Stephen's Self-evaluation

"Tell What You Thought Instead of What You Did "

When I started to write this story, which was designed to tell some lessons I had gained from my application, I found there's so much I have learned that it's hard for me to tell it all. So, I decided to focus on one thing, which I summarized as the subject of this story, and believe is the most valuable skill I learned from the application.

By coming to this conclusion I am not saying what an applicant, especially an art applicant, has done is not important. If you have written and published a good dissertation or if you have taken part in significant social research and was awarded because of it, that is important, and it can make a great experience in your personal statement.

But you can bet that your PS will be more attractive and impressive if you tell more about your thoughts than about your deed. Say more about what had driven you to write that dissertation, what are your comments on that research, and how your ideas changed through those processes, rather than only elaborate on the titles of your essays and awards, and the details of your job in the research. That will definitely be a better way to show your value.

I can't remember clearly where I heard it, but I am really impressed with the following comparison: American universities enroll Chinese natural science students because professors there need assistants in their labs, while they admit Chinese social science students because professors there are eager to renovate the students' minds and assimilate them into western culture.

Let's put aside whether that's absolutely correct. At least in part the comparison demonstrates why it is important for social science students to expose their minds to professors.

I learned all this through my painful PS drafting process, during which I wrote two totally different versions. In the first one I wrote of my education since childhood, a list of the subjects of my essays and another list of my awards, and all my internships and working experiences, just like the writings of many model PS I had read. But after reading it through I could tell that it was not a good one-- no one could see what kind of a person 1 was in my heart, what I wanted to do and why, and what distinguished me from others. In a word, there's no point a school must admit me but not others.

So in the second version I didn't mention anything that can be seen from my resume and transcripts. I focused on my thoughts: why I love to became journalist, what had confused me in China's press industry, and what I really want to do after I learn western journalism styles, I'm proud of this version, and I believe it's the key factor in my success.

I think this is the big difference between social and natural science students. The value of natural science students can be seen from the experiments they did or the essays they wrote, while the value of social science students can be best known from their minds.

If there are other tips concerning how to express your thoughts better, my suggestion is tell about some changes in your opinions, ideas and thoughts. No one is expected to be 100 percent perfect, and every one makes mistakes. Telling others how you correct your mistakes and how you change your mind will be a great way to show you are growing and your willingness to make improvements.

And always focus on yourself. It's no use to deplore your parents' being laid off and your brother's being addicted to video games if what you want to do is to show yourself to others.

When I had a news writing course in the university, the professor taught us a good way to write a succinct news story lead. That is, imagine you are telling your grandmother the news that happened, how would you arrange your first sentence? I think it's the same when we write our PS.

Expose your mind, and you can better demonstrate you are a special and unique person.