Today, we have the pleasure of speaking with David, a student from Texas who is about to embark on his academic journey at the University of Texas at Austin. David has been accepted into the highly competitive Electrical Engineering, Computer Science, and Business Honors programs at UT Austin. Not only has he secured his spot at UT Austin, but David was also accepted into other prestigious institutions, including the University of Virginia, Emory University, the University of Southern California, and William & Mary, where he was offered the Monroe Scholarship. Let's hear from David about how he achieved these impressive accomplishments.
Question 1: When and how did you discover your passion and sense of purpose? What led you to your current major and academic interests?
David:
During my freshman and sophomore years, I spent a lot of time exploring different extracurricular activities because I wasn't sure what I wanted to major in. For instance, in my freshman year, I joined a broad range of activities, including Science Olympiad and Debate. It was in my junior year that I truly discovered my passion through the Science Olympiad, which features various engineering events like building airplanes, bridges, parachutes, and robot cars. The event that resonated with me the most was called "Detector Building," where we had to create a device using resistors and capacitors to accurately measure mass. This hands-on experience with designing a detector showed me how powerful an engineering degree could be, as it allows you to design complex machines like the one I built. Additionally, growing up in a family of engineers—my dad is a petroleum engineer, and my mom is a chemical engineer—naturally influenced my decision to pursue engineering.
My interest in business emerged when I started an origami nonprofit with a few friends during the summer of my junior year. We sold origami and donated the proceeds to charity, which sparked my curiosity in entrepreneurship, how to start a business, manage finances, and plan events.
Question 2: How did you strategically plan your course selection, extracurricular activities, independent projects, and summer internships to achieve successful college applications? Can you share any memorable stories?
David:
When it came to course selection, my strategy was to take the most rigorous courses available at my school. Following this approach, I ended up taking about 15 AP classes in total. For example, in my senior year, I took multivariable calculus and statistics, which are typically considered challenging classes by admissions officers.
My involvement in extracurriculars began in middle school with music-related activities. I was part of the Houston Youth Symphony and Music of Harmony, a volunteering group that performs at senior homes. I continued these activities in high school because I was passionate about music. Alongside music, I participated in Science Olympiad, starting in my freshman year, and co-founded "Folding For Good," an origami nonprofit. I wanted to experience both an engineering-related extracurricular and a business-related one.
As for my summer plans, I dedicated my 9th-grade summer to exploring new extracurriculars, including a UI/UX design internship with Kyos. In 10th grade, I prepared for the SAT through TestMasters and attended the Yale Young Global Scholars (YYGS) program in Politics, Law, and Economics. In 11th grade, I participated in the John Locke Institute Global Affairs Forum, interned at a law firm, and started preparing for my college applications. My goal was to participate in at least one summer program each year and to plan my summers based on what I needed to accomplish the following year. For instance, since I planned to take the SAT in my 11th grade, I started preparing in the summer after 10th grade.
Question 3: Can you share your process for working on college essays? When did you start, and was it easier or harder than expected? How did you decide on your Common App prompts and topics for your supplemental essays? What advice would you give to rising seniors about the essays and supplements?
David:
I began working on my Common App essay in early June of my 11th-grade summer. Writing this essay alone took me about 40 hours, which was much longer than I anticipated. I chose the third Common App essay prompt, which asked me to reflect on something someone has done for me. I selected this prompt because my grandparents played a significant role in my upbringing, giving me plenty of personal stories to share. The other prompts didn't resonate with me as much, and I struggled to write about them.
For me, the hardest part of writing the essays was the brainstorming process, especially since many prompts asked big, thought-provoking questions. For example, Notre Dame's prompt asked how I would solve a global issue if I had unlimited resources, which required a lot of careful thinking. However, once I figured out what I wanted to write about, the actual writing process went smoothly.
My advice to rising seniors is to create a few "super essays" that address common themes like community and diversity, which are often repeated in supplemental essay prompts. For example, Rice University, Notre Dame, and UVA all had a community essay prompt, so I wrote about how my mom and I connected better by cooking together, which helped bridge the language barrier between us. Having a few super essays saved me a lot of time since I could reuse them for multiple schools with just a few edits.
Another piece of advice is to finish your Common App essay first because it's the most significant and integral part of the application. Take your time brainstorming your essay topics—don't worry if it takes one or two months to figure it out. Once you have a solid topic, the writing part will be much easier.
