It Doesn’t Matter If You’re Black Or White,: College Admission Essay Sample

"Wow," I whispered to myself as I walked into the main doorway of my new high school. I walked through the endless hallways and questioned myself as to why my parents decided to move here, Wuerzburg, Germany, one of the alleged bad schools in the area. Why did they force me to leave my friends, home, and some of my best experiences? I had never before in my life seen as many different ethnic faces as I now would every day for the next four years. I acted very apprehensively that first week of school; I mean it's not every day that you meet someone whose father is the principal. What would people think of me? Before in my old school the ethnic majority was white and now, in a matter of one day I had become the minority. I had heard rumors and tales of alleged gangs in my new school. I believed what others had told me and prepared myself for the worst. First looks can be very deceiving. I found this out the hard way. This move was by far one of the best events that had ever taken place in my life. It taught me about ethnic diversity and allowed me to enrich my life with the friendships of different people around me.

I entered high school, to put it blatantly, scared. I didn't know what to expect. Would people see me only as the principal's daughter? At first I was labeled as a teacher's pet and a goody two shoes. Of course, I was upset about accusation but I failed to realize that I too stereotyped the faces I saw everyday. I kept a small profile to avoid any confrontation. This was my avoidance tactic. Where I came from before people congregated together as one. Color was not an issue. But here it was the opposite. These oppositions made me not want to do anything that I thought would put me in a position where I would have to defend myself.

Slowly I began to realize that moving here to Wuerzburg was actually something that was good. My original view of people and the world was confining. Now, as I walk down the halls I greet everybody with a friendly face. No matter who they are, how they look, or their reputation I befriend them. Playing sports such as volleyball and soccer allowed me to learn new attitudes and ideas from all sorts of people. Currently on my basketball team I am able to experience a whole new world of traditions with a group consisting mostly of African Americans.

Being in a school with over 600 students, 50% of them African American and 30% white allows me to communicate with people different than me. The experience has been an enriching one. Who would have ever thought that the once shy freshman was now a person encountering people and attitudes from every part of the globe? In these four years my personality has adjusted and changed into something that allows me to feel comfortable around any person and allows any person to feel comfortable around me. I feel that my personality not only has helped me to broaden my views about people but also has helped others that are still too scared to approach people other than their own race.

So far, I know that I am off to a great start. My education and attitude can only get better.