University of Oregon Undergraduate College Application Essays

“Good morning Torrey Pines! It’s a beautiful Monday, 77 degrees and partly cloudy.”

My voice echoed throughout the campus and every classroom, as it was my responsibility to do the morning announcements each day in my position as Senior Class...

Neither Ray nor I knew what miracles were possible. At one hundred and eighty-five pounds, five foot ten inches tall, and a victim of fetal alcohol syndrome, Ray was a Special Olympic athlete with a dream to become a champion, but his mental...

The roaring waves crashed against the rocks. The sky was black except for two glowing fluorescent lights in a distance. I stood alone facing the Pacific Ocean and tears slowly trickled down my face but the wind quickly blew them away into the...

My mother first introduced me to the me-to-we way of life. She has always been my heroine and my source of motivation. Her primary concern as a physician is to help as many people as possible. At first, I did not understand why she always worked...

School was almost over and I could not wait to walk out of the gloomy library. Just when I thought I was done for the day, I noticed four girls sitting two tables away from me. They talked loudly without any concern for the quietness around them....

The Siberian tiger roared and twisted his massive body as he pressed his paws against the chain-link fence. Miniscule dirt particles trickled from his raised paws while saliva strings dripped from his gaping mouth. I stood on the other side of the...

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...

For decades, the classic dispute of “nature vs. nurture” in regards to our maturation has dominated the debate about how children develop. Does a specific gene passed on from your parents predispose you to a life of crime? Are children more likely...

The stress of the last-minute cram for a test could be seen in each and every one of my kids’ faces, which were contorting from determination, to anxiety, to confusion, and back again. My students were huddled in the back of the dojang, reviewing...

“You know how in Chinese, the first character for swan…”

“No.”

Stop right there. I do not know anything about the characters for swan. Turning to my classmate, I repeat the phrase for the hundredth time in my life: “See… I don’t speak Chinese.”

At the University of Oregon, I would be eager to be a part of the advancement of the equity and inclusion division by contributing my ideas and passions to the Multi-Ethnic Student Alliance group. People often struggle to fully understand what it...

Growing up being raised by a single mom enabled me and my mom to have a very special relationship. I cherish this close bond; however, it has also led to many challenges. I have had to step up and take much more responsibility than most kids my...

“Hey!” I say cheerfully as I lace my basketball shoes. Three girls look at me and snicker. As I leave my teammate Milica says, “Don’t let them get to you. They’re Albanian, so they’re rude to all Serbians.” My eyes widen in shock. Of course there...

As the website designer, photographer, and social media manager for four small businesses I’ve had to be very detail-oriented and creative regarding new ways to advertise. In order to meet all my deadlines, I set a calendar, breaking up my...

I am a citizen of another world. This land is not one everyone ventures into, and even fewer make a home within it. It is a world with mystery and magic, unimaginable creatures and portals that lead to the stuff of dreams. Some call us divers,...

I sleep in on Sunday, I stay home on Wednesday nights; I don’t belong to any youth groups, and if you walk into my house there’s not a single cross to be found. Instead a big blue candle bearing the star of David is perched on the mantle, and two...

My mother’s hands tell the entire world of my life. They were the first to hold me when I was first born and feed me when I cried. It was her hands that have raised me on behalf of my busy dad, patting me when I behaved well and spanking me when I...

So ubiquitously sold in the streets of cold breezes of winter in South Korea, a red bean bun brings deliberate warmth and joy to many people. Sold at a price of only forty cents back in the 90s, the red bean bun was more than just a snack; it was...

It felt like I was flying and in control of where I wanted to go.

Expecting to spend most of my time on the ground, I surprisingly stayed on my feet loving every minute of this adventure.

Snowboarding has not only become a sport that I really...

Summer begins with skin made of ants. The months between school years were designed for sitting on the border of the sandpit at the Jewish Community Center with ants crawling over my hands.

“Sugar ants don’t bite people,” my friend assures me...

My journey as a violist began seven years ago, when I made a trip to my local music center and the director searched around in a cluttered inventory closet, pulling out a case. Inside lay my first viola. It was slightly off color, worn down and...

I showed up to school in thongs today... no not that type of thong. Indeed, Australians call flip flops, thongs. As my physcis teacher told me he 'reckons' I should take off my thongs and put on 'runners' (i.e. sneakers) to avoid labratory...