Blogger selection 2008 results

Blogger selection 2008 results Trivia: Who was the first student blogger for MIT Admissions? And who is the most senior of the current student bloggers? [answer at the end of the entry] You may recall that last month we put out a call for new bloggers. The response was overwhelming: we received 48 applications. With a 12.5% blogger admit rate, it was almost as hard to be selected as a blogger as it was to be selected for MIT this year (11.9%)! Before we reveal this years new bloggers, Id like to share with you some of the excitement and agony of the application selection process. Some of the more interesting submissions were in response to short answer question #2. Of the 48 applicants, the majority of the applicants chose Option A: In a paragraph or two, describe to us a YouTube video, and why it is the single most important piece of art ever created. Here are the videos that were submitted, in a fairly random order: Large Hadron Rap Hear My Train A Comin (Acoustic) Jimi Hendrix Alive in Joberg Rick Roll #1 Girls are like MMs Family Guy clip Crank Dat Curry Sauce Music Video The Dove Self-Esteem Fund Since I Have Run I Hate Everyone Get Set Go Self Defense Where the Hell is Matt? Pulp Fiction in Typography [warning: swear words] Rick Roll #2 Black Screen Randy Pausch Last Lecture: Achieving Your Childhood Dreams Cert Wi-Fi feat. Sigma Beta Busta Chi Here It Goes Again OK Go The 5th Avocado Gnarls Barkley Whos Gonna Save My Soul? Kerri Strugs Gold Medal Vault Yo! Gabba Gabba Party In My Tummy Korean Breakdancing to a Modern Remix of Canon in D by Pachelbel Rick Roll #3 FREE HUGS in HOLLYWOOD! Paintjam Dan Dunn Test Your Awareness Snowball Our Dancing Cockatoo A History of Evil Japanese Penguin Goes Shopping Christmas Lights Crazy Indian Video Buffalaxed! Daft Hands Harder, Better, Faster, Stronger The remaining applicants chose Option B: Create and submit MIT Admissions blog-related Lolcats (or Lolbeavers, or Lolsnivelys, or). Here are the Lolcats, again in a fairly random order: Having reviewed all of the YouTube videos, Lolcats, and the more substantial parts of the application, the committee which this year consisted of myself, Laura, Lulu, Mikey 05, and Kim 86 assembled and had some very tough discussions. In many ways, it was like the MIT freshman admissions committee; probably the biggest similarity was how there were so many good candidates but so few spaces. Our discussions were certainly spirited, but in the end, we were all thrilled with the new bloggers we chose. Sadly, there were many, many awesome bloggers we werent able to hire. It was hard to let go. Thank you all for applying! Without further ado, here are the new student bloggers: Kim D. 09 Cristen C. 10 Ahmed H. 12 Chris M. 12 Shannon M. 12 Yan Z. 12 They complement the returning student bloggers: Laura N. 09 Lulu L. 09 Jess K. 10 Keri G. 10 Paul B. 11 Chris S. 11 Snively 11 Look for a future entry with a rundown of the full 2008-09 blogger roster. This is going to be an exciting year! Trivia answer: Mitra 07 was the original student blogger she and I share the same blogiversary, August 6, 2004. If you havent read any of her entries, I recommend going back and reading them! Ditto for Laura 09, the most senior of the current student bloggers. Respect the Laura!