Blogging Scholarship by Snively '11
Last year Jess wrote about a blogging scholarship that she had entered and became a finalist in.
“Gee,” I thought, “A blogging scholarship. Well, I’m not a woman, a minority, I don’t have a parent in a particular industry, I’m not the smartest in my class or major, and I haven’t done anything Nobel Prize worthy, so I don’t really qualify for other scholarships, but I could definitely go for a blogging scholarship.”
Unfortunately, I heard about it just a bit late last year and couldn’t apply, which is probably for the better because Jess won $1,000 and probably would have bumped me out of the running. This year, however, I applied and after about a week of waiting the finalists were announced. With five times as many applicants as last year, I’m extremely excited to announce that I am one of the top twenty finalists!
Before I make my pitch I’d like to share my short essay that I submitted to apply.
My blogging began during my junior year of high school. Like the majority of angsty high schoolers, I started a blog because I was angry at life and felt like spilling my deepest, darkest secrets onto the Internet for everybody to read. Unlike the majority of angsty high schoolers, after I signed up for my blog I decided *not* to be angsty. Instead, I wanted to compile all of my most awesome stories, the coolest stuff I found on the Internet, and other random Internet fodder that I find entertaining. No drama, no gossip, no deep emotional musings. Entertainment, funny pictures, and stories. That’s it.
My personal blog was around for about two years before I started writing my blog for the MIT Admissions website. A lot of the blogs for MIT were very informative and very factual but not very fun to read. My goal? Write entries for MIT that not only were informative and factual, but also toed that line between appropriate and ridiculously off topic and random. I wanted people to *want* to read my blogs, to start and not be able to stop, to be entertained, but at the end feel like they know a little more about MIT. Maybe not directly, but sometimes the best information is absorbed indirectly and unknowingly.
My blog entries tell stories about eating contests, danger signs, snowball fights, LEGOs, toys, and all sorts of MIT’s lesser known tidbits. Sometimes I get yelled at for being off topic. I don’t care. I still strive to fill the Internet with awesome and will continue to do so on into the future.
So, that being said, if you can find it within you to do so, please vote for me. A $10,000 scholarship would be huge (MIT is kind of expensive). Here’s a link to the site where you can vote:
Voting ends at 11:59pm PST on Thursday, November 20th, 2008 so go out and vote! Thanks a ton you guys, I don’t mean to essentially blog a commercial but, well, I kind of am. I’ll make up for it, I promise : )
I voted for Obama and Snively!!
Just voted, looks like you’re in the lead by far!
Voted =)
So far you’re in the lead (26 votes), but do you know how many votes you need to win?
inspite of having a super slow dialup internet connection and that too over a bluetooth connection from a village in pakistan,
I managed to vote for u dude
ull make it
I voted for you, mainly because of that one entry with the hot dogs.
You will probably win Snively.
I was going to recommend sending emails to all of MIT and trying to do something like you all did with the VS Pink, but that would probably backfire.
What are some common Scholarships MIT students receive after admission to MIT?
Is there anything at MIT to help current students receive scholarships? (I’m not sure if this exists at any university)
Just voted ! Man, you’re second at present – 355 (16%) and that cameron guy’s got a whooping 50% !! People do something ! This ain’t done.. ! We’re applying to MIT, so gotta be competetive and WIN it !
Snively is leading with 99 votes from the total of 157.
nice.niw to read the entry
snively promising to make up.This should be a real treat.GO SNIVELY.I voted for you.
And this is quite amazing. MIT’s own Snively is winning without the use of a poll bombing script (although Victoria’s Secret shouldn’t have blocked MIT).
Blogglarship?
YAY SNIVELY!!!
(it took me awhile to find your name….I thought Snively was your first name )
48% of all of the votes!
I voted!
Snively: 45&
Come on everybody vote for the BEST blogger ever!
Hahahah, of course he’s winning since he already got into the top 20. The instant he posted the link on this website his victory was made at least 10 times more likely!
