Ace Your University of Wisconsin Personal Statements

The University of Wisconsin System has a holistic admissions process that includes at least one personal statement. The flagship campus in Madison requires two essays. Applicants can apply using either the Common Application or the University of Wisconsin Application. This article addresses strategies for responding to the essay prompts.   Personal Statements for the University of Wisconsin-Madison The main campus of the University of Wisconsin in Madison is the most selective of all the UW schools, and it has an application separate from all the other campuses. It also asks for two personal statements. If you apply using the Common Application, you will need to respond to one of the seven essay prompts. This gives you the freedom to write about anything you choose, for not only do the prompts cover a wide range of topics, but option #7 allows you to write on a topic of your choice.   If you use the University of Wisconsin application,  the first essay prompt asks the following: Consider something in your life you think goes unnoticed and write about why its important to you. You have so many options here that you might find the essay prompt daunting. As you figure out what the something in your life is that you should write about, keep in mind the reason why UW-Madison is asking this question. The admissions process is holistic, so the university wants to get to know you as a whole person, not just as a set of empirical data such as grades, class rank, and standardized test scores. Your extracurricular activities and employment history are part of the holistic portrait, but they dont tell the whole story.   Use this prompt to explore something that isnt obvious from the rest of your application. If one of your jobs or extracurricular activities is particularly important to you, you could use this essay to explain why that is so (much like a typical  short answer essay  on the Common Application). Or you could use this essay to present a side of your personality that doesnt appear on your application at all. Perhaps you like rebuilding motorcycles, fishing with your younger sister, or writing poetry. Almost anything thats important to you is fair game here, just make sure you follow through and explain  why  its important to you. If you fail to address the why of the question, youve failed to present the admissions folks a full window into your passions and interests. The second essay prompt is the same whether you use the Common Application or the UW Application. It asks the following: Tell us why you decided to apply to the University of Wisconsin-Madison. In addition, share with us the academic, extracurricular, or research opportunities you would take advantage of as a student. If applicable, provide details of any circumstance that could have had an impact on your academic performance and/or extracurricular involvement. UW-Madison has packed a lot into this essay prompt, and it might be best to view it as three essay prompts, not one. The first—why UW-Madison?—is typical of the supplemental essays for many other colleges. The key here is to be specific. If your answer could be applied to schools other than UW-Madison, then youre being too vague and generic. What  specifically  about UW-Madison appeals to you? What unique features of the university distinguish it from other places youre considering? Similarly, with the question about academic, extracurricular and research opportunities, be sure to do your research. Make sure you know what the university offers so that you know what opportunities you can take advantage of should you be admitted. UW-Madison is trying to make sure applicants are familiar with the university and can imagine themselves being active and engaged members of the campus community. When it comes to explaining circumstances that may have had a negative impact on your grades and extracurricular involvement, keep in mind that this part of the prompt is optional. As the article Should You Explain A Bad Grade? notes, youre not always doing yourself a favor if you make a big deal out of slightly off semester in high school. That said, if you did have a major disruption in your life—a significant injury, a death of a parent or sibling, divorce of your parents, or an ill-timed move to a different school—it can be a good idea to comment on the event if it impacted your academic or extracurricular record in a significant way. The Personal Statement for all Other UW Campuses For all of the other University of Wisconsin campuses, youll be asked to respond to this personal essay prompt: Please tell us about the particular life experiences, talents, commitments and/or interests you will bring to our specific campus that will enrich our community. The question is refreshing in its directness, for, in truth, it is asking what every college admissions essay asks—How will you enrich our community? Colleges want more than students with good grades and high test scores; they also want students who will contribute to campus life in a positive way. Before you write your essay or take part in a college interview, youd be wise to figure out your own answer to the question. What is it that you will contribute? Why will the college be a better place because of your presence? Think about your hobbies, your sense of humor, your quirks, your academic passions... all of the features that make you you. Each of the Common Application essay options  is really getting at this very issue. Whether you are writing about a a challenge youve faced, a problem youve solved, an important accomplishment in your life, or an important dimension of your life experiences, a good essay shows that you bring to campus the type of passion and personality that will enrich the university community. Make Your University of Wisconsin Essay Shine You have lots of breadth in choosing what to write about, but youd be wise to steer clear of bad essay topics that often go astray. Also, dont just focus on what to write, but also how you write it. Pay attention to the style of your essay so that your narrative is tight, engaging, and powerful.   Also be sure to follow the tips on the UW website. One important tip relates to your essay length. While the application allows you to write essays that are up to 650 words, UW recommends essays in the 300-500 word range. While you may be tempted to use the entire available space, youd be wise to heed the universitys recommendation and exceed 500 words.

Cultural Criticism of My Dad Is A Liar Commercial Free Essay Example, 1500 words

In the first section of the commercial, the girl is praising her father. It starts with her acknowledging that her father is the sweetest father in the world. She continues praising him and the scene changes from the street where they were taking a walk to a different scene and it keeps on changing to support each description that she gives about her father. The commercial, in this case, is using video to paint and support the girl s descriptions of the father. This makes the message more vivid and straightforward to the viewers. The girl s short phrases and childish tone brings about a cheery mood. This mood is backed up by lively background music. This is to make the commercial tone vibrant. The second part of the commercial introduces contrast into the commercial. While the first part of the commercial was vibrant and full of praises for the father, the second part begins by the girl declaring that the father is a liar. This is a contradicting statement to all that was said in th e first part and it introduces shock. The tone in this section drastically changes from a vibrant tone to an emotional and sentimental one. We will write a custom essay sample on Cultural Criticism of My Dad Is A Liar Commercial or any topic specifically for you Only $17.96 $11.86/page This strategy has been used to captivate the viewers attention. The viewers are left expecting the girl to list the instances where the father lied and probably make him look bad but instead the commercial has employed this contradicting statement to further bring out the good qualities of the girl s father. The section describes all the sacrifices the father makes and the acts he has to go through in order to protect his daughter from all his problems and weaknesses.

Men At Forty Free Essays

â€Å"Men at Forty† is a very well written poem so clearly the diction was chosen well. There are so many things that can be considered diction when writing like if you want to be more sensuous which means you write to appeal to the senses or you have the choice to make it emotional of even esoteric so only the few amount of people who have the proper knowledge to understand it do. A couple of words that describe how this poem was written are precise, emotional, abstruse and esoteric could even tie in with that. We will write a custom essay sample on Men At Forty or any similar topic only for you Order Now Precise writing is marked by exactness or accuracy and â€Å"Men at Forty† in my eyes is very accurate. I do believe that what Donald writes about is exactly what happens once a man gets to forty. In the first stanza it says â€Å"Men at Forty Learn to close softly The doors to rooms they will not be Coming back to. † This is a metaphor about how since he is older he must come to terms with the fact that he might never reach some of his goals in life. Emotion is a big part of writing because what’s the point in writing if there is no emotion. No one will even want to read your writing because they get bored easily with it. In stanza 3 it states â€Å"And deep in mirrors They rediscover The face of the boy as he practices tying His father’s tie there in secret† this is very emotional because the man Is looking in the mirror and he still feels young but that is on the inside the outside shows he is growing old, and no one likes growing old because it’s a sad reality that we are getting closer and closer to death. This poem can be very abstruse because It could go over some peoples’ head. How to cite Men At Forty, Papers