flooded unexpectedly. Cold water rushed in, blurring the reef and stinging my nose. Instinct kicked in before training, and I shot upward in panic. Afterward, my instructor reminded me of the golden rule you never break underwater: do not let panic think for you.

That moment taught me that scuba diving is less about technique and more about keeping your mind steady when the world around you shifts. Over the next seven days, I relearned that lesson constantly. A minor oxygen leak. A fogged mask mid dive. Fish scattering too quickly. None were emergencies, but each required the same response: breathe, think, act.

A week later, I left the Lakshadweep Islands as a PADI-certified diver. Since then, I have completed 23 solo dives. The calmness I developed underwater did not stay underwater.

School life did not flood with saltwater, but it flooded with tests, deadlines, charity meetings, Ironman training sessions, and overlapping responsibilities that stacked faster than I could clear them. Some weeks felt like trying to swim against a strong current. But the discipline I learned underwater came naturally back. I approached one task at a time, focused on clarity instead of panic, and treated every challenge like a piece of equipment that simply needed adjusting.

Whether it was balancing CAS commitments with exams, managing overlapping events for Do Mutthi Ka Dum, or handling the stress of competitive training, the mindset I shaped underwater became the mindset that carried me through academics and leadership.

Today, whether I am forty feet underwater or facing a week filled with deadlines, that is my greatest talent: the ability to remain calm, think clearly, and move steadily through chaos. It is the steadiness I want to bring to the University of California, a campus full of ideas, challenges, and currents I now know how to navigate.

Prompt: Describe the most significant challenge you have faced and the steps you have taken to overcome this challenge. How has this challenge affected your academic achievement?

I used to believe that every good essay started with a trip to Thesaurus.com. Teachers would warn me to stay away from using overly arduous lexemes that convolute a declaration and abate an intention. But, I disagreed.

Why settle for good when excellent exists?

Thesaurus.com was a staircase that enhanced essays from your 10th grade summer assignment into the newest rendition of Emerson’s Self-Reliance, or compiled phrases scribbled in a notebook into a Shakespearean sonnet. As simple as it sounds, switching out “sad” for “gloomy” creates dimension in writing, making the practice an art form that requires skill to master. It is no longer enough to tell thoughts, they must be shown. I must graze my hand over my mind, inhale its complications, and devour its ideas. Writing requires everything.

The demand for more began to expand outside of my writing and infiltrate itself beyond a single assignment. I began to self-study classes, taking the AP Psychology and AP Environmental examinations without ever stepping foot in their classrooms. My photography classes were replaced with statistics and research periods for regional competitions. I felt powerful walking around a physics classroom of men and titrating alone in my chemistry class, knowing that each day would climb the staircase and ask me to outdo my previous self.

Yet, I was never able to fully satisfy the hunger for greatness. It became apparent to me that this goal was not meant to be reached, for that would defeat its purpose. So my senior year, I stepped away from the thesaurus and refocused myself on the basics. I registered for computer science and comparative government, classes I have been dying to take but ones that had never fit into the scientific blueprints.

My self-motivation still strives to achieve greatness in each class, but it is now a desire to learn instead of a challenge to conquer. A thesaurus is only useful to alter a word or two, before the sentence becomes incoherent. It can embellish a statement or motivate me, but it no longer defines my life.