Sample College Essays

Scholarship Essay Final Draft 2hais15’s blog

Scholarship Essay Prompt: Write about a time when you faced a challenge or overcome an obstacle.

I could hear my heart pumping really fast and felt sweat running down my forehead. One of my biggest fears was being in front of an audience but today was the day that I was determined to face this challenge, nothing could stop me.

I had been getting ready for this spelling bee contest for the longest, but the nerves I felt wouldn’t let me concentrate. I thought about leaving everything behind but I had been studying for the past 2 months. I had to ignore everything and continue with the contest.

It was then time to begin the spelling bee.  As I walked down the hallway onto the stage, I could feel the hot, burning, blood running through my veins; all I could think of was running away.  As I stood in my assigned place, I took big breathe and relaxed. When the stage curtains opened, I blanked out! A huge crowd was staring. This wasn’t good. I felt like crying.  So I just stood there waiting for my turn.

“Number 233″, the judge said. It was my turn to go; I took a deep breath and spelled the word, k-n-o-w-l-e-d-g-e,   I had no problem spelling it; I couldn’t believe it. I didn’t even notice all the people looking at me and I wasn’t nervous anymore. The fear was gone. Everybody stood up and clapped. It was a beautiful feeling after all the hard work I had done.

After this challenging experience, I became more confident. Some things aren’t easy to face in life, but if you try anything is possible. This challenge taught me many valuable things, never give up and always think positive. I’m a stronger person that perseveres no matter how hard things get. I would take the best advantage of this scholarship to accomplish my goals.

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Final Draft – Scholarship Essay 5hais5’s blog

Prompt: Write about a challenge you faced or an obstacle you’ve overcome.

My hope disappeared the moment her casket went underground. My grandmother was one of the main driving forces behind why I did so well in school. She believed in me, and her positivity pushed me forward. For that reason, I was devastated when she died, and as her casket was hoisted underground, I felt that my motivation had gone down with it.

When I returned to school, I was on the brink of giving up. Class essays were disregarded and weren’t even attempted until the last minute.  “Why should I keep working hard when my main motivation is now buried underground?” I thought. I couldn’t think of an answer.

One day, after school, I found a letter on my desk. It was the letter that my grandmother wrote for me after I made the honor roll in the sixth grade. I didn’t know how it found its way to my desk, but that didn’t matter. I read it once again to myself and it said, “Congratulations Ben! I’m so proud of you! Keep up the good work and don’t let anything stop you from doing well. Continue to think on the bright side, like always, and you’ll go far.”

I realized how foolish I had been to give up because one obstacle came my way. That day, I worked harder than I had ever worked in my life. I stopped feeling bad about her death and began working on the mountain of assignments that were before me.

When I finished the assignments, a weight was lifted off my shoulders. From that situation, I learned to keep a positive attitude, and by the end of that school year, I had all A’s. I realized that with hard work and optimism, I could overcome any challenge that came my way.

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College Admission Essay 7hais3’s blog

Stanford University: Tell us about one of the best conversations you’ve had and how its impacted your life.

You want something life changing right? One thing that I carry with me all the time is a phrase to inspire me. For that one phrase I am slowly but surely beginning to view this life from a different perspective.

I used to believe life was about going out there in the world and making your money for your own ambition. Truth is I believed that due to the status I was introduced to. I was born into a large family with so little. As illegal immigrants my parents were barely making it out there for some scraps of food and enough money to pay for our house. Now I don’t believe I had it as rough as others.Born and raised in a big city and until 12 years old I couldn’t see beyond this “H-Town” thing. My thoughts were once I hit 16 years of age I’d get myself an all right job and from there earn a living. Most of the influences I had would be working a job for minimum wage and when I did have a successful remodel they would be making their money the wrong way. It seemed as no one was moving out this “slum” and going out there and doing their thing to get somewhere. I felt this was as best as it is going to get for me so let it be. Also I mind set of everyone for his own, but that changed.

My father every weekend would drink and have a conversation outside on the porch with sometimes uncles and friends or alone. My mother didn’t like violent men and so everything would be at ease those evenings. One evening my father caught me off guard and asked me to sit down. Unexpectedly my father asked me “what are your future goals. What do you want to do in life?” When I hear that I felt I had no purpose in life because I hadn’t stopped to think of a goal. So I said “Dad I don’t know. Make money by working, I guess.” He told me something I will never forget. He said, “Daughter you earn your living, the money will sooner or later finish, but what you do in life no one will forget.”

Since that day my mind set changed. I began to think above and beyond. I want to meet the world and new things and pope. I want to give back to the world someday so they can remember by those actions. I am unsure of what exact way, but my self being a compassionate person I am looking something toward human resources and organizations helping people. In order to reach this goal I must go to college to have the education qualified for that purpose. I’m determined to graduate from college with at least a bachelor. It is still a long journey there, but surely I’ll reach it. Until then this phrase has motivated to become something superior to what I was introduced to at birth.

