This is my actual college essay, which I submitted to Harvard, MIT, Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute, and Johns Hopkins. It is the fourth essay on the Common Application: Describe a character in fiction, an historical figure, or a creative work (as in art, music, science, etc.) that has had an influence on you, and explain that influence. Writing a college essay was also a mandatory assignment in Senior AP English; I got a very good grade. I also got into RPI and their 7-year medical program with Albany Medical College.
One of my greatest personal role models is the fictional character of Dana Scully from the TV show The X-Files. She has influenced me in my choice of medicine as a career, and has served as an example to me of a career woman and scientist. She is unique as a strong female role model on television.
Scully went to medical school to become a doctor and then joined the FBI, even though her family was against it, feeling that she was wasting her training. In addition to medicine she studied physics, giving her a wide range of sciences from which to draw information. She went on to use her medical and scientific knowledge in many situations when her life and her partner's were at risk, as well as to help victims of the crimes she investigates. Scully is a forensic pathologist foremost, using most of her medical expertise to conduct autopsies and review crime scene evidence rather than to simply treat injured people. She helped me become interested in the field of medicine by making me see that there is more to do with a doctorate of medicine than one would normally imagine. Most women interested in becoming a doctor are more concerned with the doctoring part of medicine, in treating patients, than in research and technical applications of medicine. She shows that medicine can be used outside of a clinical setting by working in many more wide-ranging applications of medicine, such as running a Southern Blot DNA test rather than having a lab do it for her, identifying and treating supposed alien viruses, emergency medical treatment in the field (her partner tends to get injured frequently), and crime scene analysis. Scully manages to do all this and remain determined to do her job even after getting shot, stepping in unidentified alien goo, and almost dying of a rare form of cancer. Her pride in her career has inspired me to pursue my interest in similar scientific fields.
Scully is also an example of a strong woman in the daunting field of law-enforcement, which is dominated by men. As a female she is often looked down upon by other law-enforcement agents or treated as if she cannot take care of herself. Yet despite her short stature and tendency to wear high heels at all times, she is always able to take care of herself and frequently ends up rescuing others who have been more reckless. She has a no-nonsense attitude and carries herself well, giving an aura of certainty even when she is unsure of herself. I also admire her fashion sense; she takes particular care to dress professionally and attractively at the same time, which is often hard to do when following a strict dress code established by men.
Scully balances religion and science, belief and skepticism. In her investigations into the paranormal with her partner she is often confronted with things she cannot explain. I admire her because her first thought is always of how to provide a rational explanation for these events. She tries to tone down some of the crazier or more illogical explanations her partner provides, and more often than not she is right. In addition to her efforts to explain as much as she can with science and logic, she is comfortable with her Catholic faith, which allows her to accept things for which she has absolutely no explanation. Her spiritual side provides her with a deep sense of justice and rightness, and lets her put faith in a higher power when she herself feels powerless.
As a young woman interested in a career in medicine, I have found few strong female role models on television and in the movies. Dana Scully is unique among female characters in that she is a scientist, relying on her intelligence rather than her looks or her charm.