Undergraduate / USC transfer majoring in communication: What Matters to Me and Why [6]

This is my personal statement for usc transfer majoring in communication. I'm not sure how to conclude my essay so the conclusion is not finished.

Did I answer the essay question throughly and clearly?
and please help me on grammar!
ANY suggestions are appreciated!

Question:
USC's speaker series "What Matters to Me and Why" asks faculty and staff to reflect on their values, beliefs, and motivations. Presenters talk about choices they have made, difficulties encountered, and commitments solidified. Write an essay about an event or experience that helped you learn what is important to you and why it is important.

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It has been 19 years since I came out of my mother's womb.

With one forth of my life slipped away unwittingly, I had an epiphany. I finally understand that time is one of the scarcest resources in a human life, and I need to make the most out of it. The only way to do live my life to the fullest is to spend my time on things that matters to me the most. Socializing with friends and playing Wii are definitely not bad ways to spend some of the time on, but those are not my priorities. What matters to me the most are knowledge and critical thinking.

I see knowledge as one of the most important part in my life, but this idea has not been apparent until I enter college. Back when I was a high schooler, I brought the typical thought injected by the Hong Kong educational system with me to America, that the grades are the only things that matter. Students in Hong Kong strain themselves over tests because they have been told that the scores are what determine their future. Parents pay big bucks for tutor centers to teach their kids how to earn points from exams, and students jumping over a building due to overwhelming stress are not uncommon phenomena. At that time, I believed that the sole reason for going to school is for that piece of paper we acquire when we graduate that tells our future employers we qualify for a job. Even my dad told me what I thought was wrong, but I was stubborn and thought he was being unrealistic. That idea was finally overthrown when I became a college student. Studying in a college has changed my view towards the world. I had an opportunity to discover fascinating subjects that was not available from high school. The knowledge I gain from all the different classes has shaped my perspective, and truthfully, I loved every moment of it. I became aware that learning new things could give me immense joy. I begin to feel like a humongous sponge absorbing every bit of information I could from my education. Even though there are discouraging times, I still feel that the whole experience as a college student is exciting and empowering.

To learn is one of my driving force, and to think is another essential element I put value on. During my two years as a college student, I realize that knowledge and critical thinking are two inseparable elements. Withholding information does not justify a person as a thinking being, and I witness that a lot with many friends I still have from Hong Kong. Most of them do not give a care in what they are studying. Their only goal is to memorize anything they could from the book with or without the mean of understanding the material. I do not want to become a robot that could only mumble out information but not understanding what they mean or what they are use for. I strive on questioning for credibility (at a moderate level) because that is how you find out if the information you gain is logical or not.

Here is my formula: Input knowledge, store it, use critical thinking as the process system, and the output would be logic and good reasoning, which are what I would like to think as a good investment of my time.

Undergraduate / "Experiences and involvements" - uc prompt1 [5]

Is it better to start with "My intended major is..." instead of how I did it?
Is present perfect tense or past tense more preferable?
Any suggestions for me to sound more passionate?
thanks,

What is your intended major? Discuss how your interest in the subject developed and describe any experience you have had in the field - such as volunteer work, internships and employment, participation in student organizations and activities - and what you have gained from your involvement.

"Everyone has once been Alice. All of us have to find ourselves in this crazy world we happened to fall into..." - it was a speech I gave when I received my honorable award for my version of the book of Alice in Wonderland in my high school art show. Having to give out a speech unprepared in front of a group of unfamiliar people, I did not do very well on delivering my thoughts with my words. I began to realize the importance of verbal communication; it was also a chance that opened the door for me to communication studies. After my embarrassment on stage, a couple approached me and offered to buy my artwork. Although I turned down their offer, I felt honored and delighted that they understood the message I tried to convey with my art. At that moment I realized that it means a lot to me to be able to successfully express my ideas. Participating in art shows gave me a chance to express ideas from my work through words, and it has given me the opportunity to develop my communication sense. Such experiences have strengthened my desire to pursue my major in Communication.

