Question: If there is anything in your transcripts that you feel needs an explanation, do so here in 400 words or less:
I used to believe that having a family of achievers was the saddest thing that could happen to anyone unfortunate enough to not share the same brain-wavelength. I have such a family. My parents are both accomplished and reputable experts in their chosen fields. My father was a child genius from Japan who migrated to the States at the age of six so that his IQ could be handled properly. He specializes in computer engineering but used to be a television actor in his younger days. My mother on the other hand, is a geneticist and teaches in college. I have an older brother who follows after my father in terms of having a well-rounded personality. He has inherited our father’s acting chops and has just earned for himself a PhD suffix on his name. I wish I could say that I have earned the same accolades for myself, but my accomplishments are only numbered compared to that of my family.
I have always felt daunted by the achievements of my family as I believed I couldn’t live up to their level. I took it upon myself to earn distinctions that were in a different league from theirs, hence my scholastic records in high school and college are not exactly anything that I worked hard for. I was content with earning average grades, because then I didn’t have to try hard. There were the little regrets of not having used my full potential just because of the angst and resentment I bore towards my family in my younger years. Now that I am applying for admission to an institute of higher learning, I finally see the error of my immature ways. But instead of dwelling on the past and what I should have and could have done, I decide to look forward to a future full of possibilities. I no longer look at my parents or my brother as competition but rather as a real family who supports me in every way that they can. I am currently studying for my Master’s and yes, I am finally giving it my all. Thankfully, despite the fact that I am also working full time, I will be graduating with top honors. I realize now that I also have it in my genes to succeed and that I should take full advantage of my capabilities and direct it towards the practice of law and jurisprudence in the future.
Photo Credit : orangeacid
I believe in a saying that goes “Keep your friends close and your enemies closer”. This belief can sometimes make you push you to try harder, making you excel not only over one opponent but can also make you an expert in one aspect as well. I grew up having had to measure myself against R______, the other guy who always harbored the top spot in our class back in (country of origin). The (country of origin) educational system ranked its students according to their intellect, with the smartest student getting into the top percentile while those who weren’t as bright followed next. Those who got into the top classes eventually moved on to the better known universities with scholarships and grants while those who didn’t had to rely on their family’s finances to get into a reputable college. R______ and I had a close but not hostile rivalry as he was always first and I was always second. Although I never really strived to overtake R______ in terms of class standing, it was a nice surprise that I was able to do so on one grading period. R______ bounced back to reclaim his post the next term but I harbored no ill feelings. After high school graduation, we both got into the top university of the country and pursued different interests.
College in a university considered to be the best in academic standing was not easy for me as I found myself competing with more R______s, or more students who displayed the same zeal and learning as I do. I performed rather mundanely at first but then the idea of taking up graduate studies on my chosen field of study in social work and family welfare was opened. I decided to pull myself together to be able to go the United States, where further learning in this field was notable in state universities.
Thankfully, I got into a program offered by the School of Social Service Administration at the University of ________. After arranging all the visas and paperwork necessary for my studies in the US, I was off to conquer a new world. This time I found it easier to focus on my studies, making my performance and academic records in graduate school even better than my undergraduate scores. My interest in the law and its workings were spawned during my graduate studies days when I would periodically be assigned to different locations. I became acquainted with the U.S. Law and jurisprudence system as my work required me to brush up on basic laws. Being a foreigner myself, I naturally developed an interest in the laws governing the immigration process as more and more of my countrymen are seeking better opportunities in the U.S. I chose to stay in the United States and eventually got naturalized as an American citizen as there are more opportunities for me here in my field of interest.
The U.S presents a lot of opportunities that are sadly not available to people back home. More and more of my countrymen and people of different nationalities are striving to get into this country that can hold more promises for them. Unfortunately, there are those who resort to illegal means just so they can get here faster but are then sent home once they are found out by the authorities. It is in this regard that I wish to obtain a law degree so that I can help not just my countrymen but other immigrants as well into getting an American citizenship through the right process. I believe that I can realize my dream of becoming an immigration attorney by taking on my legal studies here at ______ University so that I could show others the right path to a Green Card as I have been shown.
And R______, my ex-rival for the top spot in high school, he’s still at the top of his game and I promised him that he’d be my first client once I finish my legal studies.
“A diamond cannot be polished without friction, nor the person perfected without trials.”
–Chinese Proverb
I believe myself to be like a gemstone, weathered down by recent events and challenges as harsh as a diamond cutter, and I am thankful too for the velvet bed of familial support that awaits me at the end of each day. To say that I have led a charmed life would be off the point by only a few degrees, I had no worries as a child of modest background with a family and an environment that shaped the better part of my character. The possibility of the rug being pulled from under my feet all of a sudden never dawned on me. I had a loving family, and dark clouds on their investments never really loomed large. My parents have provided me with all that I needed to make a better future for myself.
In my adolescence, I had the chance to broaden my horizons by helping out in a family friend’s law firm. Although the practice wasn’t as prestigious as the bigger law firms were, it was there that I learned to appreciate the workings of jurisprudence from a man whom I now consider my mentor by inspiring me to look beyond what can be easily seen. He treated me not like a child sent out on an errand, but as a protege, a fledgling in the art and science of law. A childhood spent playing tennis with my father gave me the reflexes and quick thinking that helped me perform my duties satisfactorily within the law firm that I emerged from that summer with the idea of undertaking the same profession. Believing that I had the drive, the skills, and the financial and emotional support of my family, I had no qualms about setting forth in earning a law degree.
College changed and challenged me in more ways than I can imagine, as I was used to getting high grades in high school without exerting much effort. No matter how hard I tried to study and perform, I found myself floundering in a field that I used to excel in. I decided to shift from physics and took up a course in communication research. Although it was a different field of study, I found it easier to get back on track and my academic record was revitalized. I strived hard to excel in this new field and I found new areas of interests in the field of communications that encouraged me to be more than what I can. Eventually, my efforts were recognized and despite having an unimpressive first year in college, I made it to the top percentile of the class.
I sailed on through the next two years in my new course and law school was once again in my horizons. It was at this point that challenges beyond my academic scope blocked my view of the finish line. My family’s finances took a sudden turn for the worse when my father passed away due to cancer. Expensive treatments and medications left my parents’ savings almost depleted, and I had a younger sibling who was set for college on the same year. I decided to take off from school for a year to help with the finances and worked full-time to support my family and my mother who was emotionally devastated by the events. I soon got back on track and although I have been set back a year from studies, I feel ready to take on law school as soon as I graduate.
Rather than look back with regret, I see the past years as milestones in my life. I am thankful for having been able to go through those challenges and that I have come out as a better person in more ways than one. I see no shame in having had to drop out of school to work as a receptionist at a hotel, as it was the right thing to do for my family. That year of working in a hotel has been as educational and uplifting as a year in school.
I plan to follow the exploits of my former mentor who specialized in corporate law as I have adequate grounding on this field thanks to him and to my undergraduate studies in communication research and I do hope that I can pursue higher legal learning from ______ University.
Photo credits: DanieVDM
