College Admissions Essay: Who Am I?

There have been labels placed upon me throughout my life. Some have stayed with me while others have dropped off. Without these labels ruling how people see me I feel like I would be more free to do things than I am now.

Ever since I was little I have aspired to be something great in life, a chef, a pro. soccer player, and an artist. I still hold on to those dreams in hopes they will come true. All of these dreams shape who I am today. I play soccer for “Charlotte Soccer Academy” and previously for the “Waddell Soccer Team”. Both have kept me being a team player and a stronger leader. I go to visual arts camp over the summer and try to use creativity at any moment possible. I love making cupcakes and baking which also allow me to be creative. I have finally realized that all of these dreams originated from my family. I pursued soccer, like my parents did throughout their lives. I continue drawing, like my mother and father did until it became their life and jobs. I am still love making cakes and cupcakes every weekend, just like how i've seen my grandmother make them. Life has a very strange and mind-boggling way of turning out. I know that sounds cheesy, but it is really true.

“We know what we are, but not what we may be” (William Shakespeare). Life is full of unexpected surprises you never know what life will bring or take away from you, so cherish every moment you have. You got to have limits, goals and aspirations to go somewhere in life. There will be obstacles and struggles that you will have to go through but those moments are what make you who you are. In my life I’ve learned, heard and seen several things that have made me who I am today. For those reasons I have set myself limits, goals and aspirations that I wish to accomplish throughout my life. In one word, I would describe myself to be ambitious! I always set some kind of goals towards myself.

What makes me unique? This is a question that many people may ask themselves over the years. Upon pondering upon it, I realized that a lot of us our the same, especially in a school setting. We wake up, eat breakfast, go to all of our classes and go home. Even extra curricular have an abundant amount of people attending. So what makes us unique? Looking around and thinking about students, nothing obvious stands out. So I started looking at commonalities. Most people love gossip, so rumors are always a hot topic in a highschool. Upon thinking about rumors, it really shows how much people are judged by these stigmas made by other people. What makes me different from other people is my ability to never believe rumors.

One success that makes me who I am is learning to sing. I love music, and I especially love to sing. The feeling I get when I sing is unlike any other. I feel more connected to the world. Sometimes I feel as though I’ve always been able to sing. This, however, is not the case. My mom is really into singing, she likes to make up songs as she goes about what she’s doing. When I was little, I loved to hear her sing, and would request certain songs. Mom tried to teach me how to sing myself, but I just couldn’t seem to get it. One day, as we were walking in a Walmart parking lot, Mom sang the scales from The Sound of Music, and I managed to sing it too. I was off pitch, but after that, Mom was able to teach me how to sing. Learning how to sing was a really big success for me. Being in chorus and singing are integral parts of who I am today, and through singing I’ve learned important lessons, such as following directions, when to open my mouth (and when to keep it shut), and most importantly, how to empathize

I will never have my father’s smile or my mother’s eyes. My skin tone will also never match their pale skin even though I am their daughter. Although my siblings and I are all adopted from China, growing up in this unique family dynamic played an integral role in my development. I have grown to realize my ethnicity and upbringing are not labels used by my peers to define me. My background has helped me push through social barriers to build friendships. It challenged me to impel beyond the world’s “black and white” boundaries to see a society that thrives on diversity. My multicultural background equipped me with experiences that gave me a new perspective on privilege and responsibility, preparing me to overcome obstacles in the global industry

I like to think of myself as an incredibly unique individual, and you can ask anyone that knows me personally and they would agree. I’m intelligent, have an interesting cultural background, have an awesome personality, and am a good people person. These are the traits that describe me and in order to fully understand who I am as a person, it is necessary to know them. First, there is my intellect.

I have always been fascinated with the human condition. As far as I can remember, a lot of my most interesting trains of thoughts and conversations with others have revolved around dissecting the human condition and discussing the anxieties and insecurities that bring us great guilt but at the same time propel many of our actions and schemes for self-actualization. To me, this is the most defining trait of my identity. Even though it is not a trait I always choose or am able to express openly, I consider this interest, and the values that it spawns, to be more important to my identity than anything about me that external forces can easily perceive, such as my appearance or familial ties.

What makes you so different? A question I got frequently asked throughout all my development stages of life, by my peers, teachers and outsiders. I believe that all humans are born equal, although it’s our experiences that mold us to the great individuals we are. As for me, I grew up in todays 2nd most dangerous neighborhood of Camden New Jersey, where young men like myself born equal, are not given the resources for successful futures from our environment. Fortunately I’ve been blessed to understand that the world is a lot bigger than the 8 blocks of my so-called hood. The mystery of the unknown world was always on my mind. In Camden there is an invisible box around the county that creates a perception of the real world with no way out. Inside this box lie lost hope, misguided values, and violence.

Who am I? In some words i’m just one person in the whole world. But to others i’m a friend, sister, aunt, granddaughter, niece, etc. But to me i am a difference. A difference in this world. A difference in this country. A difference in my city. A difference in my community! A want to be different. Nobody wants to be plain and simple. I want to be my own person. I want to be myself. I don’t want people to tell me what to be. When i grow older i will be a change. I will make a change in this world.

Who am I? I don't know. Rather, let me rephrase—I haven't decided. And I don't know which one of me I'll eventually choose.

I am from the 20 hour airplane rides to flying to China in a airplane that was as crowded as a herd of zebras. I am from not eating a meal in 18 hours to bearing a grudge against airplane food. I am from watching TV on the airplane to not dozing for many hours. I am from climbing the wall of CHINA to seeing a fantastic view. I am from climbing Mother Nature’s cloud touching skyscrapers to feeling my organs glaciate. It was like I could see the whole world. I am from eating the mouth watering Chinese food from the sizzling pan in the kitchen to seeing the oil dance around the pan. I am from riding my superior uncle’s motorcycle to feeling a cool breeze whacking me in the face. I’m from walking on the crowded streets to hearing the food getting cooked. SSSSSSSS! I am from the scorching rays of the sun at the Bahamas to jet skiing on the ocean jumping around on the waves. I am from cruises that feel like cities to staying up until 3:00 AM. I am from the skin penetrating air of Alaska to walking on colossal glaciers. I am from going to Mexico and getting a mind-twisting statue made out of obsidian to riding boiling hot buses. I am from traveling the world to

I think of myself as being better. Sometimes, I even think I’m the best. But my wide set of skills and my large ego has a story behind it.

Finally, we also mentioned the importance of time management and self-discipline. A student will manage very well his/her time by identifying best time for studying, using distributed learning and practice means study in shorter time blocks with shorts breaks between, reducing distractions which can waste time, making room for entertainment and relaxation, making sure there is time to sleep and eat properly and try to combine activities. For example, if a student is spending time in the Laundromat, he/she can bring his psychology book to read. Managing time takes self discipline. The same professor cited before said that “people who seem to have less difficulty with self-discipline probably have simply had more practice at it”. So, practice is what it takes to have self-discipline.

Self-discipline is a very important part of education. Self-discipline is “correction or regulation of oneself for the sake of improvement”. Self-discipline is the hardest thing to achieve in education. Instead of going out with your friends, you must decide if you need to study.