Personal Statement

Personal Statement

As a rising senior, the past three years of my academic career have centered on all aspects of the sciences. And although I don't regret any of the classes I have taken throughout college, I feel bound and restricted to a set curriculum. It's a feeling I want to break out from because I believe college can offer me so much more than just my studies. I've taken part in many extracurricular activities but at the same time I still feel unsatisfied because there are so many more things I want to experience before I graduate. There is one particularly rewarding experience that continues to drive me to go outside the boundaries of academia.

This past summer of 2006, I traveled to Costa Rica and Nicaragua to take part in a two-week medical mission trip. My time there was very fruitful Ð'- I spent every day in the scorching heat as a physician's assistant, packed medicine for the needy, took care of the native elders and infants. Yet aside from this very rewarding feeling, I was excited because I was learning about a new country, environment and lifestyle. And although I can barely speak a word of Spanish, my team and I would take daily trips to small and big cities, in an attempt to explore everything Costa Rice and Nicaragua had in store for us. I had learned a lot from the trip Ð'- from the way religion is practiced, how the school system is conducted and how people of different social classes live.

I believe that studying abroad in London will offer me the same, if not more than that of Costa Rice and Nicaragua. I have a soft spot for new cultures, foods, people and art. And knowing how much I can gain from this experience, I think I'd be a perfect way for me to end my undergraduate studies with a bang.