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 Linda Lorelle Scholarship Essay (Final Draft) 5hais9’sblog

Topic: Explain specific circumstances that qualify you for the Linda Lorelle Scholarship Fund, including any challenges you face and/or obstacles you have overcome.

Weeks had passed since my parents began to have problems. I didn’t want to hear the constant arguing, so I hid behind their bedroom door. My younger brother usually began to cry when he heard the shouting and ran to my mom and hugged her legs. She would say to my dad, “you’re scarring the kids”. She had always tolerated my dad and I could tell she was tired.

Two days later, dad told mom he was leaving and she responded with an, “okay”. Six months passed since he left, and one afternoon mom told us he was returning. When she said this, I didn’t know how to feel. Should I feel sad, perhaps happy? I didn’t know. My emotions were not in order. The next day I saw a van pull up in front of our house; a tall man came out and I knew exactly who this was. At that same instant I realized how much I had missed him. In a matter of seconds he had us embraced in his arms. For that moment I reflected on everything that happened and forgave my dad for having left us.

I learned that everyone makes mistakes, and deserves to be forgiven. Even though it deeply hurt me to know my dad left us without attempting to fix things, I forgave him. Since I was a young girl I have always been a forgiving person, but this was definitely a time when this quality was challenged. This experience challenged who I was, my values and mostly my conscience. I had to choose between doing right or wrong, forgiving or living with the resentment which had grown inside of me. It was a very difficult choice for a nine year old girl to make mainly because she was hurting inside.

—————————————————————————————————  “A Great Debater”  2hais10’s blog

Carleton College Prompt: Describe something or someone that has impacted your life, and explain the impact.

Debate! It all began 9th grade year at the Houston Academy for International Studies. During this time there were for fellow classmates of mine who started the debate program at my school. At this time I had no idea as to what debate was about and what they were doing. Over a short period of time I would eavesdrop on their debate discussions and get more and more interested and even put my own opinion on what they were discussing. One evening after school I was ending a UIL meeting and decided to stop by the debate coach room. As I entered the class no one noticed me so I sat and listened to what they were going over and I was hearing all kinds of things I’d never heard before and instantly liked it. Me seeing the intense conversations they were holding sent a rush through my body as if that was my calling. Domestic and Foreign issues were being discussed and I was really taking interest in it. That moment I said to myself, “Beginning next year Ikem, you will be a debater. ”

The following year I instantly enrolled in the debate class. During the first 2 months of the class I was just taking in the information and each second I was drawn into the art of debate more and more. After 2 months of debate, it came time to put all my hard preparation to work at my first debate tournament. The very moment my partner and I stepped foot into that room I felt an intense rush flow through veins as if I was meant for me to be a debater. My very first speech was like a basketball player touching the court in his championship game. After that first debate I was confident I did well but I knew I still had much work to do. In order to improve my skills I would practice and research information as much as I could. Once it came down to the next few tournaments the hard work began to pay off, as my partner and I were advancing more and more.

Debating helped in finding new lights within myself. While debating I began to feel more confident in myself especially when it came down to my academics because the concepts I was learning in class I was able to apply during my debates in helping me develop my arguments. Debating has also helped me build stronger analytical power. Today I am now able to hole much deeper conversations with my teachers and older family members. A more international side of me was created and I began looking at the world and analyzing its problems in a new way. Since the art of debate my grades have really improved as well as my speech skills that are both very important factors needed to become successful in the world today. All in all debate has developed the Ikem Okorie that everyone knows today.

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Scholarship Final Draft Essay 7hais6’s blog

Question: Write about a time you faced a challenge or overcame an obstacle.

The laughs. The tears. The holidays. The learning talks. The advice. They’re all gone because you didn’t want to put the death on a stick, cancer rolled up in paper, the cigs down. I remember your death. You laid lifeless on the cold hospital bed, fluids running out your mouth, still as a stone after a horrid dramatic death, with the long beep sound coming from the machines signaling that you were dead.

After your death I was miserable. I didn’t talk, I started failing in school, and I would fight anyone that made fun of me because of my clothes I started to wear. I had nowhere to go, people tried to help me but I wouldn’t hear it. I was not just grieving over the death of my grandpa, but the death of my best friend. He kept me on track, told me right from wrong, gave me advice, and was there for me when no one else was. But I was all alone now.

But one day after I got sent home for getting into a fight at school because someone was talking about my clothes, I sat in my room and I felt the presences of something next to me but there was nothing there. Then I heard your strong husky voice that I would run to hear. You said, ” You should not do the things you do. You need to make something of yourself, just because I’m gone doesn’t mean you stop living life. I’m happy. You should be to.”

Ever since then I knew what I had to do. I began to get straight A’s ,I was the best student in my class, and I knew that I would always do great. Although it took time, I still overcame my grandpa’s death.