Huang Sixuan
Class 2021
NYU Tisch School of the Art, Film & TV
A Proverbial Fork in the Road
When first entering the Affiliated High School of Peking University, I was dazzled by the colorful campus life. Despite believing I was on a clear path studying art, narrowing my focus remained a daunting task, and I wasn’t quite certain how to approach it.
When entering senior one, if I had stepped down the path of studying film and animation, then I would have participated in student associations and drama festivals such as Steel Piano. However, at that time, I was more intrigued by games and graphic design, so I decided to join the Boiling Egg Design Club. My involvement entailed designing posters and surroundings for activities inside and outside the school. The club has long served as a launch pad for many of the school's talented artists and designers. There I acquainted myself with seniors who had similar goals, interests, and hobbies. Many members now form my network of contacts; bringing me luck in the form of opportunities that have allowed me to expand my network and harness other valuable skills.
The Affiliated High School of Peking University's curriculum has a very high degree of freedom, which provides me ample time to pursue my interests. I have participated in a number of film and entertainment design workshops, which have significantly enriched my high school experience. Under the guidance of my teacher, I gradually charted an increasingly clear path for my high school journey. After attending the Rhode Island Institute of Design (RISD) Summer School during my sophomore summer vacation, I gravitated towards studying animation and film.
Do More, Worry Less
As my goal became more well defined, I became increasingly anxious. I wanted to apply to the art school of a comprehensive university, which led me to worry that my scores couldn't satisfy all of their rigid requirements. Although I had maintained a high GPA in school, I was thrown off by the SAT test that was delayed due to the epidemic. Before the test, I set aside plenty of time to study for the SAT, had prepared papers, and even drafted a collection of useful materials. Disappointingly, my thorough preparation and readiness for the exam was thwarted by its abrupt cancellation. As a result of the epidemic situation, school time in the second half of senior two was halved, there was a lack of standardized results, and there were fewer opportunities to participate in activities that could have added to our resumes. Looking at my empty resume, I regretted not planning earlier. When comparing my application with the plethora of successful application cases shared on social media, I questioned whether or not I would be a successful applicant.
I was constantly thinking about this up to the second before receiving my offer from ED school. In hindsight, I realize that I had done enough. My GPA looked good, and my TOEFL score had passed the line. What about all of the worry surrounding SAT scores? In the end they were required by none of my top choices.
In the Boiling Egg Design Club, the campus meme and emoji designed by my team has been disseminated to over 10,000 users. Over the past year, as a team leader, I had a new understanding of the word leadership.
Due to the epidemic, I wasn't involved in many school activities, but I participated in the RISD Summer School as well as film workshop lectures at Columbia University. There, I discovered the type of art I really wanted to focus on. Although I didn't have much in-person school time in the second semester of senior two, I communicated frequently online with my teachers, leveraging this opportunity to enrich my independent research project (IRP). That was the first time I explored the field of artificial intelligence (AI) from the perspective of art. Just when I thought there was no new angle left to view art from, I was awed of the new lens that AI provided. Although it was too late to participate in more extracurricular activities and competitions, my time at home gave me enough time to enrich my collection of works and put aside successful cases. I found that these experiences were more than enough to answer all the questions of university admissions officers. I was a already a well-prepared applicant.
To review and summarize my high school life: not special, not too outstanding, but very rich and interesting. I want to enter the art school of a comprehensive university and become a cross-border commercial artist. I made this sentence the subject of my application, confident that my harnessed skills and range of experiences spoke to the sincerity of my interest in reaching this goal.
The Affiliated High School of Peking University is the cradle of all people with dreams. Thanks to the countless possibilities we are offered, our dreams are coming true.
刚进北大附中的时候,我被多姿多彩的校园生活弄花了眼。虽然对未来有一个大致的方向(艺术),但通向重点的路太多了,一时间不知道该如何选择。
如果当时就决定自己将来要学习电影和动画,那么我就会在高一一入学就参加钢的琴等学生社团和戏剧节。但当时的我正对游戏和平面设计着迷,于是我参加了水煮蛋设计社团,为校内外活动设计海报、周边等。在水煮蛋的生活非常充实,这里聚集了北大附中的艺术家和设计师们。我认识了很多和我有同样目标的学长学姐,还有兴趣爱好相似的同龄人,获得更多宝贵的资源。
北大附中的课程设置自由度非常高,给了我很多空闲时间做喜欢的事情。我会参加电影和娱乐设计workshop等,来充实我的生活。在老师的指点下,我逐渐对高中生活有了更清晰的规划。在参加完高二暑假的罗德岛设计学院夏校之后,我决定学习动画和电影。
随着目标越来越清晰,我也越来越焦虑。因为想要申请综合类大学的艺术学院,我担心自己的标化成绩不能满足要求。虽然在学校维持了较高的GPA,但由于疫情而不断推迟的SAT考试让我迷茫。我放弃了做作品集和准备文书的时间来学SAT,最终考试却取消了。由于疫情,标化成绩缺失,高二下半学期的在校时光也被减半,参加活动增加履历的机会越来越少。看着自己空空的简历,有些后悔为什么没有早点做计划。对比社交媒体上的成功申请案例分享,这样的我是不是无法成为一个成功的申请者?
直到收到ED学校的offer的前一秒我还在思考这个问题。但实际上,当我回过头细数自己做过的每一件事,会发现自己已经做的足够多了。我的GPA看起来还不错,托福成绩也已经过线。SAT成绩?申请的院校都不需要。
在水煮蛋设计社团,我和我的团队制作的校园表情包在微信平台发送量过万。一年以来,作为组长也让我对leadership这个词有了新的认知。由于疫情和其他原因,我没有抓住四大赛事的机会,但我参加了罗德岛设计学院的夏校和哥伦比亚大学讲师的电影workshop,并找到了我真正想要学习的艺术。高二下学期虽然没有多少在校时间,我和老师们频繁的线上交流,并利用这段空闲丰富了我的独立研究项目(IRP)—— 这是我第一次从艺术的角度探索人工智能领域,并以一个新的逻辑看待我熟悉到不能再熟悉的视觉艺术。虽然来不及参加更多校外活动和比赛,在家的时光让我有足够时间丰富作品集,这些经历足以回答大学招生官的所有问题了。
回顾和总结我的高中的生活:不特别、也不那么出类拔萃,但非常充实有趣。我想进入综合类大学的艺术学院,成为一个跨界的商业艺术家。我把这句话作为申请的主题,我高中生活的每一件事都可以成为它的论据。
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