This summer, I’m working at a couple of different jobs, including one at a doctor’s office. I know it sounds cool (and it is), but sometimes I find myself zoning out while patient charts are loading on my screen. It’s not uncommon for me to stare at my hands when this happens (no judging!). The other day, I ended up staring at my fingerprints and I noticed that they make this cool wavy pattern. At first, I figured that the pattern they made was ordinary—after all, I’ve had the same finger prints all my life, so I’m pretty well accustomed to them. After a while, I realized that there is nothing ordinary about them. Humans share 99% of their DNA (give or take) with each other, yet we all manage to have completely unique sets of fingerprints. Even identical twins have slightly different fingerprints. Our prints are so unique, that we can be identified out of millions of people in a database!
If you are anything like me, you sometimes forget that you do really cool, unique things. When I give tours, I listen to the introductions that my fellow guides give and I am in awe of how awesome they all are. They do research, have ridiculous internships, and have time to double major with tons of extracurriculars added on too. Then, I remember that I do all of that kind of stuff too. Take some time over the next few months to look at yourself and figure out the things that make you “you.” Those things are your fingerprints. They are the traits that make you stand out in crowd, and in a pool of college applications.
A couple of days ago, the Common App officially opened. Soon, and I know it is hard to believe this, you guys will be applying to the schools that you hope to go to a year from now. At Tufts, the application has this awesome supplement, and I recommend that you take it as an opportunity to show off your prints (figuratively, since the application is online and you would have to scan your fingerprints in order to actually submit them). Show the admissions office who you are and what makes you stand out as a person from all the other people who are applying here too!