Personal Narrative: My College Admissions

Through high school he was good with math, and was looking for a job that involved math and money, so he decided to be an accountant. Between his junior and senior year, his dad took him to an actuary firm to see if he would enjoy the work. Spring break of his junior Mr. House and his mother did a tour of colleges in the south which included North Carolina State, Auburn, and Georgia Tech. He remembers coming out of the student center and noticing that Tech did not look like it was in the middle of a city. Through his senior year he was still considering actuary work or possibly engineering, so he applied to NC State and tech knowing that he was in the Presidential Scholar’s program at both schools. His mother found the Presidential Scholars program and helped him apply for it. For the president scholar’s program all of his materials made it to Georgia Tech on time but his essays had been lost in transit, so Georgia Tech gave him another chance to reapply. A couple of weeks after the deadline Mr. House’s original application had arrived at Georgia Tech mangled into pieces with a stamp that said “Damaged by Postal

1. What experience do you like talking about the most? What has been the most interesting, intriguing, and exciting part of your life- why, and what did you learn from it?

I selected UT Austin’s Office of Admissions for my consultancy project due to the unique opportunity to give back in a way I thought would be helpful. I also hoped to utilize what I learned to increase my understanding of its challenges. My career in higher education began with UT Austin’s Office of Admissions in 2006. After six years, I requested a role with greater responsibility, believing I needed more space to grow than the organization would allow at the time. In 2013, Dr. Ishop, vice provost and director of admissions appointed me to oversee undergraduate admissions and recruitment in the College of Natural Sciences (CNS), a pilot, hybrid position between

Throughout my high school career, I possess excellent qualities of good citizenship, honesty, integrity, and sound moral character. As a result of my achievements in academics, extracurricular activities, and community involvement, I embody the legacy of an HB Swofford Career Center candidate in financial need. As the year’s pass, educational expenses continues to escalate and a collegiate experience is well beyond the financial means for many successful high school students, including myself.

My parents did not have access to an education, which inspired me to work hard and become involved. However, I was not prepared academically for college because I struggled to navigate a college culture, finding a sense of belonging, and the lack of support from the university, family, and friends. With advisors and opportunities to get involved in the division of student affairs, I was given a chance to work hard and develop into a strong educated Asian American. The challenging experiences allowed me to persist through the struggles and develop a passion to assist students who faced similar challenges and make a difference as a student affairs professional.

Years ago, I accepted a position as an admissions counselor at a now-closed proprietary school, due to a desire to work in adult education and help underserved learners take steps towards breaking the “poverty cycle.” The training program I completed for my job taught me the intricacies of the position and more specifically, how to handle the students that I would meet. My superiors saturated my thoughts with grandiose visions of grateful students whose lives would be forever changed through the school’s costly programs.

This applicant admits that it was very difficult to tackle some of the challenges faced after being away from school environment for so long however; it was worth it because after twelve months of arduous work this student was able to earn a well-deserved college degree. This significant accomplishment has motivated this applicant to continue with higher education and continue to expand the educational aptitude afforded by the graduate experience. In addition, today’s demand for educated professionals is unrivaled and having the knowledge and skills provided by the graduate program will enable this professional to be more

All of my experiences in life have lead me to apply to SUNY College at Oneonta for my Masters of Science in Education. I have many goals, both professional and academic that are related to school counseling. All throughout school I had many inspirational school counselors that molded who I am today. This set me up for success in my college career. Upon entering college, I began to appreciate the importance of planning and organization in order to build the life I wanted for myself. While completing the application process for graduate school I realized that everything I had done over the years lead to this moment. I thoroughly enjoyed applying for schools, only because I had the confidence and motivation from my many mentors and counselors surrounding me. My friends would ask for my assistance everyday during their own educational planning and I knew I wanted to make a career out of it. During these experiences, I learned the importance of discovering a meaningful life path. This is the most important aspect I will instill in the students I work with on a daily basis.

In the beginning I was unsure of what I wanted to do. I thought I wanted to go into publishing, but I then changed my mind. All I knew is that I wanted to be surrounded by books all day long. When I was younger I spent most of my time in the library. Even in elementary school we had a library class. After interviewing Krista Bowers-Sharpe, I felt like I got a good insight of what life might actually be like for me after I graduate college next year. When she talked about what graduate school was like for her, I felt like I got the most insight in that. I feel better about applying to grad school now. I was worried at first and I was unsure if I wanted to go. After talking about the types of classes that she took and her experiences, I feel

KA’RIN: So, I want to transition a little to your role now with your new portfolio. Overseeing financial aid, and first year programs – I think, along with admissions. How did that happen for you? And I mean that a little differently than – I understand your involvement and exposure in national committees and other projects really brought that to light, but do you think it’s unusual to be an enrollment manager having only worked in admissions? And I say that kind of knowing you did a lot of other unofficial work while you were here with financial aid. So I guess, even from that perspective, how did you get involved in that? How did you broaden your scope?

It was the spring of 2011, when all the college acceptances came in. My closest friends were all going upstate and they would all be living together. I, on the other hand, wasn't so thrilled. I was accepted to the community college, across the street from my high school. Not that it was a surprise since it was the only school I had applied to.

Science can be complicated, but it is one of the subjects that explains what goes on in our world. Throughout high school, science courses were always my favorite. I decided that my major of choice for college would be biology: the study of living organisms. Grogan College’s curricular focus “is the development of the professional self in the areas of health, medicine, nursing, education, criminal law, business, and the performing arts”. Looking at that statement made me realize that this residential college is my best fit. The words that captured my attention are health, medicine, and performing arts. As a color guard performer and biology major, it is important that I continue performing as an outlet, as well as increase my research skills.

I recently made the rank of Technical Sergeant in the United States Air Force. A feat that

It is with great enthusiasm that I respond to the job posting for Upward Bound Director. The description for the job attracted me because it is consistent with my academic preparation and previous work experience as Education Specialist for Upward Bound, as well as, my career goal to provide assistance to students in disadvantaged populations.

Applying for colleges had me a timid and afraid. I was between IU and Butler for my final decision, which viewed from afar are active campuses in the initiative of change. I am interested in the Ambassadors of Change program because; change is needed in this era and because change is affective.