2 Georgia Tech Essay Examples
Georgia Institute of Technology is one of the foremost schools in the country for STEM-related majors, such as computer science, engineering, and mathematics. Situated in Atlanta, there are plenty of opportunities for students to get real-world experience in their field through internships and study abroad. While writing any college essay can be intimidating, admissions officers at Georgia Tech are especially selective, so make sure your essays are top notch! In this post, we will be going over two essays real students submitted to Georgia Tech. In addition, we will explain what each essay did well and where they could improve to inspire your writing. Please note: Looking at examples of real essays students have submitted to colleges can be very beneficial to get inspiration for your essays. You should never copy or plagiarize from these examples when writing your own essays. Colleges can tell when an essay isn’t genuine and will not view students favorably if they plagiarized. Read our Georgia Tech essay breakdown to get a comprehensive overview of this year’s supplemental prompts. Prompt: Why do you want to study your chosen major specifically at Georgia Tech? (300 words max) I held my breath and hit RUN. Yes! A plump white cat jumped out and began to catch the falling pizzas. Although my Fat Cat project seems simple now, it was the beginning of an enthusiastic passion for computer science. Four years and thousands of hours of programming later, that passion has grown into an intense desire to explore how computer science can serve society. Every day, surrounded by technology that can recognize my face and recommend scarily-specific ads, I’m reminded of Uncle Ben’s advice to a young Spiderman: “with great power comes great responsibility”. Likewise, the need to ensure digital equality has skyrocketed with AI’s far-reaching presence in society; and I believe that digital fairness starts with equality in education. The unique use of threads at the College of Computing perfectly matches my interests in AI and its potential use in education; the path of combined threads on Intelligence and People gives me the rare opportunity to delve deep into both areas. I’m particularly intrigued by the rich sets of both knowledge-based and data-driven intelligence courses, as I believe AI should not only show correlation of events, but also provide insight for why they occur. In my four years as an enthusiastic online English tutor, I’ve worked hard to help students overcome both financial and technological obstacles in hopes of bringing quality education to people from diverse backgrounds. For this reason, I’m extremely excited by the many courses in the People thread that focus on education and human-centered technology. I’d love to explore how to integrate AI technology into the teaching process to make education more available, affordable, and effective for people everywhere. And with the innumerable opportunities that Georgia Tech has to offer, I know that I will be able to go further here than anywhere else. The strongest part of this essay is the hook. It captures the attention of the reader and immediately draws them into the story. Yet, still, the reader is left with a desire to know how the anecdote ends; this sets a great flow and general outline for the essay. Another important aspect of the in medias res technique is how to “zoom out” from the story to the main point of the essay in a way that remains personal to the author. This essay does this very well by tying the computer game into the student’s passion for computer science in the second sentence. This essay also does a great job of answering the prompt. “Threads” are something unique to the College of Computing at Georgia Tech, and this student makes it clear that the path they want to pursue is only possible through this program. We can also see their personality shine through in this essay. This student is someone who is invested in equality and justice, as evidenced by the reference to Spiderman, their past as an English tutor, and their interest in the People thread. This essay does a good job covering the basics of the prompt, but it could be elevated with more nuance and detail. The biggest thing missing from this essay is a strong core to tie everything together. And no, the student’s major is not enough of a core. So what do we mean? We want to see a common theme, anecdote, or motivation that is weaved throughout the entire essay to connect everything. Take the Spiderman quote for example. If this was expanded it could have been the perfect core for this essay. Underlying this student’s interest in AI is a passion for social justice, so they could have used the quote about power and responsibility to talk about existing injustices with AI and how once they have the power to create AI they will act responsibly and help affected communities. They are clearly passionate about equality of education, but there is a disconnect between education and AI that comes from a lack of detail. To strengthen the core of the essay, this student needs to include real-world examples of how AI is fostering inequities in education. This takes their essay from theoretical to practical. In addition to establishing a current issue, they also need to include concrete details about their aspirations, more than simply a hope to “integrate AI technology into the teaching process.” Bringing