‘Here we drink three cups of tea to do business; the first you are a stranger, the second you become a friend, and the third, you join our family, and for our family we are prepared to do anything – even die.’
This quote is the inspiration for the title of the New York Times bestseller Three Cups of Tea, the remarkable story of Greg Mortenson and his commitment to build schools and improve lives in the poorest villages in Pakistan and Afghanistan.
In preparation for Mr. Mortenson’s visit to Holy Cross at the end of September , I’ve been reading his book. The more I read, the more I realize that there are so many lessons contained within – commitment, honor, the value of hard work, respect, etc.
But perhaps the one lesson that has stuck with me the most is the lesson of perseverance. Without reading the book, you might imagine that Mr. Mortenson decided to build schools and simply did it. It was not that easy.
In building his first school, he had to deal with an unfamiliar foreign land, coming up with enough money, time constraints, missing supplies, etc. It was no easy task.
Similarly, as you sit down to write your Common Application essay, remember the lesson of perseverance. You might struggle with an unfamiliar format, coming up with an idea, time constraints, missing ideas, etc. An essay that you can be proud of is not likely to simply appear on your computer; but know that if you invest your time, effort and hard work, you will succeed. If you persevere, your efforts will be rewarded with an essay of which you can be proud. Hard work always pays off.
Greg Mortenson knows this to be true.
The children who attend his schools know this to be true.
You do, too.
See also: http://college.holycross.edu/committees/hanify-howland/upcoming_lecture.html
Andrew N. Carter
Associate Director of Admissions
August has arrived, and with it, for many of us, has come the feeling that the end is near. The end of summer … the end of sleeping late, beach days and pool time … indeed, its back to school! You might find comfort in the fact that you’re not alone … its back to school for us as well. As my colleague Amanda wrote not long ago, for us here in Admissions, we’ve been planning our schedules and getting ready to have the rubber meet the road in just a few short weeks. We’ll be coming to your schools and college fairs before you know it; for many of us, in less than a month! For some of you reading this in Arizona and Florida, you’re already back; but for many others, you still have a few days or weeks to enjoy! How should you be spending that time, you ask? Why, visiting colleges of course … including, I should add, spending some time here at Holy Cross!
It’s August and it seems that summer has finally arrived on Mt St. James! The upside to all the rain we have had: a very green campus! While I admit to being a bit biased, I know that our visitors will agree that the campus looks amazing. If you haven’t visited yet, or if you would like to return, we have tour guides eager to show you around, and an enthusiastic staff ready to answer your questions. So stop by and say hello.
Believe it or not, I don’t care for the picture of me that accompanies my blogs. The photographer said “don’t smile”, so I didn’t. The result is a slightly confused-looking version of my better self. I try not to look at it when I view my blogs, but it’s hard to ignore that unhappy face. It’s not that the picture is more important than (or even as important as) the words beside it, but I just can’t reconcile that mean-looking person with the friendly words she writes.
So it’s July and while you’re (we hope) sitting by the pool enjoying your summer break, we’re here in the office thinking about your college applications. Yes, we’re already planning for next year. Over the past few weeks we have begun planning our fall travel schedules. We put a lot of thought into what schools we will be visiting. We consider where we have visited in past years, where we receive applications from, and also where we would like to build awareness about Holy Cross. After much deliberating, scheduling and rescheduling, each counselor will have approximately a seven week itinerary of high schools, community based agencies and college fairs to attend spanning from September to November. We can’t always visit every school or attend every event we would like but we do our best to fit everything in. In August, our schedules will be posted on the web page, so be sure to check that out to see when we’ll be in your area. We’ll see you on the road this fall!
This list is the culmination of my own experiences as an admissions officer as well as of my colleagues in this office and other admissions offices. As you go through them, you may have a lot of “duh” moments and most of these are very much common sense but it’s usually the most obvious things that are the least visible to us. With that said, I hope this list is useful to you as you focus in on the application process.
Ever wish someone from an admissions office would tell you exactly how to go about writing your college essay? Curious about the process of interviewing at a college or university?
I just got off the phone with my seventeen year old cousin who is inevitably freaking out. If you are a rising high school senior, like he is, you have a lot to think about. Face it, next year at this time you will have graduated from your respective high school and most likely will be attending college summer orientation. This upcoming year has a lot in store for you as you begin to finalize your college list, visit campuses, interview, write your essays, and send out numerous applications. You have a lot of goals that need to be set and prioritizing that has to be done. Trust me, if you work hard, everything will get done.
Summertime is finally here!