Prompt: We are interested in learning more about you and the context in which you have grown up, formed your aspirations, and accomplished your academic successes. Please describe the factors and challenges that have most influenced you. How are they shaping your future aspirations? [650 word Maximum]
Like many others, my parents came to the United States because they believed it was the land of opportunity, success, and freedom. I was only 10 months old when my mother and I left Nepal to join my father who was finishing his bachelor's degree in Texas as an international student.
I spent most of my early childhood in Fremont, California. Even as a young child, I was keenly aware of the fact that I differed greatly from my classmates. I looked nothing like them as I was one of the few South Asian kids in my class. The one factor that alienated me from my peers the most was my inability to speak English fluently. I was teased every time I stuttered or paused to think about what to say. Nepali was the mother tongue of both my parents and the language they were most comfortable speaking. It was only natural that it was also the first language I learned. Instead of embracing the details that made me different, however, I shunned them. Eventually, I only spoke in English, not realizing until much later that I was slowly forgetting Nepali. It must have been then that I took on the unofficial role as my mother's translator. As a shy child, it was often stressful having to explain what my mother meant to others. Although I hated it at the time, I believe the experience helped me understand at an early age how important it was to have others understand you.
I was 6 years old when we moved to Canada. I could not comprehend why we had to leave. After all, America was our home, was it not? Unfortunately, the only citizen in our family was my little sister Ahvasri who was only a toddler at the time. Moving to another place is something that always significantly changes your life; even more so when you move to another country. I found myself in a completely different situation- I was no longer part of the minority. In Surrey, British Columbia the majority of our neighbors were from Punjab, a region in India. That was not the only thing that changed, however. Being an engineer has been a dream of mine since I was a child. I wanted to be like my father and mother who had both originally gone to college for engineering (software and civil respectively). However, neither of them were engineers for long. In Canada, the poor job market forced my dad to take a job as a security guard as he struggled to find a job in his field. My mother, on the other hand, had been out of the industry for too long so she went back to school for nursing. These conditions weighed my family down with a huge financial burden. The ever increasing also rent forced us to move on several occasions. Consequently, I attended six different elementary schools. I was 11 when we finally moved back to the United States so that my father could do his Master's and get back into engineering.
Although we have finally come back to the country I have always considered home, life hasn't been easy. Since I don't have a green card, I am not allowed to have a job and the tuition most universities ask of international students is unbelievably high. On top of all that, there is the looming possibility of having to leave the country again. Despite all the struggles and the setbacks in my parents' careers, I have become even more determined to become an engineer as I remember the concern on my mother's face as my weary father came back from his night shifts every morning. I hope to become an environmental engineer and help the world use fresh water more efficiently.
Like many others, my parents came to the United States because they believed it was the land of opportunity, success, and freedom. I was only 10 months old when my mother and I left Nepal to join my father who was finishing his bachelor's degree in Texas as an international student.
I spent most of my early childhood in Fremont, California. Even as a young child, I was keenly aware of the fact that I differed greatly from my classmates. I looked nothing like them as I was one of the few South Asian kids in my class. The one factor that alienated me from my peers the most was my inability to speak English fluently. I was teased every time I stuttered or paused to think about what to say. Nepali was the mother tongue of both my parents and the language they were most comfortable speaking. It was only natural that it was also the first language I learned. Instead of embracing the details that made me different, however, I shunned them. Eventually, I only spoke in English, not realizing until much later that I was slowly forgetting Nepali. It must have been then that I took on the unofficial role as my mother's translator. As a shy child, it was often stressful having to explain what my mother meant to others. Although I hated it at the time, I believe the experience helped me understand at an early age how important it was to have others understand you.
I was 6 years old when we moved to Canada. I could not comprehend why we had to leave. After all, America was our home, was it not? Unfortunately, the only citizen in our family was my little sister Ahvasri who was only a toddler at the time. Moving to another place is something that always significantly changes your life; even more so when you move to another country. I found myself in a completely different situation- I was no longer part of the minority. In Surrey, British Columbia the majority of our neighbors were from Punjab, a region in India. That was not the only thing that changed, however. Being an engineer has been a dream of mine since I was a child. I wanted to be like my father and mother who had both originally gone to college for engineering (software and civil respectively). However, neither of them were engineers for long. In Canada, the poor job market forced my dad to take a job as a security guard as he struggled to find a job in his field. My mother, on the other hand, had been out of the industry for too long so she went back to school for nursing. These conditions weighed my family down with a huge financial burden. The ever increasing also rent forced us to move on several occasions. Consequently, I attended six different elementary schools. I was 11 when we finally moved back to the United States so that my father could do his Master's and get back into engineering.
Although we have finally come back to the country I have always considered home, life hasn't been easy. Since I don't have a green card, I am not allowed to have a job and the tuition most universities ask of international students is unbelievably high. On top of all that, there is the looming possibility of having to leave the country again. Despite all the struggles and the setbacks in my parents' careers, I have become even more determined to become an engineer as I remember the concern on my mother's face as my weary father came back from his night shifts every morning. I hope to become an environmental engineer and help the world use fresh water more efficiently.
