When I Dropped Out At 20, My Sister Told Everyone: “She’s The One Who Didn’t Finish.” Twelve Years Later, I’m Yale’s Dean Of Admissions. One Essay Read: “My Family Moved Past My Aunt’s Setback.” The Name? Amanda Chen. My Niece. I Picked Up My Red Pen And…

to be perfect because perfection was the only kind of womanhood her mother seemed to recognize as safe. Perfect grades, perfect résumé, perfect obedience, perfect practicality. She had assumed, she said, that to avoid becoming Rachel she had to become the opposite of Rachel. Then she discovered that my life was not a ruin but a radical act of authorship.continue reading …