Primatology Personal Statement

At the age of ten, I read a book, “Gifted Hands” by Dr. Ben Carson, which inspired and begin to motivate my interest in pursuing medicine as a career because I could identify with his discovery of the joy of reading and his fascination with science. When I was 14, I had an epiphany at the doctor’s office. This event occurred a little after I had finished my final exams in school and the next step was to go to senior high school. But, I thought the preliminary chemistry and physics classes of junior high school were daunting and went on to convince myself that a career in medicine might not be right for me.

I decided to pursue a career in medicine when I was an adolescent. I scheduled a science-heavy course load in high school. Pursued a degree in Honours Biological Sciences. Shadowed a physician for two months. Graduated with distinction. Applied to medical schools and received my acceptance. My academic and professional career was already planned at the ripe age of fourteen. As the years progressed, my passion and interest in medicine waned. I was left feeling deeply unfulfilled. The career I was pursuing had ceased to be reflective of my interests. I struggled to procure the enthusiasm to apply to medical school, putting it off until I was in my final year of university. Every time I broached

“What do you want to be when you grow up?” As a child, we have all been asked this question; and as unrealistic children, we all had dreams of being a superhero, princess, cowboy, or astronaut. Later on in life, as time went by, and as we became more knowledgeable, our answers became more serious. Some of us wanted to be teachers, business owners, or a veterinarian. However, I have always wanted to be a doctor, but not just any doctor. For as long as I can remember, I have wanted to be a pediatrician. Now, half way through my junior year in high school, I have started to question the details of this career, and all the hard work it takes to become a part of the medical field.

While college education is not mandatory, furthering one’s schooling broadens the amount of jobs one is qualified for and can attain. College provides many benefits and opportunities to students but the monetary value of college is not very appealing. Throughout high school I have worked hard for good grades and have pushed myself in accelerated courses to prepare myself for college, both for the curriculum and the tuition. My effort and efficiency as a student helped me receive a generous academic scholarship from North Central College and I know that my perseverant study habits will secure this scholarship throughout the next four years. Even with North Central’s scholarship, there is still a large sum of tuition left that I must pay each year. I am a dedicated student who understands the value of a college education, especially a private college education. Affording college is imperative to me and scholarships are on my daily to-do list so that I have the funds needed to further my education. By furthering my education I will have more knowledge, experience, and diligence when it comes to teaching my own students one day, and scholarships help make this

Primatology has shown just how similar we are to non-human primates, who are capable of a lot more than we originally thought. From a young age primates learn from adults how to make and use tools to help them with hunting or doing a certain activity. For instance, it was stated in the textbook that Chimpanzees have been known to put long sticks into a termite hole, wait a few minutes, and then pull the stick out to eat the termites that attached to it. All of these require dexterity, which is often seen as a human trait. They also use twigs to clean their teeth, very similar to the way humans use dental tools to clean their teeth.

As my senior year comes around, it has become more real to me that I have to take charge of my future. I deserve and need this scholarship just as I need oxygen to breathe. Being the first in my family to attend college or even have the idea in their head means I’m on my own to discover what to do to get into college and how to come up with the means. I

As a young adult, I have pondered on the possible directions I would like to take in the future. There were times that I defaulted back to a position that are familiar to my parents, but no matter how hard I want to think differently, I knew that I want to pursuit a career in the medical field. My parents have made sacrifices to make an easier life possible for both my sister and myself. No matter how hard I want to deny this fact, I cannot falter into similar positions that they toiled through. I want to make them proud, and to let them know that they can rely on me when they grow old.

Two decades and many existential crises later, one single aspect of my life has pulled me through: that passion I experienced as a child. I have questioned the source of this motivation more than once, and have sought out to put myself in all possible situations that would predict how I would feel later in my life as a doctor to make sure this passion was not mere infatuation.

I am the “prized possession” in my family. My elders believe that I can do no wrong, I hold all family secrets, and I’m expected to be successful. Since I was little, I always had dream of becoming a doctor. My mother would always buy me doctor accessories and when I got of age, she would ship me off every summer to a science camp. It was not until my sophomore year in college that I realized that I did not want to be a medical doctor. When I broke the news to my mother, she was disappointed but encouraged me to find something that I was interested in. Although I would not become the medical doctor my mother hoped for me to be, I knew that I would still end up helping others in

When I was a child I wanted to be a veterinarian, I had such a passion for “helping” my furry little friends with the plastic toys my mom got me for Christmas. I was so dead set I never wanted to explore any other career field, well that lasted up until about middle school when I witnessed my first dog pass away. It was all downhill from there. So, after, I lived my life going with the flow and not thinking about much else except for friends, sports and school. Then the time came for me to choose what I really wanted to do junior/senior of high school when college applications were due and my parents really wanted me to pick a major before I started college. I knew I wanted to follow in my parents footsteps and do something in the medical field,

As long as I can remember, I have had a natural curiosity for why things work the way they do. Over the years this curiosity has led to my desire at age 5 to “become a scientist and move to Africa,” my obsession with the engineering of aircraft carriers and airplanes at age 10 (I meticulously poured over the “How Stuff Works” books), and my interest in law reviews during my early teens. I have always loved to read and learn about diverse topics and in high school I searched for a way to focus this appetite for leaning into a career. In my junior year of high school, I took Human Biology and through this course I developed a strong interest for a career in medicine. However, no one in even my extended family has ever worked in the healthcare

About a week before being awarded this scholarship, I spent a school night isolated in my pitifully dark room with my eyes glued to the computer screen like a mad woman. After nearly three hours of researching about loans and calculating the amount of debt I’d be in by the time I graduate college, I began to worry profusely about my future college expenses. Finally, I broke down in tears from the mass amount of stress and feeling of hopelessness.

I chose to major in Pre-Professional Health Sciences because I want to become a medical scientist, conducting my own research. The reason behind this is not as straightforward as a simple desire for a medical career. Instead, my Dad’s passion and entrepreneurial attitude acted as a catalyst, triggering my longing to make my own medical breakthroughs. I was the kid with antiques and jewelry strewn all over the house because my Dad enjoyed buying collectibles to resell online. He eventually decided to make this hobby into a job because his adoration for hearing the stories associated with each item was worth more than any amount of money. In fact, my Dad’s ingenuity in starting his own company sparked my creativity and kindled the fire of my

When I first started college, I had several questions I asked myself regarding my future. I thought about what my major would be and what my living arrangements would look like post-grad, but I never questioned what my future career would look like. While I had an overwhelming amount of options, I always had a fixed certainty that I would be in the medical field. The only question was in what capacity? Coming in as a freshman, I could have studied to be a surgeon, a doctor, or even a medical lawyer. Ultimately, I knew that changing people’s lives through medicine was my passion—I just needed to find an outlet. However, not once did my 18-year-old self think that I would find my way into a nursing career. As I’ve come to find, life rarely works out as planned. What lead me on the pathway to becoming a nurse is all but conventional, yet I would not change any

Career choices are, and still greatly influenced by my parents. The typical theme in the household circled around becoming a doctor, and although it seemed exciting for my 14 year old self; continuing the stream of sciences in highschool slowly diminished my drive to obtain that goal. Whenever I tried to deviate myself from wanting to become a doctor, it made me feel almost selfish. To this day, I still don’t know what I want to be, and if becoming a doctor will make me happy shortterm or longterm.