Chapman University Undergraduate College Application Essays

I lived in a small town in northern California for most of my childhood. I attended elementary school, and was involved in pretty much everything -- especially the performing arts. When I was in fifth grade my parents announced that we'd be moving...

Explain your decision to pursue your particular major.

When I was five I wanted to do everything- dance ballet, sing like Amy Grant and Pat Benatar rolled into one, run a cat kennel, and make movies. My wise mother, Bev, made sure I had an early...

I used to sit in my room staring at the wall, hoping for action, drama, comedy, or even romance. I did experience all of these things eventually, but through a screen, not directly. Every Saturday night was always another night at the movies. The...

This is Jane Doe, coming to you live on the scene of Cultural Revolution. And this is the story:

It could have been my father and I listening to The Beatles on our annual car ride to Disneyland or the fact that both my parents were children of...

Anchor (John Factworthy): Good evening and thank you for watching CNN’s nightly report. Now for our new segment “A Day in the Life of…,” where we talk to our viewers about what makes them…well them. Today marked a normal day for most teenagers...

I was practically born on the river. Both of my parents were extreme whitewater raft guides, and they passed on their love of the river and nature in general to me. From a young age, my parents took me rafting on rivers like the San Juan, the...

The piano is predictable. If I hit the right key, it will play the same note every time, and if I play a song correctly, there will always be harmony. Life is unpredictable and always changing; thus, the piano is a logical safe haven. The piano is...

As I strode into that all-too familiar gym, the memory of last year's defeat was still fresh in my mind. The court loomed ahead, lying smugly as if it were already aware of the game's outcome. The CIF Volleyball Championship poster smirked at us...

At age 13, I had it all planned out. Having taken my passport from my mother's desk, I prepared to purchase my ticket to freedom from the place I'd been held hostage all those years: Florence, Italy. My mother discovered the theft quickly,...

I will not stop dancing until each of my toes fall off. I am currently waiting on the sixth toe to take a turn for the worse.

I have an intense relationship with dance. I have been dancing on a competitive team since I was twelve— meaning that I...

I'm not usually one to disrupt a class.

It was a Monday morning in my first-period freshman health seminar. The lights were low, half the class was already asleep, and the 20-year-old television was slowly gearing up to play some low-budget video...

I am dragged to focus on hundreds of voices, the raging determination and instruction of my coach’s yelling, the encouraging cheers of my classmates, the steady affirmation of my teammates, and the screaming silence in my head. They all lead up to...

At Chapman, I would be eager to be a part of the advancement of the diversity project by contributing my ideas and passions to the People of Color advisory group. People often struggle to fully understand what it is like to be a person who...

I have known that I wanted to be a filmmaker since the 7th grade. I was taking a class on digital media, and fell in love with visual storytelling. That year, I took what I had learned and created a short film in my backyard with my younger...

I have the soul of a 74 year old grandmother. I used to be ashamed to say it, because what kind of teenager wants to openly admit she enjoys spending time in retirement homes. But, there’s no use in masking the age of my soul any longer. I like...

I walked up to the half-open garage and peered uncertainly into the cluttered space. At this point, I was alone in London, navigating purely by gut and intuition. My voice shook as I rasped out an indication of my presence. As I waited for an...

I feel the sweat drip down my neck and soak into the fabric of my bedazzled gown. I clench my fists and inhale deeply, closing my eyes to see the reassuring grin of my choreographer in my mind. Here I stay, tucked securely behind the stage curtain...

Click.

“Alright, perfect.” I announce, looking down at my camera to peruse through the pictures I had just captured. The model in front of me wore a meticulously curated outfit of my choosing: a muted rainbow of varied sportswear, accompanied by...