Sun Life Attending Statement: Fill & Download for Free

Students with such high stats typically fail to get into Berkeley and UCLA because they had “bad” Personal Insight Questions responses (when I say bad, I mean unable to effectively articulate current achievements and relate them to future potentials).Berkeley, at one point, had an admission officer who touted the fact that they rejected a National Merit Finalist due to “bad” Personal Statement (this was several years ago, when it was just two prompts). UCLA had an application reader who complained to me about a student with 4.7 GPA and “incomprehensible” Personal Statement that they rejected (again, before the UCs switched to the current four-prompt format).Just from my own work with students who want to appeal, I see many problem areas, such as lack of aspiration to attend college (the admissions office does not “assume” you want to attend college, you have to explain why you want to attend college), lack of connection between current achievements and future goals (life does not stop when you get into college, what do you expect to accomplish in college and after college?), and the list goes on (for quite a while).Every UC campus has an official procedure to file an appeal, but few decisions are reversed. That is just the reality. If you had a “bad” Personal Insight Questions response, then your appeal will need to undo the damage. Students make all sorts of mistakes when answering the Personal Insight Questions; I’ve seen students who, unwittingly, portrayed themselves as a criminal (seriously), a racist (seriously), or generally naive or clueless (so many of them, in so many different ways). Sometimes it’s not your fault, you’ve only had limited exposure to the world. Other times it is, if you decided not to take the Personal Insight Questions seriously because you think you have better stats than everyone else (I see a lot of that too).My advice is to move on with your life. A brand name college only gets you so far in life (and that is not very far, once you actually start working). Work hard, adjust your attitude (if you think you are better than everyone else, stop doing that), and make the best of your college experience (rather than expecting your college to make your experience better).

I speak both Thai and American English at a native level to understand both languages passively. I choose to speak a language at my desire, depending on that certain group of people to whom I am speaking with.I never experience other English-speaking nationalities who would often interfere in between a conversation and ask to speak English, except American. There are unfortunately many ignorant Americans who think other nationalities must comply under the language of the global power. Most Americans do not speak a second language and often expect others to speak English at any circumstance.(BTW: I am a Thai born American individual, so I am not intending to shine a negative light on Americans in particular, but I am rather stating the fact that most Americans tend to be all over their cases when foreigners speak other languages within their circle.)I met a Thai professor from Mahidol University in the United States who attended a ceremony in Northern Arizona University. I graduated from this American institute through and through. We sat down at a dinner table to exchange our experience in a Thai conversation. I am able to speak a formal/official Thai language to carry on a complex conversation with the professor.A middle-aged waitress approched us out of the blue. She said “I would appreciate it, if you guys speak English with each other”. The Thai professor just smirked in the irritating manner, but he did not say anything. I, on the other hand, perceived her statement as insulting for these two reasons:The Thai conversation does not concern her. She needs to learn how to mind her own business.She was entitled to her opinion about the appreciation to speak English. I get it that an American society emphasizes a free speech, but she was so naive about this point, where her skewed understanding becomes her ignorant.That was when I lectured her “Excuse me, miss. Our conversation does not concern you. We are speaking about an important topic, and you just interupted our conversational flow. This professor is extremely irritated under your presence, so I would kindly ask you to leave us. I will speak to your manager, so you may serve another table. Please keep in mind, when A and B are having a conversation, you need to C your way out. This is my advice for you tonight without causing trouble and also should benefit you for the rest of your life.”

It's the most exhilarating, confusing, beautiful, frustrating feeling.(Unless all teenagers feel that way?)Let me me start by saying that I am eternally grateful to a woman named Sarah Shenirer, who lived a hundred years ago in Poland and was the pioneer of formal Jewish education for girls. She realized that girls were going to school, becoming educated and asking questions. If they knew nothing about their religion, what reason would they have to stay?In fact, my grandmother, who came from a small town in Poland, was taught by one of Sarah Shenirer's students while at the same time attending public school. My grandmother was an intelligent woman, who even in the late stages of Alzheimer's was able to recite lengthly poems on Polish history, and knew all the Jewish blessing for food and lighting Sabbath candles.Fast forward to the present. I, like other Jewish girls, am fortunate to be living in a century where I can be schooled in Judaism as well as in broader knowledge. Gone is the time when all a religious Jewish girl would learn was the upkeep of a household and maybe the most basic laws of Kosher and Taharas Hamishpacha. So that's the beautiful part.The confusing part comes along with having a double education, as you might imagine. I am constantly hearing conflicting opinions about everything, and I mean everything. Israeli politics, the woman's role in life, attending college, mode of dress, you name it.I would say I'm fairly exposed to mainstream culture. I've always loved science, and after reading Stephen Hawking's books, I started thinking more about the creation of the world, the way I've always been taught it. We learnt that the world was created 5776 years ago, in six days.First, here's a bit of background on the (all-girls) school I go to:Many of friends who aren't exposed to secular culture because there are no non-Jewish books, movies, or magazines in their homes. Some of their parents don't even buy clothing or decorative items that feature non-kosher animals on them for their little children. This is is the norm in my community. My friends didn't know what the words prostitute, rock star, or paedophile meant until recently.We all dress modestly, have zero (consented) contact with boys, and spend half the day learning Jewish subjects and the other half learning the same curriculum as any other high school. My teachers encourage questions, and in fact I've brought up the argument about creationism/big bang many times, and we've spent hours discussing it. (The issue isn't resolved yet. Maybe it never will be.) We learn Tanya (mystical teachings), and the 'sketchier' stories in the Bible (David & Bathsheba, Judah & Tamar, Dinah & Shechem, etc. Look them up and you'll see what I'm talking about.) It's a stimulating environment to be in.On the other hand, the values that were taught to my ancestors three hundred years ago, in Eastern Europe, haven't changed. Ultra-orthodox Judaism is consistent, and doesn't change its ideals over time. The most important thing for a Jewish woman to do, we are taught, is to get married, raise a family in the Jewish tradition, and encourage her husband to learn Torah. Her domain is the private domain. She dresses modestly so men will see her for her brains, and not her breasts. We were taught that homosexuality is immoral, because God says so. We (including boys) are discouraged from going to college until we are older, preferably married, because of all the outside influences we'll encounter.I'm sure you know the secular views on all the above mentioned subjects. What I'm trying to say is that it is so, so confusing to be hearing conflicting opinions on literally everything all day, every day. Even more so for the girls like me, who are exposed to the secular world. I've heard so much and read so much that I can argue on both sides in any argument. But that doesn't make things clearer. If anything, it makes things more confusing.In addition, everything you do is a statement on who you are, especially at my age. The length of your skirt, if you get a second piercing, and whether you go to college or seminary all dictate who will be willing to date you, who you'll marry, and how you'll raise your children, etc. It's a lot of pressure.Let me be clear, I'm glad I was raised this way. Judaism has an amazing outlook on life, one that teaches respect for every living thing, kindness, and justice. I don't feel held back or stunted in any way.Still, there is always that constant tug-of-war. I still am unsure about what in the Bible did or didn't happen. I've given up on understanding Israeli politics. My friends and I wonder what it would be like to wear jeans, have boyfriends, and do things other teenagers do. It's petty, I know. But we still wonder.