By: Graduate School Candidate15   

Subject:   East Asian Studies

It's not often that a kid growing up in small-town New Mexico strikes up a

passion for Chinese civilization. Nevertheless, my interest in different

cultures flourished during my childhood and adolescence in New Mexico. The

beauty and breathtakingly scenic landscape of this state is enriched with

the pronounced cultural diversity brought about by Pueblo, Hopi and Navajo

nations and a large Hispanicpopulation that represents close to 50% of

state. When I was in kindergarten I attended a bilingual school in

Lemitar, a small town in southern New Mexico. Most of the children at this

school were Hispanic. This allowed me at a very early age to experience a

language and culture different from mine. My father has always had a keen

interest in people from other countries and cultural backgrounds. As a

librarian, my father has always encouraged me to read not only Western

Philosophy, but Eastern Philosophy as well. In addition, he inspired me to

see life from a different perspective.

To a large extent, and by most definitions, I have always been a

non-traditional and unconventional student. I went to a high school with a

curriculum that was as challenging for me as any course I have taken in

college. This high school was unique because we studied everything from

the origin of Western Civilization to modern-day Western thought. Another

unique feature of this school was that at the end of our senior year we had

to give an oral presentation in front of a host of panelists from St.

John's College in Santa Fe, New Mexico. This experience helped me develop

my ability to think critically and present a cogent thesis. It forced me

to grow not only as a student, but more importantly, as an individual.

When I graduated from high school I rebelled against traditional education

and decided not to apply to college. This decision was to the great dismay

of my parents, who had entered college immediately after high school. With

much resistance, I enrolled at Santa Fe Community College. This was just

to satisfy my parents' wishes, and I spent only one semester there.

Although I wanted to study and continue to learn, I yearned to reach out to

people and find a different mode of study -- one which would allow me to

understand myself better so that I could relate better to the world around

me.

With this goal, I decided to attend the New Mexico Academy of Massage and

Advanced Healing Arts. The school provided me with a unique mind/body

balance that has helped me become a more well-rounded person. I studied

subjects that ranged from Anatomy and Physiology to Yoga and Tai Chi.

After graduating, I got a job at the Santa Fe Sport Medicine Institute as a

Physical Therapy Assistant. I used Massage techniques to help people who

were injured in auto accidents or sporting events. This type of work

allowed me to directly help people -- the people I massaged told me that

the pain they experienced prior to the massage had subsided. Relieving the

pains of these people nurtured in me a sense of purpose. In addition, it

increased my interest in Eastern Philosophy, making me want to learn more

about Asia.

I began to read many classical Chinese texts to further my knowledge about

Chinese Philosophy. Soon I developed a profound interest in learning how

to read and speak the Chinese language. The opportunities for studying

Chinese were very limited, however. At 22,I had saved up some money and

now decided to go live in Asia to experience a Chinese culture first-hand,

and to learn how to speak Mandarin Chinese. My desire to go to Asia was

spawned by a genuine interest in reconciling differences I found between

Eastern and Western cultures. Similarly, I wanted to pursue this

experience because it would provide me with a unique opportunity to broaden

the perspective I had on the world as a whole. This is how I ended living

in Taichung, Taiwan and visiting mainland China. When I arrived in Taiwan,

I remember getting off the airplane and hearing everyone speaking Chinese.

Everything I saw and heard was unfamiliar to me. Seeing a different world

made a huge impact on me; I can still recall how exotic my environment was.

In Taiwan, I went through an intensive Chinese language immersion program.

Slowly I began to feel more comfortable living there, as I learned to

communicate with people in Chinese. I was invited to teach English at a

private school for children, but I told the school that I had no teaching

experience. The school informed me that if I took a short teaching

training class, I would be ready to teach. And they even offered to pay me

for the training classes. However, I refused to be paid for the training.

The school was so impressed by this that after I completed the training,

they appointed me director of the English Language program. I was

astounded by the generosity and honesty that I received from the people in

Taiwan.

This was a truly remarkable experience. In Taiwan, I lived with a Chinese

family. This allowed me to assimilate my culture with the customs and

habits of this particular Chinese family. We had long conversations about

fundamental aspects of Chinese culture and philosophy. The family also

brought me to all the Chinese festivals and celebrations. It was in Taiwan

that I realized I must return to college in the United States, and earn a

degree in East Asian Studies. After spending a year in Taiwan, I returned

to the United States to complete my degree. My time Taiwan taught me so

much about myself, and it gave me the perspective to see things from both a

Western and Eastern point of view.