The only way one would be more likely to win is if they were some popular media figure that used the website with all of their personal material on it to blog (like LittleKuriboh).
And based on the current votes, they’re not XD
VOTE FOR SNIVELY!!! we can’t let cameron guy catch up!
Yowch, but someone just got flooded with votes somehow?!
VOTE! VOTE! VOTE! VOTE! VOTE! VOTE! VOTE! VOTE! VOTE! VOTE! VOTE! VOTE! VOTE! VOTE! VOTE! VOTE! VOTE! VOTE! VOTE! VOTE! VOTE! VOTE! VOTE! VOTE! VOTE! VOTE!
Guys you can also use a proxy like sureproxy.com to get more votes in!
@All
Ok, so the way to make this work is to get this link out to as many people as you can. This includes e-mail lists, friends, Facebook, blogs, etc. When it comes right down to it, it’s a popularity contest. NO POLL BOMBING! I want to do this legit and by the books. If it comes down to poll bombing (meaning other contestants start it up and the website doesn’t stop it) then I’ve got something worked out and we’ll be fine.
Here’s a new link that you should share WITH EVERYBODY!
http://tinyurl.com/VoteForSnively
Thanks so much for the help everybody, it’s very much appreciated!
Your winning even if it comes down to bombing the site. I have a script written already but I wont use it until its a neck and neck race!
Hey all – I’m “that Cameron guy” that got mentioned a few posts up. Looks like you all are big fans of this Snively fella here, so I say good luck to you sir – I hope you finish second…
I’ve already sent a note to the scholarship team asking if they’ve got a plan in place to prevent a “poll bomb”. I’d hate to see it come down to someone cheating, and I assure you, I won’t be part of anything like that.
Good luck, man. I know MIT isn’t cheap.
Go Snively! (: I voted
@David Cameron
A happy second place wished to you as well!
Turns out that I sent an e-mail to them as well asking what they were doing to prevent it. I’m glad to know that we’re on the same page. Trust me, there will be no poll bombing on this end.
Good luck, see you in 13 days!
Hah, 141 votes for you!
Someone’s on the way to being a winnar.
I’ve done what you’ve told me Snively. Vote for snively!
People need to stop being sheep, actually peruse all the other blogs, and make their decision of which is most deserving off of that.
A contest won via popularity through people and not popularity through best blog content – script or script-less – is hardly “legit.”
Voted for you. 174 votes!
Hey just voted..
Rock on Snively! nice blogs…
WHY ARE YOU LOSING?!!!!
I voted for you – you certainly deserve to win! Good luck.
SNIVELY WILL WIN! haha
Posted stuff everywhere! Cameron goes down! :D
Spread the word! Vote Snively!
People seem to enjoy baseball blogs much more than MIT blogs, judging from the votes.
You come a cool 2nd, Snively.
Fine, No poll bombing but seriously EVERYONE spread the word. And Snively you might also want to mention it on your personal blog to get more people active!
Guys you can:
1. Write about it on your own blog (if you have one)
2. Tell your friends
3. Facebook (Set it as your status & send messages)
Can’t you write a program thingie like you did for the victoria secrets competition
I find it kinda sad that there is so much mention of cheating here…..From a group of people I’d expect better from.
I’ve been a supporter of Cameron for years now, and have posted on my personal site asking people to check out his blog and vote…….and if you head over to his site, there is not one post mention ing cheating, like there is here.
I wish you well Mr Snively, but I have to say if you win I’m sure I wont be the only one questioning the vaildity of your win.
I voted for you… you are running second currently..!!!
go win snively..!!
@Capo
Snively is NOT asking anyone to cheat on his behalf. In fact, he is telling everybody not to. If he wins, it will be legit.
@Snively
I’ll try to spread the word to all my friends. As of right now you’re ~500 votes behind Cameron :/
I’m not accusing him of cheating. In the comments above he asks people not to resort to that type of behavior, which is admirable……I just see several posts advocating such behavior….asking for scripts, voting by proxy…..thats sad.
