Undergraduate / "the ideal ethnicity" - U of Mich - Diversity Short Answer [4]

Criticism and helpful advice would be greatly appreciated!

Share an experience through which you have gained respect for intellectual, social, or cultural differences. Comment on how your personal experiences and achievements would contribute to the diversity of the University of Michigan.

In middle school my friend and I were talking about boys - more specifically, the ideal ethnicity. Instinctively, I responded that I preferred someone who was of Korean descent, and when I was asked why, I could not come up with anything other than, "So he can communicate more fluidly with my parents."

The conversation ended shortly after, yet I continued to impose the question upon myself: Why did I really fancy someone of my own ethnicity? The answer, I later realized, was comfort. There wouldn't be very many problems concerning the types of food, nor would there be any misconceptions regarding Korean traditions.

This made me realize how myopic I had been; I was making judgments on other cultures before ever really getting to know them by ignorantly stating I preferred my own ethnicity over another. In the months to follow, I proactively made a concerted effort to interact with other students of all backgrounds; to my surprise, I discovered and admired the fact that each culture offered many unique characteristics and rich traditions.

I know that University of Michigan already has an array of students from different cultures, but I am confident that I can contribute to the diversity not because of my Korean-American heritage, but because of who I am as an individual. My personal experiences may be similar to thousands of other students, but rarely is any one experience replicated to be exactly the same.