Since my return to the United States, my life has seen some exciting

changes. I got married about a year after I returned from Taiwan. My wife

is originally from Venezuela, and she has introduced a new host of cultural

norms that I am learning about. During my free time I teach my

mother-in-law English. She, of course, insists that I need to attain

fluency in both Spanish and Chinese. And that is exactly what I am doing.

My wife and I are both students at Rutgers University, and we share our

ambitions, hopes and expectation of attending graduate school. Currently I

am a senior, majoring in East Asian Studies with a minor in Political

Science.

The growing importance of Asia as a determining factor in global economy

and the increasing interaction and commerce of the U. S. with China,

suggests to me that pursing a career in law would be pertinent and

appealing. My knowledge of Chinese culture and mastery of the Chinese

language would be a very strong asset, and it would let me make a

significant contribution to the political, commercial and cultural exchange

between the U. S. and Asia.

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 Essay Number: 1055 - Posted on: Mar 31, 1999   Expires on: May 1, 2005 CollegeGate LLC  * CollegeGate LLC *

By: Graduate School Candidate14   

Subject:   UMass. Amherst Anthropology

As a double major in Anthropology and Psychology at the University of Rhode Island, I have gained a strong background in both fields. My background is especially strong in physical anthropology, my primary field of interest. Physical anthropology consumes my life; I do not study it because I find it somewhat interesting but because I am devoted to it; I want to make it my life. In addition to maintaining a high GPA throughout my college career, and making the Dean’s list several times, I have also worked hard as a supervisor at Brooks Pharmacy for the past five years. Working my own way through college not only demonstrates my determination to gaining a high quality education and the seriousness with which I treat academics, but also attests to my leadership ability, maturity, and responsibility, both as a supervisor and as a student at the University of Rhode Island.

My primary goal in applying to your graduate program is to prepare myself for a career in forensic anthropology. Interested in furthering the current body of research and in improving techniques used in the identification of human remains, I am very committed to pursuing forensic anthropology and believe your graduate program in anthropology will provide me with an excellent foundation in the area of physical and forensic anthropology. With a Masters and Ph.D., I will be well prepared to lead a very promising career. While I have no doubt the program will push me to my limits, I am confident that I can face the rigorous challenges posed by graduate study and thrive under the demanding environment that advanced studies entail. From my transcripts, you will see that not only am I a well-balanced student, I actually thrive in rigorous, upper level courses, courses akin to graduate-level courses. Armed with the confidence that I can excel at difficult courses, I believe I can achieve the highest level of success and satisfaction by taking the most demanding graduate program available.

In addition to my ability to excel in the classroom, I have demonstrated a proficiency in all aspects of conducting research. Research has become a fundamental part of my college career, and I hope it will become the primary component of my future. As a sophomore at the University of Rhode Island, I designed a research project entitled "Grooming and Affiliative Behavior in Three Species of Non-Human Primates" under the guidance of Dr. Su Boatright-Horowitz in the Psychology Department at URI. My research proposal gained approval from the Institutional Care and Use Committee at URI and at the Roger William Park and Zoo where the three species of non-human primates (Gibbons, Sakis, and Lemurs) included in my study are kept. In addition to writing a successful research proposal, I also wrote and received a small funds grant from the University of Rhode Island in order to conduct my research. By being intimately involved in every aspect of research, from proposal and grant writing to data collection and analysis, I have learned what it takes to be a researcher, but more than that, I have learned how fulfilling and interesting research can be.

In the spring of 2005,I will be presenting my results at a poster presentation at the University of Rhode Island, and am planning to eventually publish my findings. Not only has this experience shown me that I am capable of excelling in conducting research, but it has also allowed me to develop a love for the hands on learning that is so crucial to successful research. In my final semester at URI, I will be participating in an ongoing research project concerning brain function and attention span under the direction of Dr. Dominic Valentino, a professor in the psychology department at URI. This project will undoubtedly further advance my academic skills and reinforce my passion for research.

Physical anthropology is more than just my primary area of education; it has also become my hobby and lifestyle. The questions posed and answered via the study of physical anthropology have fascinated me for a very long time and have stimulated me to ask and seek to answer further questions. With my mind set on the very specific goal of preparing myself as excellently as possible for a future in the field of forensic anthropology, I am fully confident that, with the ability to pursue my education at the University of Massachusetts Amherst, I will not only be able to fulfill my dream, but to contribute substantially to the university as well.