I got a girl from Egypt to vote for you woohoo, this is going international!!!!
I doubt the first guy used some illegal way to pull the poll. But, don’t worry, i vote for u!
@Capo
Yeah, so most of this is because of a recent Victoria’s Secret adventure we all had. All of the tech schools in an online competition for a custom clothing line all started running scripts and it turned into a little battle between tech schools and the Victoria’s Secret SysAdmins to see who could beat who. All friendly spirits and none of it against any rules expressed on the site. I’m just making sure people understand the differences between the two competitions.
That, and we also have a history of doing these kinds of things, see?
thats cool, I understand.
I would just hate to see a great guy like Dave, who gives so much to our community, lose because of something shady.
Plus, the boy just got married, and we all know expensive that can be.
Come on guys, spread the word were 1300 votes behind. Tell all your friends!
@Efolse:
We’re not voting for Snively just because we like him, we’re voting for him because he’s been an awesome blogger for years and we really enjoy his blogs. He’s the main reason that makes us check out the admissions site the first thing in the morning. I agree that we should see the other blogs, too but I just looked at “that cameron guy’s” blog and I still think Snively deserves winning the most…
@Snively
Good luck!!
Snively, just voted for you…whether you take first position or not, you still rock!(Don’t worry, we’ll get you to first:P)
@Everybody
Keep it civil please! Nobody is cheating. Dave has a huge and dedicated fan base. Please, instead of slinging around accusations, do something more productive. Accusatory and inflammatory comments have no place here and will be deleted.
I’m going to dinner now and there had better not be any fighting going on when I get back.
just voted!! good luck with this competition Michael. i took part last year in a blog competition here in my country(Greece) too. i didn’t won, but i was in the top ten.
sorry, Snively.
I like your physic problem!!
we still have two more week , good luck!
I will send to my friend.
I like your physic problem!!
we still have two more week , good luck!
I will send to my friend.
sorry, the first time they show me an error web page.. so send the second time.
@Stacy
I think I just need to be in the lead.
i disagree with just about everything you post, but I voted for you. I know that MIT ain’t cheap.
I voted for you, I really enjoy reading your blogs.
voted and my mom voted for you too…haha
i voted!
you have to win snively, you deserve that scholarship so much
So this has turned into an annual MIT blog tradition, eh? Good luck!
ur gonna win for sure
i love you
No worries, you’ve got it in the bag. You’re ahead 82 to 17 (the next highest guy). Keep it up!
just voted for you….winner for sure
pwned XD
Well, I did my part and voted for you, Snively. Good luck, man.
@Efolse ’11: Strategic voting. It’s not really about letting the one deserving the win winning, it’s about making the winner the one you believe would profit yourself and others. The others don’t really stand much of a chance anyway, sorry to say, so make the best use of your vote
just voted for you…winner for sure!
@Cam : Yeah i agree, people prefer baseball over the MIT blog…
Still got a huge gradient….11% to 45%….
I had not heard about this. Thanks for exposing me to some other top blogs.
I checked out the Mariners blog and actually some pretty interesting stuff. Sort of a mix between typical clubhouse reporting and hardcore sabermetrics. Its a good blog. That and the Mariners fan base is probably 10x that of MIT admissions for the last decade.
44 – 12!
Were catching up?
Oh Crud!
The Thomas Peters guy is catching up!
David Cameron:2711
Snively:753
OH NO!!
snively..u slipped to third spot….Thomas peter is on second now…
“I wanted people to *want* to read my blogs, to start and not be able to stop, to be entertained, but at the end feel like they know a little more about MIT. Maybe not directly, but sometimes the best information is absorbed indirectly and unknowingly.”
You bet. It’s very addictive. Not something my parents really like though.
Oh and I voted.
Best of luck Snively!
VOTED!!!
WTF… WERE 4TH!!!
EMAIL EVERYBODY YOU KNOW, GUYS!!!
