1. Pick an experience from your own life and explain how it has influenced your development. Growing up in a low-income, immigrant family has played an integral part in my development. My parents divorced when I was in the first grade, and I moved around frequently with my mother. When going from a Chinese community to a diverse one with Hispanics, African Americans, and other Asians, I had difficulty adjusting to my new environment due to the language and cultural differences. At the time, my English skills were poor and I learned to be adaptable to the environment. Through use of nonverbal communication and attentive listening, I was able to overcome language barriers I encountered. Because I had taken the time to listen and learn about other cultures growing up, I developed the ability to empathize with others, no matter the situation. My experiences growing up in a multicultural, working class environment has inspired me to work with underprivileged youth and underserved patients in the community. 2. Discuss a special attribute or accomplishment that sets you apart. …show more content…
My entire life, I have had difficult situations and uncontrollable odds, but I have always carried the mental fortitude and adaptability to succeed.
After my parents divorced, my mother and I moved around and I changed schools frequently; we lived in single room occupancies at one point. During middle and high school, I spent most of my free time with family members working in construction. The area I lived in had a high crime rate and my peers viewed education as a nuisance. Despite this, I forged on, excelling in high school and becoming the first in my family to attend college. This work ethic did not leave me as I succeeded in college and became published in a high impact journal. Professionally, I have witnessed 2 major layoffs in my company and have quickly adapted to help the company successfully reach new goals and
metrics. 3. Describe how you have demonstrated leadership ability in your school, work, or community. I have been working at a startup scribe company based in San Francisco called Augmedix and there have been frequent organizational changes. About a year ago, an important manager left on short notice, leaving the team disorganized. Scribes were unhappy and our physician clients were receiving subpar service. I saw the frustrations among my peers and stepped into a leadership role to fix some of these problems. First, I met with my team members to hear their concerns, leading me to refine scribe and physician assignments. I reviewed physician complaints which were often about scribe quality and I created performance improvement plans. I then addressed the disorganized training by collaborating with teammates to establish clearly defined training guidelines and implementing a progress tracking system. While I initially encounter resistance from some co-workers, I made sure their feedback and concerns were heard, and their suggestions considered. 4. Explain your career goals and medical educational plan to meet these goals. Be specific. My career goal is to become a competent physician that provides high quality health care and is community focused. Growing up and working in an ethnically and culturally diverse area has given me insight to the many unique challenges presented in healthcare, particularly with underserved populations. As a future medical student, I would like to be involved with one of the free health clinics or help start a health clinic to provide care for underserved patients in the area and gain valuable experience working with such populations. In addition to a medical degree, I have strongly considered obtaining a master of public health degree to compliment my clinical training. The additional degree will help me better serve patients directly and the community in a broader sense, as I will have a stronger understanding of community health issues, integrating research, and advocating for the appropriate health policies.
1. Tell us about an experience, in school or out, that taught you something about yourself and/or the world around you. (maximum 200 words)
In this article, Eric Liu presents his life as a native immigrant to an Asian American individual. He shares his experience through his reflection of ideas and emotions. Along with his story, it relates to the ideas of people’s journey from adolescence to adulthood. Eric’s inspirational experience is directed towards minority groups who try to adapt to the American culture and lifestyle. His parents emigrated from China to America, before he was born which he later became exposed to the freedom and diverse society. This results in beneficial effects for his individuality, career opportunities, and lifestyle. Although his parents have lived in a different culture than him, his life in America has made him assimilated into the American society
Second-generation Chinese Americans are faced with a special challenge. Their parents have endured the struggle to come to this coun...
“I am a first generation immigrant and a woman, but I don't really write about that because I feel like I'm a human being. There are universal human experiences.” (“Evelyn Rodriguez”). As a first generation woman myself, I can relate to the notion that I am more than my background. While there are universal experiences people go through, my cultural experience is something that sets me apart from others. I believe that it is essential for me to find the balance between assimilating into American culture while keeping my cultural identity.
My tenure in student government groomed me into an adept problem solver, negotiator, and critical thinker, always willing to help others. I translated these skills as a member of the Extended Opportunity Programs and Services (EOPS) program where I taught Chinese to students desiring to learn the language. Moved by the eagerness of students to learn the Chinese language, I spearheaded my own program, The Language Corner, to teach students not only how to speak Chinese, but to also provide them with an understanding of China’s history, society, and rich culture. Through teaching, I realized that I have a unique perspective to offer and that I should not put my self into the immigrant box as if I have nothing to offer. My experiences have prompted me to be proactive in my engagement with others, steadfast in my studies, and committed to achieving the success my parents worked so hard for me to
Because of my culture, it has allowed for me to be more understanding of those that are different from me. The recognition of what it is to be different from what normal American culture may look like has brought forth a new and deeper level of empathy without even realizing. Growing up in a diverse area where my group of friends came from a wide variety of backgrounds has helped me to see the similarities we share as well as getting more acquainted and understanding of why certain groups do the things that they do. With that being said, I recognize that though I may be more equipped to related with people from different backgrounds a bit more than someone else, I know that I may still face some challenges (especially with how this nation is when it comes to race and cultural relations). As a social worker, a bit part of my profession is to create societal change.
