Undergraduate / My Indian Heritage; Rutgers / diversity (trip to india!) [3]

Rutgers University is a vibrant community of people with a wide variety of backgrounds and experiences. How would you benefit from and contribute to such an environment? Consider variables such as your talents, travels, leadership activities, volunteer services, and cultural experiences. Only personal essays submitted via our website will be considered. You may enter a maximum of 3800 characters including spaces.

The contributions I could make to Rutgers University stem from my culturally varied upbringing. After spending my first four years around Europe, I began public school in Omaha, Nebraska.

A fond memory of my first day remains: a classmate questioned my spelling of "mum", which is "mom" in America; this was the first of many discrepancies which, as I grew, ultimately gave me a more expansive world view than many of my peers. More incongruity arose when my family moved once again, from Nebraska to New Jersey. Even within the nation, the difference between the two societies was as pronounced that between Ireland and Omaha. Massive factories straddling four-lane highways, cities teeming with people scurrying about, pollution the likes of which I had never seen: New Jersey had them all. Nonetheless, just like Omaha, I learned from my environment and acclimatized over time.

What has contributed to my perspective more than anything else, however, is my Indian heritage. Reinforced by my parents, this aspect of my life has always been with me, and juxtaposition with my setting - whether Nebraska or New Jersey - never fails to be an eye-opening experience. One particularly noteworthy example was a vacation to India during the summer before my sophomore year of high school. My parents would not arrive until weeks after my brother and I did, and those weeks were spent being juggled between primarily Hindi-speaking relatives.

Here, my inability to speak Hindi well proved to be a significant obstacle. Immersion in a society driven by an unfamiliar language inhibits interactions, but in turn promotes analysis. Indian society was truly very different from American, and as I spent that vacation observing unfamiliar monuments, eating in unfamiliar restaurants, and communicating with unfamiliar people, I developed a sense of humility. I could grasp a concept that seemed incomprehensible before: there is far more to the world than your present society. Beyond the factories of New Jersey, beyond the vast fields of Omaha, there is still more; and even beyond foreign, incomprehensible, India, there is more.

As such, what I could contribute to the environment in Rutgers University is more than one specific interest or subject; I can use my multiculturalism to connect with new people. Students and teachers alike all come from their own backgrounds, and a fascinating experience exploring my background motivates me to understand others' and explore further. The same concepts of wonder and worldliness that arose from my trip to India drive me to Rutgers, a microcosm of the world. As I find my past cultural experiences invaluable, the diversity on campus will undoubtedly widen my perspective of the world even farther. Needless to say, the more one learns about others, they learn about themselves; as such, Rutgers' variety will also provide more insight into my own life.

Let me know what you think - any feedback would be super appreciated. Thanks!

Undergraduate / drexel: digital media [3]

Please review what type of applicant you are and submit a corresponding personal statement (must be at least 250 words). Relate your topic to your interest in digital media.

For as long as I can remember, digital media has been in the forefront of my life. I remember printing out birthday cards for my friends, eagerly waiting for the inkjet printer to cease its whirring so I could proudly showcase my creation. My zeal did not die through high school, where I experimented with other concepts under the broad title of "media" - movies and music. I took to recording bands in a modest basement studio and composing comedic short films. With all these years of interest in mind, I wish to continue my passion as a Digital Media major at Drexel University.

Though they are great influences on my life, my aforementioned home-grown efforts are not the extent of my experience in the digital media field. Since the January of 2009, I have been working as a paid student technician for Lawrence Township's District Media Center. As its name would suggest, this job entails a variety of video and audio-related tasks. One afternoon could be spent taping a soccer game outdoors, while the next could be spent working sound and lights for a production in the auditorium. Through this, I garnered a great deal of practical experience with various cameras and sound equipment. Moreover, I had my first taste of what a career in digital media would be like - and enjoyed every minute of it.

Digital media's beauty lies in the sheer number of different fields and professions it connects to, and my experiences have reaffirmed how exciting it can be. To that end, Drexel's Digital Media program is ideal for me - to build upon past experiences, create new ones, and prepare me for a career in an immersive, digital future.

Any feedback would be greatly appreciated...thanks!