Essay Samples - Why Tufts

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Why Tufts?

Looking for examples of past college essays that worked? These are some admissions essays that our officers liked best from last year.

This question is one of the most important questions we ask in our process. We want to admit students who are excited to join the Tufts community, so when we ask them 'Why Tufts?', we really care about their responses. This question helps us envision them here as Jumbos!

*Please note that the word count for different years has varied, from 150-250 words maximum! For 2019-2020, the count is 100-150.

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Sofia Leyva-Castro '23
Orlando, FL

I find it beyond fascinating that while endless multitudes of stars may seem like no more than bright dots on the sky, they are actually massive bodies of gas many light years away--each with a life of its own. They come in a variety of ages, colors and temperatures; yet, at the end of the day, they all come together to form a perfect scenery and delight humanity with its preciosity--and that is exactly what Tufts University represents to me. In Tufts, brilliant minds and passionate hearts; regardless of baggage, limitations or identities; come together to form a competitive yet collaborative community; one in which individuals bring out only the best of themselves—their light--and use it to contribute to in the best way that they can.

I value a college community in which individuals are different from one another, learn from one another and enrich one another. The diversity and sense of acceptance that characterizes Tufts University makes it the perfect place to break out of one's comfort zone and dare to try new things, maybe even take risks. From study abroad opportunities, to cultural clubs, student activism, and even theater would provide me with an amazing chance to do just that--expand my horizons. Being able to engage in these student organizations and programs are what most excite me about Tufts. Tufts is the place where engineers fall in love with theater and lawyers learn to play the piano--where there are no limits to imagination, nor to opportunities.

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Zachary Goldstein '23
Scarsdale, NY

Music inspires my interest in engineering. Whenever I play with an ensemble, our common purpose is to decipher the complex emotions that underlie a piece of music, recreate those emotions with our instruments, and transfer them to the audience. This process of collective interpretation fills me with joy, but it also renders me desperately curious as to why music is so profoundly stirring.

The answer is simple: the laws of nature. To understand music theory is to understand acoustics, resonance, material science, and fluid dynamics. Engineering explains how various natural phenomena combine to create beauty. The interdisciplinary approach to education provided at the Tufts School of Engineering mirrors my personal approach to understanding the world.

Jumbo engineers enjoy a balanced education that emphasizes research while providing extraordinary liberal arts instruction. As such, Tufts alumni are better equipped to compete and lead in the modern global community. The flexibility of the engineering program will leave me ample time to explore my other passions, so I can pursue a BS in engineering in tandem with another major or minor in another area of interest. The School of Engineering also offers ABET-Accredited BS degrees in Mechanical Engineering and Electrical Engineering, should I choose to narrow my focus.

As a founding member and four-year president of the Edgemont Robotics Club, I would feel at home in the collaborative and competitive atmosphere of the Tufts Robotics Club. I hope to help bring home the fifth consecutive win at the Trinity College Fire Fighting Robot Contest!

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Jonathan Marc Leon-Salans '20
Chevy Chase, MD

The Super Show was, for me, the defining moment of the Voices of Tufts program. From students “Banging Everything At Tufts” to slam poetry, and from African to Indian dance, Tufts' amazing diversity was on full display. People from all different backgrounds were not only performing in the show but also watching it, and all of us were having the best time. It was clear to me that, at Tufts, differences are not only accepted, but celebrated. It was the moment I realized Tufts is the place for me. On no other campus have I felt so welcome and embraced.

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Yang Lowe '21
Beijing, China

I never imagined I would be talking to Jumbos about everything from ethics in politics to squid in bibimbap, but my conversations with students during my visit confirmed everything I love about the school. Tufts is a uniquely curious, playful and collaborative platform that exudes intellectual diversity like none other. I can study anything from genetics to psychology, and pursue anything from the Entrepreneurship to the Culinary Society. As a metal guitarist who enjoys woodworking and reading up on human behavior, I've never felt like I fit neatly into one category. At Tufts, I won't have to.

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Jesse Ryan ’21
Concord, MA

I spent my Tufts campus visit in a "Sociology of War and Peace" class. The discussion was rich as ideas were tossed back and forth, comparing and contrasting modern warfare in different regions and cultures.  The dialogue instantly excited me, but when the students I was sitting with invited me to come to lunch with them, to continue talking about the Middle Eastern conflict, I knew that Tufts was the kind of environment I was looking for: an open community that values dialogue, and a campus with a strong intellectual pulse, even outside of the classroom.

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Isaac Joon-hyuk Choi ’21
Saint Joseph, MO

As an artist, I believe that one's work should reflect the world beyond it. Thus, I'm most attracted to Tufts SMFA's combination of rigorous artistic study with a challenging liberal arts curriculum at the School of Arts and Sciences. I want to inform my art-making with in-depth exploration of sociology, justice, and international relations, creating works that comment on global issues--a prospect uniquely possible at Tufts SMFA. With numerous opportunities for combining art and community work on campus and in Boston, the SMFA program shows art isn't only meant for the classroom; it's meant for the world.

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Plearn Arronchote ’21
Bangkok, Thailand

I'm not a picky person, but in the college search, I sure was. Luckily, I found Tufts, a school that checked every box.

At Tufts, the many facets of my personality will be embraced. I can be an environmental engineer who does research in the Water: Systems, Science and Society program, takes US Foreign Policy in the Middle East, and stage-manages a musical. At Tufts, an institution that celebrates interdisciplinary learning, my diverse interests won't be met with judgmental indifference. Instead, they will be encouraged by peers who are just as enthusiastic about pretty much everything as I am.

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Yarmina Kamal ’21
Mesa, AZ

I fell in love with Tufts Engineering because of its extended focus on society. With the school's emphatic value on civic engagement and a larger global conversation, the engineering program allows me to supplement my profound fascination for math and physics with my impassioned value on service and learning. My love for the world and for its people empowers me. I see this same kind of love reflected within the Tufts community, which is why I know with wholehearted certainty that Tufts University is where I belong in order to be both the engineer and person I aspire to be.

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Esther Tzau ’21
Weston, MA

As a girl interested in computer science it's common when visiting university websites to utter "you go, girl" to the lone female faculty member smiling proudly amidst a male-dominated CS department. However, Tufts is a unique community that not only encourages minorities in STEM, but actively recruits female faculty like the spunky and inspirational activist/engineer/professor/entrepreneur Dr. Laney Strange, who I met at Girls Who Code. With my passions ranging from multimedia art to Latin American culture to CS, Tufts excites me since it's where diverse interests are celebrated and where I can have stimulating conversations with anyone I meet on campus.