Undergraduate / "I'm Hmong, a minority ethnic group of Southeast Asia" - Additional Common App [2]

Greetings:)
On the Common App, there's this little section avaliable for any extra info. I wasn't sure if it was meant only for explaining special circumstances concerning bad grades ect. I hope that what I plan to write will be okay... Please critique.

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I am Hmong. Hmong is a minority ethnic group of Southeast Asia and is known for it's beautifully stitched "story cloths", distinctive festival costumes and harmonic sounds of bamboo instruments. However, due to the Vietnam War, many of them left their homelands and escaped to America as refugees.

My parents came to America from Laos as children in the mid 70's. They, along with my grandparents, would tell me Hmong folk tales when I was younger. Throughout my life, I found learning about my culture and my family's history interesting and I wanted to be involved with it. When the Hmong New Year was approaching, I volunteered to perform traditional Hmong dances with some others. We produced five dances in total and even participated in a couple local cultural festivals.

I am proud about my heritage, however, I was disappointed to discover that in Laos, there were limited opportunities for a formal education and for women, there were zero. I am fortunate to be born in America where everyone, including women, have the chance to go to school and pursue an education. I plan on taking full advantage of this opportunity.

Undergraduate / "0-6 pharmacy program" - MCPHS Supplement- Why Pharmacy [4]

Greetings:) Please read my essay. Can you tell me what it says about me?

Please submit a brief 250-word essay discussing your reasons for choosing the specific health care career you wish to pursue and why you are applying to MCPHS.

Two summers ago, I volunteered with the American Redcross at a hospital. Through this experience, I explored many different healthcare careers and began considering one myself. After seeing many critically ill patients suffer in the hospital and then helplessly watching my grandpa weaken from his battle against brain cancer months later, I finally discovered what I wanted to do.

I want to pursue a career in pharmacy. I want to help provide relief for people like those I saw at the hospital. I want to prolong lives of cancer patients like my grandpa. I want to help prevent suffering of the ill, injured, and disabled. Pharmacy will allow me to do that. Although patients may have different health problems, at some point, they will all need medications.

I chose to apply to MCPHS because of the 0-6 pharmacy program. I was excited to learn that I could enter a pharmacy program directly from high school and finish within six years. I also like the fact that MCPHS is a small, private college, yet it is recognized for its long history of excellence. The classes are also small enough for personal attention from professors and academic support centers are offered for students if needed. Moreover, MCPHS is unique; it is focused solely on healthcare professions, enabling students to interact with others who share similar goals and interests. Everything I envisioned in a college experience exists at Massachusetts College of Pharmacy and Health Sciences.

Undergraduate / Grandpa's Pills- Why I Want to Be a Pharmacist -Common App Essay [3]

Greetings:) Please read and critique my essay. I would appreciate it if you would tell me what this essay says about me.

Thank You:D
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When I walked into the pharmacy of Brandon Regional Hospital as a volunteer two summers ago, I was astonished with the endless surplus of medications. There were cabinets, refrigerators, shelves, tables, bins, and carts containing thousands of medications ranging from pills to patches, creams to liquids and syringes to nose plungers. Gawking at this mind-boggling gallery of infinite drugs, I said to myself, "Gosh, who uses all these medicines?" I was soon to see.

In January 2010, my grandpa's brain tumor had returned. He had been diagnosed with a brain tumor four years before and had undergone brain surgery and radiation to stop the tumor's progression. When I heard that he didn't have much time left, I began visiting him immediately after school. He would tell me funny stories about his childhood in Laos and about his travels around the world while I observed photos of a younger him. We watched Jerry Springer, sang karaoke to his favorite songs and tried playing checkers although he said that his brain didn't work anymore and didn't know how to play. I really enjoyed those afternoons.

As the months rolled by, I watched his short term memory deteriorate and his coordination slip away. Soon, Grandpa could not recall how to work his karaoke machine or even switch the TV channel. Once, he was heating soup on the stove and it boiled over. I told him that his soup was ready. He looked at me, slightly tilted his head, and said, " What Soup? I'm not hungry" and toddled out of the kitchen. His hair began to fall out and he stumbled without a cane. Watching this happen was heartbreaking- there was nothing I or anyone could do to help. He was the strongest, most independent person in my family; I prayed that he would overcome the tumor like he did before.

Grandpa suddenly passed away in June. He was taken to the ICU at Brandon Regional Hospital, the day after my 17th birthday. I remember squeezing his hand, shouting and uselessly reminding him that he told me he was going to be okay. He didn't respond. He was gone. The room was silent except for my family's sobbing and the beeping of the life support monitor. Through my tears, I studied Grandpa's gentle, slumberous face. My mind drifted back to January when my mom said to me, "It doesn't look good...Spend time with Grandpa because we never know 'when'." "When" happened.

After this summer, I thought about how I questioned the necessity of the medications I saw in the pharmacy. I walked to Grandpa's house. On his kitchen counter were many different kinds of pills. In his fridge were liquid versions of the pills. I realized that without them, he would have left four years ago when he was first diagnosed. They helped sustain his life, giving me the chance to spend more time with him. I wiped my tears, whispered, "Bye, Grandpa" and walked home with a new perspective on life and a career in mind: pharmacy. I want to help prolong lives so that others will be able to spend more time with their loved ones as I did with my Grandpa. What I experienced this past summer has given me strength to carry on, providing me with a new goal and perspective on life.