details to every level of your essay makes it infinitely easier for your reader to conceptualize what you are saying, thus allowing them to see how the entire essay fits together as one. Prompt: Why do you want to study your chosen major specifically at Georgia Tech? (300 words max) Climate change is a human rights issue. There the headline was, screaming on my phone screen. I think about those suffering from a lack of clean water. I think about those suffering from a lack of clean air. I often think back to that headline – it’s what drives my passion for environmental engineering. As an environmental engineer, I can mitigate air pollution and design water treatment systems that address the water injustices that people face. However, it’s not just about creating a technology that cleans water; it’s about changing people’s lives. New technologies can make a lasting difference in humanitarian issues worldwide; Georgia Tech’s research on creating a toilet that turns human waste into clean water for those in need of improved sanitation aligns perfectly with my interests. At Georgia Tech, through the student-led organization, Engineers for a Sustainable World and the InVenture Prize, I can translate the knowledge gained from my classes into a concrete vision. I can design and implement hands-on sustainability projects around Atlanta and invent a water sanitation system for the on-site acquisition of clean water. Georgia Tech can also provide me with ample research opportunities, such as the broad area of Healthy Communities in the School of Civil and Environmental Engineering. I can further pursue my interest in developing solutions to deliver clean water while welcoming new areas of inquiry. An area I would like to explore would be the controlling of dangerous matter in the air to reduce health hazards; reducing the impact of climate change is of utmost importance to me. Studying environmental engineering at Georgia Tech would well prepare me to develop solutions to climate-related issues. With the countless opportunities that Georgia Tech has to offer, I know there is nowhere else where I can receive a better environmental engineering education. This essay immediately tells the reader exactly what this student is passionate about with the attention-grabbing phrase “Climate change is a human rights issue,” and each subsequent line delivers on that statement. The student was true to themself and picked a particular environmental issue that they cared about—clean water—and they thoroughly demonstrated how they will make that their primary goal at Georgia Tech. Choosing one specific issue that you care deeply about and finding unique programs at a school that directly relate to your social problem makes for a vastly stronger essay than one that generally talks about climate change and the need to address it. Because this student honed in on clean water, they could talk about the sanitation toilet designed by Georgia Tech (demonstrating a high level of research on the school), Engineers for a Sustainable World (showing the hands-on experience they will gain with water sanitation), and the intersection of their interest with the topic of Healthy Communities (illustrating their intellectual curiosity). This student knows exactly what they want and how Georgia Tech will get them there. Their direct tone makes them sound confident, driven, and determined to make the world a better place. The biggest thing that stands out in this essay is the lack of a personal connection to the student. Especially when they begin the essay with a statement that climate change affects human rights, meaning the rights of everyone, it is ironic that this student never discusses their personal rights. Instead, they “think about those suffering from a lack of clean water” and the “water injustices that people face.“ One downside of separating yourself from a global humanitarian issue like climate change is that it paints you as a savior, which isn’t always received in the best light. Even more importantly, you miss out on the perfect chance to include personal anecdotes and your emotions—the best way to reveal your character to admissions officers! Rather than telling us how this student thinks about others suffering, they should have shared a story about the polluted water in a nearby stream they can’t swim in or acid rain that corroded the playground that was a staple of their childhood. These are just examples, but they get at the idea of including concrete examples about the way polluted water has personally affected this child and the mental toll seeing the world around them be threatened has on them. Do you want feedback on your Georgia Tech essays? After rereading your essays countless times, it can be difficult to evaluate your writing objectively. That’s why we created our free Peer Essay Review tool, where you can get a free review of your essay from another student. You can also improve your own writing skills by reviewing other students’ essays. If you want a college admissions expert to review your essay, advisors on CollegeVine have helped students refine their writing and submit successful applications to top schools. Find the right advisor for you to improve your chances of getting into your dream school!Essay Example #1
What the Essay Did Well
What Could Be Improved
Essay Example #2
What the Essay Did Well
What Could Be Improved
Where to Get Your Georgia Tech Essays Edited
