[quote=@Tearstone]
Ok, I know of myself and at least one other that are interested in this. I balked at first with all the information in the first few posts. I was worried about rigidity more than anything. 

I do have some questions though. 

In the letter sample from the Headmaster to the character in question, it only mentioned 'gifted'. He never said mutants. If mutants and mutant types are being persecuted (and the one I have in mind was, by his own family even) ... How likely do you think it's going to be that this kid (who's got a genius level intelligence, a side effect of his powers) will divulge them to a 'Prestigious' academy? A new age of education is one thing, but with the fear and prejudice against mutant-kind in the world, I think it unlikely that this would be openly mentioned in a formal application. Something that could be subpena'd by a court, or collected as intelligence by a military force. 

The original version of this character (and the current version) would worry that this wasn't a disguised 'roundup' attempt. So, according to the verbiage of the acceptance letter, what would prompt him/her to divulge that they have any powers at all?

This particular character would also wonder why he/she got the application in the first place. They don't see themselves as special, or unique (outside of their abilities which they keep hidden as much as possible). They don't see themselves as 'gifted' and would look at the application as suspect. This might well come through in the application. He might not apply certain verbiage which would render his app in a more positive light. Or he could even possibly fill it out in a sloppy or lazy way. This could be looked at as though he feels that it's not serious, not a challenge, and/or that it's fake. Or that his chances of getting in are minimal. (Considering he or she didn't complete high school, and dropped out.) And as he considers himself average (even though he's actually far from it), I'm sure this would show in his application (even if it were to be misleading, unless someone took a very close look, or perhaps used a psychic ability such as Psychometry on it)

This world view may also be a side effect of Depression. (A side thought)

And depending on which version (if they were on the run, homeless, etc) they'd wonder how they'd been found, and/or noticed. 
[/quote]

Thanks for the interest. I'm sorry if the information we put together intimidated you. 

Most of your questions relate to the letter, so I will address that first. I will note, however, that all of this information is on the first page. Since PEACE came into power, it has become obvious to mutantkind that, despite doing a lot of good for mutants, the government seems reluctant to highly publicise any of their mutant affairs. Everything is done on the "down low", which is why the school has been re-opened with a name that doesn't attract too much attention. It is also for this reason that the invitation letter 'beats around the bush' and does not explicitly mention mutants or mutations. 

It is not clear to any of the mutants how they are found. They are free to speculate and theorise however they please, but ultimately it does not change the fact that, regardless of how it got here, they have an offer. How are they going to respond?

The character application process is structured the way it is for very specific reasons, and one of these reasons is that we wanted all the characters to want to improve themselves. This isn't to say they can't be attending the school reluctantly or with an air of cynicism, but the idea is that at each student's core they recognise a lack of control and want to work towards fixing this. And they've actively chosen to pursue this by enrolling at the academy, however unappealing it may be.

He Who Walks Behind's submission was an exception to the rule based on his character's background, but we won't afford the same luxury to a character who doesn't fill out the form properly on the grounds that they don't want to, or they are sceptic. Put yourself in your character's shoes when filling in the application form and ask yourself one question: "Do they want to be accepted by the school?"

If the answer is yes, consider how they would 'sell themselves' in their application to better their chances of success. Note that the school isn't looking for people with perfect pasts, they are looking for real youngsters who need their help and guidance. But they're also not looking for students who are going to be deliberately destructive and who might distract others from their education. It goes without saying that, as this is an official document, it should be filled in professionally if the character expects to be accepted by the institute. 

If the answer is no, it is likely they would stuff the letter into a drawer, where it would inevitably be forgotten about until used some weeks later to doodle on whilst waiting for something to download. 

[hr]

Shard and I are going through the revised applications and will post feedback shortly.