College Application Essays accepted by University of North Carolina - Chapel Hill

University of North Carolina - Chapel Hill

“You’re too stupid to go to college!” my mother screams at me as I help my two sisters with their homework. I have already made dinner for my whole family and cleaned the mess my mom left in the kitchen. She is finally home after sneaking off to...

University of North Carolina - Chapel Hill

The year is 2025, and you are standing in the sold-out crowd at Madison Square Garden. You hear the lyrics “come as you are, as you were, as I want you to be,” blaring through the stadium and Kurt Cobain is standing 5 feet away from you. He...

University of North Carolina - Chapel Hill

My love for math came about through a sort of associative learning. I didn’t start loving math because it was math, but because it was the class I always had with my best friend Krystyna. It began in third grade when our class was separated into...

University of North Carolina - Chapel Hill

"We won't miss you anyway.” -My drama teacher’s response after I told him that I wasn’t going to audition for his next superior musical.

When I got home, I cried—not just from embarrassment—but because his words validated something I had known for...

University of North Carolina - Chapel Hill

It started with a question.

Every day before the bell rang, I ranted about my broken friendships to the only person who was willing to listen, my “Spanish buddy.” Instead of tuning me out or rolling her eyes, Peyton listened. She gradually fixed...

University of North Carolina - Chapel Hill

My vessel was a single-sail dinghy called an Optimist, designed for young sailors like me. At age 13, I was in my very first solo race, propelled through the brackish water of the Caloosahatchee River by what felt like a gale but which in...

University of North Carolina - Chapel Hill

I wrote for my first newspaper in 4th grade, the Fourth Grade Weekly. I was the owner, editor in chief, and lead writer. The Weekly contained hard-hitting pieces - by 4th-grade standards - such as Joke of the Week, Restaurant Reviews, and Sports...

University of North Carolina - Chapel Hill

Aggravating traffic, lack of communal traditions, and rarely going somewhere where everybody knows each other, for better or for worse, are all hallmarks of living in a big city. Growing up in a large suburb of Los Angeles, I have had my fair...

University of North Carolina - Chapel Hill

I thought I was going to faint. I was a junior sitting in Senior Chorus, the most prestigious choir at my high school. Sitting among piano prodigies and future opera singers, I could not help but feel out of place among my virtuosic peers. We...

University of North Carolina - Chapel Hill

“You’re not easy to figure out,” they say. I tell them I am the strength of Hancock, the wit of Tony Stark, the brain of Dr. Brown and the mystery of Anton Chigurh.

People find friends in novels, but I found myself in movies. Everything I do,...

University of North Carolina - Chapel Hill

Arriving three hours early to the venue before the scheduled start of a performance can mean many things. Perhaps you are a member of the performance or you may be determined to secure a great place or seat. You could even be tailgating! However,...

University of North Carolina - Chapel Hill

Two cars collide. Shattered glass flies everywhere. As much as you want to turn away, you stand transfixed by the chaos. That’s what it was like hearing my friend Sara’s life story.

The first day, it was her emergency room visits for the holes in...

University of North Carolina - Chapel Hill

Elm Park is a five-minute drive down Pleasant Street from my house. Growing up, my parents took me to the park’s playground, which I frequented until I tumbled off a swing and chipped my tooth. I boycotted Elm for years, until I became old enough...

University of North Carolina - Chapel Hill

“Does Mr. Fishy go up, up, up or down, down, down?”

I ask my class as I lay a plastic toy fish on top of the water.

“Up, up, up!” a little boy named John exclaims.

“That’s right! Mr. Fishy goes up, up, up like we do!” I tell my class.

A plastic...

University of North Carolina - Chapel Hill

On December 3, 2019, a 20-year-old ballerina was murdered in front of her house. In 2019, more than 400 women were murdered in Turkey even though some of them requested an order of protection. When I heard the news, I was devastated. I was scared,...

University of North Carolina - Chapel Hill

I clock my final break on a brutally hot June Thursday. Stepping outside for a phone call, I have one thing on my mind: what is Saturday’s verdict? Dave, my Eagle Project counselor, has been corresponding with Portland Parks and Recreation (PPAR)...

University of North Carolina - Chapel Hill

A globe of diverging genres. An all-encompassing haven that houses birthdays, family time, dates, anniversaries, or simply satisfies a cinephile’s weekly cravings. My thirst for continual experiences within the realms of comfort and tranquility...