Ok, 4th place, not cool, we can do so much better than this! I’ve e-mailed three local newspapers, 2 schools, and everybody at both parents’ offices. If everybody e-mails the principal of their school and their parents, we can get a huge boost.
Here’s how this works. David is a sports writer. That means he’s friends with other sports writers. That means they have readers, meaning they’re going to get A TON of votes.
I blog in academia, meaning any votes we get are going to be high school students and college students. As such, we need to tap the academia pool for all its worth. Middle schools, high schools, Facebook, Digg, Twitter, local newspapers, parents, anything and everything. Any little bit (or a lot bit) that you do to help is amazing. Please, just get this link out to everybody you know!
http://tinyurl.com/voteforsnively
i will make a post about you Snively on <a> Cogito </a> !! i did a post on my blog too!!
@ Snively
I have also messaged the admins of groups such as “MIT class of ’11” and “Only at MIT”. Try messageing everyone you know too.
But that’s not the important part. the important part is to make sure that they spread the word farther and farther. Just like a pyramid scheme.
@ Snively
Can you also write up a little blurb so that we can message anyone that might not know you!
Ehsan, just take the pic, which Michael has here, and put it on your website or Blog.
BLURB:
My name is Michael Snively and I’m currently a sophomore at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT). Here at MIT I write for the MIT admissions website as a blogger. http://www.mitadmissions.org/Snively.shtml My job is to tell about my experiences and day to day life here so that prospective students can learn what MIT is really like. I recently submitted my blog into a scholarship competition and out of several hundred entrants I was selected as one of the top twenty finalists. First prize is $10,000 while 2nd and 3rd are each $1,000. Winners are decided by a popular vote and I’m currently in 3rd place, trailing first by a large margin but not out of the running.
Please visit http://tinyurl.com/voteforsnively and vote for me and forward it to everybody that you know. Thank you so much for your help!
nice “blurb”, i will put it on Cogito.
Ehsan did post the text on Cogito. i will e-mail all of my friends!!
Come on guys think out side the box. Go to sites such as College Confidential, Yahoo Answers, Google Forums.
REMEMBER THAT VOTING IS ONLY HALF OF IT, SPREADING IT ON IS MUCH MORE IMPORTANT!
i just send an e-mail to some friends of mine!!
wow. I’m starting to believe that if I look hard enough, there will be a scholarship for me too.
Ah, a taste of Internet politics. Did Jess do well with the blogging scholarship last year?
Everybody Join this Group on Facebook:
JOIN!
Remember to invite ALL of your friends!
JUST VOTED.:-D
(Oh! You’re welcome)
Muz, time to buy some humble pie and a fork!
I feel like this is a little bit sketchy…I understand that the scholarship would be nice and all, but isn’t it kind of backwards to be recruiting people in every possible medium to vote for you? I guess it kind of seems like you’re asking people to vote for you because you’re their friend, not necessarily because your blogging is that awesome.
@ Anonymous- We’re voting for Snively b/c he the awesomest blogger ever, and b/c of that belief we are passing it on to our unfortunate friends who havent had the opportunity to read his blogs. We are doing the entire blogging community a service by ensuring that someone who totally deserves the scholarship (Snively) gets it. The reason i started reading the MIT blogs is b/c of Snively’s blogs, and b/c of that i am applying to MIT. If the blogs hadnt been amazing and shown me what cool stuff happens at MIT outside of the classroom, i probably wouldn’t be applying.
That being said, i’m posting the link on facebook, if i can figure out how to do it…
GOOD LUCK SNIVELY!!
*cough* shameless endorsements
Gee I have a really nasty cough, hope it doesn’t spread…
I really wish you the best.I’m a cameroonian by nationality currently in nigeria for studies but would like to one day make it in MIT
wishing you the best in your acaedemic career.please help me with all tips of being a student in MIT
Please tell me how to get into MIT????? Then I will vote for you.
please please please give us tips on how to increase our chances of getting into MIT…
Sometimes it’s hard to find that “passion” that you guys keep talking about.
How about you give us some tips on which doors to open and stuff?