Undergraduate / Why Biology is my Intended Major - UC prompt for transfer applicants [3]

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.

Coming out of high school, it has always been my intention to major in biology, although initially I admit I had no real interest in the subject. Unlike the majority of my peers, I hadn't had that defining moment where I realized, "Wow, this is something I could do for the rest of my life." So when I graduated, I chose biology as my major for the sake of convenience. Not only was it something I was good at, but it was also a major that satisfied the ideals of my immigrant parents - the constantly growing field meant there would be no shortage of jobs, and as far as they knew, all jobs biology-related were lucrative.

Upon starting college, I dutifully took every class that was required for biology majors. I had enough interest in the subject to try my hardest in all my classes, but not enough to make any considerable effort to further my involvement with biology. However, my lackluster perception of my major began to change in October of 2009 when my grandma's health began to deteriorate rapidly. Eventually, she was going to different doctors or specialists at least twice a week. Concern for my grandma kept me completely involved in what was going on - I was present at most of the appointments so I could hear her diagnosis and get answers to questions directly from the doctor. In turn, it was my job to summarize and simplify the doctor's diagnosis so my other family members could understand.

Despite the grim circumstances, my curiosity began to spread from what her problem was, to a myriad of other things - how and why the doctors arrived at their conclusion, why they prescribed a certain medicine in certain dosages, how the medicine would affect my grandma and the side effects, etc. Something as simple as prescribing aspirin for a random pain took a huge amount of consideration. "She's taking potassium chloride for low blood pressure, but she's also taking a blood thinner to minimize the risks of clots from another medication. Aspirin is also a blood thinner, so I'm hesitant to prescribe it, especially since her blood pressure is still low..." Their process of deliberation fascinated me, and what I then eagerly recalled from my summer semester of biology supplemented my understanding of the doctors' diagnosis.

It was at that point that I finally had my defining moment; biology was something that I could see myself doing for the rest of my life, and loving it. Finding out what a patient's problem was based on chemical clues from their body, analyzing bodily fluids and tissues for abnormalities, researching the effects of medicines on the body and finding new ones - all the possibilities were exciting prospects to me. Between then and now, the continual news of new discoveries and the worsening of my grandma's condition (regretfully, she had a heart attack in February) has only strengthened my interest and resolve to major in biology.

Undergraduate / Publishing Volunteering Over the Summer - UC Prompt for all applicants [3]

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?

One summer, my mom learned about a volunteer project with Dharma Publishing Company. The company printed religious texts, then bound and wrapped them in a traditional Tibetan way for free distribution among monks participating in a ten-day ceremony/prayer for world peace. Approving of the cause, she promptly called the director of the project and managed to volunteer my services for the summer without my consent. Telling me about it only hours before I was supposed to start, I found myself stranded in front of an unfamiliar building as she sped off to work.

Being painfully shy, I was terrified to be stuck with a group of strangers. I walked in and out of the doorway several times before a woman appeared. With a thick German accent, she introduced herself as Stephanie, the director of the project. She guided me into a room, sat me down at a workbench, and proceeded to teach me how to bind and wrap the books. After confirming that I could do both tasks correctly, she left me happily working at my relatively isolated bench.

When I reached for another wrapper one hour later, I panicked when I realized I had run out. I had no idea where to get more, and there was no way I could pretend that the small stack of books I had wrapped took me four hours. I built up the courage to approach the nearest volunteer and timidly ask her where I could get extra wrappers. She kindly pointed out where the extra wrappers, extra books and the extra bands were, and once I had grabbed what I needed, she proceeded to join me at my bench. She chattered constantly and I soon found myself growing more and more comfortable in her presence. When lunch time came around, she introduced me to all the other volunteers, and by the end of the day, with her help I had managed to form a tentative acquaintance with everybody.

I continued volunteering there five days a week, and soon each day became something I began to look forward to rather than dread. The work was soothing, the atmosphere friendly, and I got to meet people from all around the world. I even found myself being the one to approach and introduce myself to the new volunteers on occasion.

Looking back on this experience, especially on that first day, I can't help but be proud of myself for sticking it out and overcoming my fear of strangers or of being the first one to make an approach. I sacrificed my time and stepped out of my comfort zone, but what I got in return was more than I could've imagined. I got the opportunity to try new foods, learn about different cultures and parts of the world, and I made a ton of new friends. This experience helped me find an inner confidence and gain a more open perspective of the world, both of which I now use in all walks of life.