Coming to the United States, I have encountered many different cultures. At first, I was one of the typical invisible freshmen in my classes, but I found the different cultural backgrounds of my fellow classmates fascinating. Regardless of my poor English, I defeated my psychological barriers and began to make friends with students with different races and ethics. We often had fun finding odd and interesting facts of each other's culture. Learning to communicate with people in an ethically and racially diverse campus broadened my cultural experiences as well as my communication skills. Taking my first speech course in college deepens my interest in the field of communication studies. I especially enjoyed my experiences in that class. Learning to effectively express my ideas and interact with my audiences opened my eyes to the field of Communication studies. Moreover, courses such as General Psychology. Sociology and Critical Thinking led me look at communication from different viewpoints, providing me new insights towards the basis of human connection.

To further enrich my communication experience, I decided to join the Red Cross club. Participating in our club promotion in De Anza clubs day provided me with real life practices in my advertising skills. I helped organizing our booth to better appeal to our future members. Explaining to and persuading various people to join our club was a challenge for me, but such useful experiences granted me confidence in my communication skills. I had many volunteering work opportunities from the Red Cross club from interacting with children to giving out food to the homeless. Not only did I obtain new knowledge in communicating with people from different age groups and social backgrounds, but I have also learned how to coordinate with my fellow club members in completing our work as a team.

During summertime in Hong Kong, I had a chance to teach elementary school children drawing. While teaching kids to express themselves creatively, I also gained some techniques in communication from them. At first, I started teaching them without caring for a response. Soon I could see the children yawning, looking out the window or playing with their pencils. By asking them questions and engaging them in the process of drawing, they became more focused and involved. I learned that effective communication is a two-way process. This experience gave me a better understanding in real world communication.

From the above experiences, I have learned how to communicate with different people in different ways effectively and with empathy. I wish to bring my engagement and my communication skills to your university and I aspire to further explore the world of Communication studies.

Undergraduate / My grandmother, Suggestions for my essay? Struggling for ideas.. [6]

I'm struggling for my prompt2
this IS an important event that changed my perspective in life
but it seems like I am a bit off topic or not to the point, and I think i sound like I am begging for pity.

Please advice.

PROMTPT 2: Tell us about a personal quality, talent, accomplishment, contribution or experience that is important to you. What about this quality or accomplishment makes you proud and how does it relate to the person you are?

In just one night, my grandmother could never remember me again. I was shocked when I heard about this news that she was diagnosed with Alzheimer's disease. I lived with my grandmother since I was born. Not until this incidence happened do I truly understand how many things in life I had taken for granted. It was a wake up call for me.

My grandmother always took care of me when I was little. She brought me to bed when I was drilling all over on my copybook assignment; cooked for me when I woke up hungry in the middle of the night; raced with me and see who could first get the answer for my math addition problems. Then something changed. I grew up. I started to have my own life and friends. I also realized the existed conflicts between my mother and my grandmother. They fought for every single day, and my dad would be in the middle frustrated between his wife and his mother. It was almost cartoony. I started to doubt my grandmother's beliefs. I was mad at her always yelling at my mom, and since then I was distanced from her. It was one of my biggest regret in my life. I knew she loved me, but I failed to see pass her beliefs.

It was a big lesson for me. I finally understand how limited our time is, and how easy it is for us to loose track in it. It was a milestone that shaped me into a more enthusiastic person, and I learned to appreciate little things in life. It also led me to dig deeper into the lack of communication in my family. Studying in U.S was a subconscious move for me to escape from my family conflicts, but from then on I knew I need to stop ignoring and start engaging. My parents and I started to talk more, and we discovered how little we knew about each other. It led me to many questions in the topic of interpersonal connection, and I developed a strong desire to explore the field of Communication.

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My conclusion is especially worse cause I cannot think of how to end it besides linking it back to my major.