Discuss an accomplishment, event, or realization that sparked a period of personal growth and a new understanding of yourself or others.

From my iPad screen, [Name Redacted], my favorite YouTuber, read the next comment for his Q&A video. “What’s your biggest fear?” He paused to think. “Hmm, [Redacted Content] I’m scared of not having

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We know you lead a busy life, full of activities, many of which are required of you. Tell us about something you do simply for the pleasure of it. (200–250 words)

It’s almost midnight, but homework and impending tests keep me awake. Barely awake though. My eyes feel heavy, and my mind lulls to the whirring of my fan above. I need a break. I pat my face, open

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Please tell us more about your cultural background and identity in the space below.

“Go ahead,” I say as I tap the record button. My dad begins moving his fingers deftly, pleating the dough over itself little by little. “See, you just put a little of the filling inside and cover it

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Tell us about the most significant challenge you’ve faced or something important that didn’t go according to plan. How did you manage the situation?

I was 23 minutes into my First Affirmative Rebuttal—a speech that’s supposed to take only four. But I couldn’t sit down mid-speech in my first-ever practice round. “Now, uh, let’s move on to my oppon

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Choose Anything; The one I chose: Is there a particular work of art (song, poem, painting, speech, movie, show, novel, etc.) from which you have drawn insight or inspiration?

With a spoonful of cereal in my mouth, I turned on my computer and typed “crun” into the search bar of a new Chrome tab. “Crunchyroll.com” autofilled. My mouse instinctively navigated to “One Piece.”

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A hallmark of the Columbia experience is being able to learn and live in a community with a wide range of perspectives. How do you or would you learn from and contribute to diverse, collaborative communities?

It’s 3:27 a.m. We’re speaking in hushed voices. We’d stopped working on our research four hours ago and moved on to our regular late-night Discord call. This time, we’d started talking about the inev

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We’re interested in learning about some of the ways that you explore your interests. List some resources and outlets that you enjoy, including but not limited to websites, publications, journals, podcasts, social media accounts, lectures, museums, movie (125 words or fewer)

Current events and educational content News: Reuters, The New York Times, NPR, The Economist, Business Insider, The Daily Show with Trevor Noah, Patriot Act with Hasan Minhaj, Hasanabi on YouTube. Ed

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List the titles of the books, essays, poetry, short stories or plays you read outside of academic courses that you enjoyed most during secondary/high school. (75 words or fewer)

“Beloved,” Toni Morrison “Catch 22,” Joseph Heller “Steve Jobs,” Walter Isaacson “Lean In: Women, Work, and the Will to Lead,” Nell Scovell and Sheryl Sandberg “Citizen 13360,” Miné Okubo “How to Win

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At Penn, learning and growth happen outside of the classrooms, too. How will you explore the community at Penn? Consider how this community will help shape your perspective and identity, and how your identity and perspective will help shape this community.

From hyping up novice debaters to making the engineering environment more welcoming for girls, I love finding ways I can contribute to and make change in different spaces—Penn will be the next place I

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Duke University seeks a talented, engaged student body that embodies the wide range of human experience; we believe that the diversity of our students makes our community stronger. If you'd like to share a perspective you bring or experiences you've had that would help us understand you better, perhaps a community you belong to or your family or cultural background, we encourage you to do so here. Real people are reading your application, and we want to do our best to understand and appreciate the real people applying to Duke.

Throughout my life, I’ve belonged to a community of changemakers. As a Gen Zer growing up on the internet, I constantly saw impactful figures, both real and fictional. Characters like Luffy from One P

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Please share with us why you consider Duke a good match for you. Is there something in particular about Duke’s academic or other offerings that attracts you?

I first visited Duke two years ago for the Duke Invitational Debate Tournament. I left campus with West Union boba and poké bowl leftovers in hand, googling “Duke food” rather than checking my tournam

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Academic Interest

Since I was young, I’ve had a borderline obsession with problem solving, often spending hours in front of a whiteboard brainstorming ideas. As I’ve grown older, I’ve learned I can make almost anything

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Honors Carolina Essay: Please submit a short essay (250 words or fewer) that describes your academic interests and the ways you believe Honors Carolina can help you pursue them.

From 3D-printing Bulbasaurs in fourth grade to programming biomedical devices, I’ve always loved technology and the process of creating things. Seeing people react to and use what I make excites me, a

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If you could change one thing to better your community, what would it be? Why is it important and how would you contribute to this change?

[Place Redacted] has been my home for twelve years now, but I still don't know my neighbors. Aside from the occasional polite nod or wave, I live in what feels like my own little island amidst a large

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