Tuesday, September 29, 2009

Me? Me?! Me!

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So it's time to start applying to university scholarships.

The question:
"Describe your involvement...", "How have you contributed...?", "Describe yourself in 400 word--"

The dilemma
I. DON'T. KNOW.

I have enough trouble writing intros about myself on my past domains (and even the one in the sidebar --> is horrible)... the thing is, I have trouble putting my thoughts down on paper. I struggle to find the words that represent EXACTLY what I'm trying to get across. In fact, it took me 4 minutes to write that sentence.

That's not even the main issue though. My main issue with this is the fact that I hate talking about myself. I don't like talking about my accomplishments, the clubs I'm in, and basically just promoting myself in general. Of course, I realize that they need to, well, KNOW you before they give you the scholarship, but I feel like I would be boasting, because compared to many others, I haven't really done that much. And the thing is I have to make it seem extremely hardcore.

I also find descriptions written by oneself to be, well, I guess the word I'm looking for here is something close to untrustworthy. You can't lie about marks (well, maybe), but you can certainly lie about accomplishments. Scholarship applications don't require any proof that you are in fact, for example, the president of a youth charity or the treasurer of the student council. Experiences can be fabricated.

Most scholarships ask for reference letters from close adults, which I think is an excellent idea. I personally believe that my accomplishments aren't impressive, but to have an honest adult vouch for me would give me more credibility.

Yes, I am in fact filling out a scholarship application form right now, and I still have no idea what to say...

What has been your experience with writing personal statements? Do you have any advice for me in filling out scholarship applications?




 

Friday, September 25, 2009

Need A Pick-Me-Up?


Plinky prompted again, because I'm unimaginative.

"List the worst pickup lines you've heard (or can think of)."

Personally, I love reading pickup lines and rolling my eyes at them. Here are my favourites:

"Are you from Tennessee? 'Cause you're the only ten I see. *ba-dum-chh*"

"I wish I were a derivative so I could lie tangent to your curves. (Math pickup lines are the greatest)"

"If I were a function you would be my asymptote."

...I'm such a cheeseball.

"My name is Justin. Justincredible."


And this is the lamest one I've read:

"Hey, so I see you're a girl..."

Care to share your favourite ones? Or just ones that you find ridiculous/hilarious? :P




 

Sunday, September 13, 2009

New School Year

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Grade 12 started for me on September 8th. My new year... began with a trip to the main office to talk with my principal about my schedule, which was absolutely ridiculous. I had: accounting, international business, economics, and English first semester, and biology, chemistry, calculus & vectors, and French the next. But being the awesome person that he is, my principal changed up those courses right on the spot! The only downside is that I have to eat lunch at 9:24am during the first semester, but I think it's worth it. After all, everything has an opportunity cost!

Speaking of opportunity costs (see? I'm learning something in economics!), I was forced by my parents to give up my job at Kumon, so I can "focus on my studies" more. However, I didn't trade in my time at Kumon for more studying. Instead, I come home now on Tuesdays and Fridays to make dinner. This annoys me slightly, as I enjoyed working at Kumon a lot despite the few brats that went there.

I don't think I've talked about Link, the grade 9 orientation program at our school. Honestly, I'm pretty sure most of the niners would rather just go to class than spend an entire morning with some embarrassing seniors, but I had a lot of fun!




The shirts we had to wear are awful, but at least I didn't have any trouble picking out something to wear!

My final year of high school is for sure going to be tough and different. On top of the work load, there's always that nagging voice in the back of my mind that goes "pick a university! pick a university!"

If you're still in school, how is the new year for you? And if you've already completed high school, do you have any advice for a struggling senior trying to make the right decisions? :D