As a multi-cultural Japanese and Chinese individual and an international student at MSU, I have had many experiences that enhanced my personal cultural awareness. Michigan State University embraces students with different cultural backgrounds and ethnicities. Here I am able to participate various events with people carrying different life stories. For example, I have worked as an intern with refugees in the Emergency Management Office of East Lansing via the MSU Global Internship Program. I volunteered in the Red Cedar International Elementary School for their “One world, many stories” program with families and children from more than 16 countries. I also conducted a survey titled “Family Resources for MSU international parents” supported by the MSU Family Resource Center. In addition, I advocated for international children living in Spartan Village so they could get a playroom. These experiences with a variety of cultures have made me a more caring and open person.
I joined the military and blossom into a new person deployed to Iraq twice and overcomes combat situation. This new adventure is where I gained my leadership roles but was still internally desired for my education. I met a special person and he had a degree and I left out my education equivalency after marrying I sneaked to a GED class and pass in three months. I was ready to start a new beginning and was allowing anything stop me in my tracks, BSW in 2014 and certainly ready to attack my MSW. I have the determination and has endured life realm to be where I am today. I have no regret for the outcome of life it has made me into the person that I am today; I hav...
During my time at placement I have worked with a diverse range of people. Not only have I engaged with children, from babies up to children aged 18, but I have also worked with adults. The families that I have supported have consisted of 2 parent families, lone parents, through to grandparents whom have a residency order. These families all had different backgrounds and unique needs, ranging from carers with learning disabilities, those with mental health issues and families who were unemployed and living in poverty. The children I worked with were not only affected by these factors, but they also had their own issues to contend with, including; child J who had learning difficulties and was significantly behind in his education; child E who was delayed developmentally due to experiencing neglect, and child R who had been subjected to physical abuse and was now suffering with low self-esteem and self-confidence.
Growing up in a small, rural town in the Mississippi delta and coming from an immigrant family played a significant role in tuning my affinity for psychology. In my community, most of my peers were familiar or related to one another and the cultural values and customs that I grew up with were discordant from what my peers valued. Because of this discrepancy, respecting my immigrant cultural identity while simultaneously avoiding the negative social influence of my peers was often a very difficult task. The voices of my parents still resonate in my ear as they would say, “We came to America, young and alone, in order to take advantage of the opportunity for a higher education, just to make the foundation of life easier for you.” By my parents
These experiences have helped me to see and embrace the differences of others. My Hispanic culture has allowed me to become a collectivist, family oriented individual. I put others first and care about what will benefit the majority. My previous volunteer experiences within my community has also shaped my choices. I participated in Flip for Autism, a gymnastics event for those with physical and intellectual disabilities. This event opened my eyes to the many great accomplishments and limitlessness of those with disabilities and furthermore confirmed my professional
As I stated earlier, outwardly I need some work and I am the only one who can do it. I am spiritually fit and grateful that I can see the good in most situations and maintain a positive outlook on life. Going back to school is a major hurdle for me, I started 30 years ago and I feel that I need to finish it. My attitude and my feelings about my self-worth improved when I returned to school and, although I have less time for my activities, I feel good about my decisions. I know that in the end that I am going to be a smarter, more physically fit being and I am taking the steps needed to get
There were many instances in my life that have shaped my values, intellect, and academic or career goals. I was raised by my parents to become a hard worker, independent, and caring young adult. I was taught how to be all these qualities by a combination of experiencing and witnessing them first hand.
I am the product of divorced parents, poverty stricken environments, and a blended family, but I refuse to let that dictate the outcome of my life. At the age of ten, I had to assume the role of a fatherly figure to my three siblings, so I missed out on the typical childhood most would have had. I grew up in neighborhoods where gangs and criminal acts of violence were a pervasive occurrence, but I resiliently did not allow the peer pressures of others to force me to conform to their way of life. By the age of 15, I received my worker 's permit, and that allowed me the ability to help my mother financially in the absence of my father’s income. I worked the maximum amount of hours I could while balancing my academics and extracurricular school activities. I was a scholar athlete and triathlete in high school, and although I continuously faced much adversity, I still managed to be accepted to the University of California State, Bakersfield after I graduated from high school in 2005. Sadly, after
1. I grew up in a family where work was an important aspect, but both of my parents did not always work. My father had many medical issues and was unable to walk for many years. Financial stability was always looked at as the ideal. I was taught working is just a part of life and you should do it to survive. Both of my parents did not attend college, but encouraged me to go to college. They were not happy when I wanted to also go to graduate school because they did not see the point of doing so. I was fortunate to have their help and support in my undergraduate degree because this allowed me to not have to work too much. I did have a lot of volunteer positions and ultimately got what I would call a real job in 2014 doing counseling like services in the community. I always knew I wanted to help people and I enjoyed doing this job, but decided to go back to school for my Master’s so I could ultimately open my own private practice.