Children's Literature, Media, and Culture program

CLMC program application essay

I am applying to CLMC program. I need to write 1200 words of essay to answer the following issues:

1. You should outline your motivation for choosing the CLMC program (i.e. how it complements and develops your previous studies; how it relates to your career path; how it relates to your personal and academic interests);

My mother is an English teacher, and I wanted to do something different. I once wondered how hard it is to learn the Chinese language, the world's hardest language. After thinking of several considerations, I decided to take the Chinese language and literature study. It did not take me a long time to find out why the Chinese language is ranked 1st in the hardest language list. However, learning a new language has always been fun. But it goes beyond something entertaining to answer my curiosity. During my study, I found out that I am passionate about literature and culture. I am interested in analyzing prose fiction, drama, poetry, and even random books. The beauty of culture with all of its complex forms also attracted my attention. My mother always tells me about how her students are doing in class, and it gives me an idea of what I want to do in the future. I am curious about what is happening within the children's world, and I want to deepen the knowledge that I have gained during my Bachelor's study in the children and youth field. As I wish to be either a lecturer or a researcher in children and youth studies, the Children's Literature, Media, and Culture program will prepare me to pursue my career goal.

I will be familiar with all of the Children's Literature, Media, and Culture program courses with my background field of study. The literature courses I have taken during my Bachelor's study are related to the children's literature courses in the program's first and second semesters. Since foreign culture was the core subject of my previous study field, I have the experience and knowledge to enroll in the Transcultural Trajectories pathway in the third semester.

During the 1970s, translated books became popular in Indonesian society, and children's books were no exception. Since English and Bahasa Indonesia have different cultures that influence each of the languages, transferring messages without removing any reflections and ideas is not easy. However, several translation methods can be used, either the first perspective that emphasizes the source language or the second perspective that emphasizes the target language. What Indonesian translators use methods and perspectives in translating children's books remains unknown. I find myself interested in this topic. I will use this topic as the basis of my dissertation. This dissertation will explore the translation methods and perspectives used by Indonesian translators in translating children's books.

I was an assistant lecturer. As a Chinese language and literature student, I represented my universities in Indonesia and China in some Chinese speech contests. Some of them are the Chinese Bridge competition held at the State University of Malang in 2016 as the First Runner Up, the Chinese speech competition held at the University of Indonesia in 2017 as the third and the favorite winner, and the Chinese speech competition held at the Jiangnan University in 2018 as the second winner. Apart from academics, I was also active in some organizations such as the Student Executive Board, the Association of Chinese Language Students, and the Indonesian Student Association in China. I also participated in a few conferences, for instance, the National Conference of Indonesian Chinese Study Program Association and TV One Goes to Campus "The Voice of the People - Becoming a Great Leader" in 2016. I was an awardee of the Outstanding Student Award in 2016 and Academic Achievement Improvement Scholarships in 2016 and 2017. I was also an awardee of scholarship for a double degree program at Changzhou Institute of Technology from 2017 to 2019. I went to the Embassy of the Republic of Indonesia in Beijing for an internship in 2019.

The first paragraph is all over the place. That should be the motivating statement in the essay. Yet you do not speak of an actual motivation. You are speaking of a confusing learning history involving your mother, languages, and literature. Since you are applying to get accepted into a literature masters course, your motivation focus should be on the professional development of that interest in relation to your career progression.

Do not make a claim that you have the experience and knowledge to participate in the Transcultural Trajections pathway, prove that through your statements that show your relevant qualifications instead. Let the reviewer be the judge of whether you are qualified or not. Making such a boisterous claim normally irritates the reviewer, who sees that type of statement more as the student trying to defend his weak qualifications instead.

Your essay fails to present several information marks that the reviewer needs to know about. The missing elements include:
- A reference to the courses offered in the program during both years
- Your (tentative) dissertation topic
- Personal, professional, and academic achievements that would highlight your ability to succeed in completing this course.

You have to refer to your masters studies and career progression since in relation to your chosen PhD course. There is plenty of room for improvement in your essay. Revise the content so that you can reflect all of the necessary requirements, not just a few of them.