Undergraduate / OVERCOMING AN EDUCATION BARRIER. How did overcoming this barrier help shape who are you today? [3]

UC APPLICATION PROMPT EDUCATION BARRIER

Describe how you have taken advantage of a significant educational opportunity or worked to overcome an educational barrier you have faced.
Things to consider: An educational opportunity can be anything that has added value to your educational experience and better prepared you for college. For example, participation in an honors or academic enrichment program, or enrollment in an academy that's geared toward an occupation or a major, or taking advanced courses that interest you - just to name a few.

If you choose to write about educational barriers you've faced, how did you overcome or strive to overcome them? What personal characteristics or skills did you call on to overcome this challenge? How did overcoming this barrier help shape who are you today?

I am about 100 words over, I think I went into too mmuch depth about my school, or what should I delete and what can I add to clarify and answer the topic better.

My mother and father never completed college because my mother was pregnant at a young age and they both had to drop out in order to support our family.

Because my parents never went to college, nor did my grandparents and so on, it was difficult for me to grasp the importance of getting a college degree. And it was even more difficult understanding the steps necessary to achieve one. I never did well in school or took it seriously because it was never expected of me to do so.

As I finished freshman year the reality of life after high school began to hit me. With a society revolving around a college degree I understood that I had to break this curse (of no college)?, and prove to my family how an education is important to succeed in life and achieve my goals.

After my freshman year I discovered I was ranked 93 among 610 students. Although this is not too bad considering my slack in school, it opened up my eyes about the importance of every class and assignment. I became more involved in school and started caring about my academics, and class rank.

Immediately I signed up for my first AP class, World History, during sophomore year. As the year went on, several of my classmates began to drop left and right. My own grade was discouraging as I struggled to adjust to the rigor of AP. I had not learned how to study, take notes orrrrrr-----. At the end of the first semester i finished with an 80. Despite being disappointed in myself, I decided to try even harder the next semester. I began to refine my academic abilities by going back to the basics. By the end of the year, my hard work pushed me to finish off the last semester with a 94. I really enjoyed the rigor of AP courses and I decided to challenge myself even more junior year and signed up for AP Biology, Statistics, English, and US History. I became really dedicated to school whilst juggling a job, and multiple extracurricular activities and organizations.

At the end of my Junior Year, I was proud to see that my hard work and dedication really paid off and I am now ranked 18 of my peers.

I believe that my parents not having a thorough education really encouraged me to do the opposite and create a pathway for myself. Although I was able to overcome the difficult task of achieving high school the challenge is still with me today as I go through the college application process. It is a rocky journey without having someone to talk to daily or ask advice at home as many fortunate students do. But this has taught me how to be independent and search for many different resources to fill the gap of under-educated parents

Undergraduate / OVERCOMING CHALLENGE - How has this challenge affected your academic achievement? [3]

UC APPLICATION PROMPT SIGNIFICANT CHALLENGE

Describe the most significant challenge you have faced and the steps you have taken to overcome this challenge. How has this challenge affected your academic achievement?

Things to consider: A challenge could be personal, or something you have faced in your community or school. Why was the challenge significant to you? This is a good opportunity to talk about any obstacles you've faced and what you've learned from the experience. Did you have support from someone else or did you handle it alone?

If you're currently working your way through a challenge, what are you doing now, and does that affect different aspects of your life? For example, ask yourself, "How has my life changed at home, at my school, with my friends or with my family?"

I'm over 100 words, what should I take out to make it more clear and what should I add to clarify my challenge and somewhat overcoming it.

Ever since I was little I was expected to be someone I'm not. I was expected to fit the stereotype of who I look like. I was supposed to write pretty like a girl, or do "girly" sports instead of doing t-ball.

I remember my father taking me out of T-ball because he thought i didn't enjoy it, being the only girl on the team and put me into cheerleading, following the "norm" of society. Little did I know that even though i was doing what society expected me to do I would continue to be stereotyped.

Dumb. Snobby. Fake. You name it. I was called just about everything negative you can think of, not because that's who i am or how i acted but merely because i was a cheerleader.

In my time in high school i specifically excelled in math and science classes. And people would always make comments like "wow i didn't think you would be smart, aren't you a cheerleader?" or " Wow you're too pretty to be good at math" or my favorite, "Girls cant be good at math, did you cheat or what?" Which amazed me because i saw absolutely no correlation between cheerleading/appearance and my academic performance.

Eventually I quit cheer to focus on my academics my sophomore year, but the stereotyping didn't stop because I was still a girl. The first time I entered the meeting for the Math and Science UIL team I was one of two girls there, and everyone was shocked to see me there, even the coaches. For some reason, even in today's society of "equalness" it was still abnormal to see a girl interested in STEM. I was dedicated to this subject and so i often challenged myself and found myself competing against my own male teammates, usually scoring higher than them of course. Eventually I became the treasurer of the club my Junior year, and Vice President my senior year.

I felt out of place in most of my STEM classes, and sometimes I even questioned myself, Can I really do this? Should I just become a teacher or a housewife like everyone else in my family? Everyday I am expected to live this life that everyone has had before me. But I don't want to do that and I want to be an innovator and leader and beat the odds and become a woman in STEM. I want to make a difference in young womens life who are going through this same problem to show them that it is possible despite the labels people put on you because of your activities and appearance! Sadly, this challenge will never be over but for now I have gotten over the fear of standing out and feeling out of place because I know bigger plans await me in the future of STEM.

Undergraduate / What have motivated you to study in the eight-year program? My love for Science [2]

Rice/Baylor Medical Scholars Honors Program Essay

*What aspirations, experiences or relationships have motivated you to study in the eight-year Rice/Baylor Medical Scholars Program?
How is this topic? , Should i tie in more my love for Science and the Science Classes?

It all started in July of 2009, when my family received a phone call from my uncle kiki. He was crying as he broke the news to us that he had just been diagnosed with stage 2 Lymphoma cancer. Of course, at the time I was too young to even understand what this meant, but from the look on my parents face I knew this was not good news. My uncle lived along adventurous life but once he was diagnosed, everything changed... I saw him transition from spending times with his family in exploring life really, from watching his children and our family crowd him in his hospital room.Everyday we were praying before he had to undergo yet another session of chemotherapy and during these sessions it felt like the seconds were minutes and the minutes were hours. Slowly, I witnessed cancer sucked the life out of him, which was one of the most painful things i had to watch. From staying overnight in the hospital to the time spent by their bed-sides at home, I experienced first-hand how cancer affects people not once, but twice. I was traumatized by the fact that i was not able to do anything to help both my grandma, and my uncle because all i could really do is stay by their side praying.

However, these moments in the hospital weren't all dull. Everything about the hospital fascinated me. During their sessions, or any moment I wasn't with my family, i was out exploring the hospital and even talking to some workers. As i was older I began to have more intellectual conversations with them and I was able to get a true understanding about the role a doctor plays in one's life. This moment on I knew i wanted to become a doctor, I wanted to give back to the community. I wanted to make a change, i wanted to be able to do something that would save lives. These instances molded me into the person I am today and the person I aspire to be. Once i realized i wanted to become a doctor i began taking classes such as Medical Interventions, Human Body Systems, Anatomy, AP Biology, any course that would allow me to get a deeper knowledge of this field. Because I am so passionate about this field I want to endure the Rice/Baylor Medical Scholars Program to ensure that I can make my dream come true. At this program I can continue to reach my goal --- how can i tie in the program?