Hi Everybody,
Here is what I have so far. Any suggestions/corrections/help at all would be great! Below is the prompt. Thanks :)
Rosie Zwart
Personal Statement
12/24/11
I grew up in a family of nurses. When I was seven years old, my dad got tired of managing a popular restaurant in Phoenix, Arizona and decided to pursue a more personally satisfying profession as a nurse and eventually landed a job as an RN in the Maricopa County Burn Center. A few years later, my mom followed suit as a psychiatric RN. Then it was my aunt. Then my sister (NICU), my brother-in-law (ER), and my cousin (Pediatrics). You couldn't eat breakfast at my house without witnessing the light blue blur of scrubs as someone raced out the door to work. You also couldn't eat dinner at my house without being subject to my parents' the post-work dinner table conversation graphically detailing that day's "adventures" in the burn center or psych floor. As a preteen without a speck of knowledge of anything medical, I was often a silent observer at the dinner table as my parents went over recaps of their work days. It took a while, but eventually I started to learn. I became more familiar with medical terms and conditions, and learned to stomach the gruesome tales of dressing changes and the like. I started to ask questions and learn about the bizarre and complex things that can go wrong in the human mind and body, and I looked forward to hearing about my parents' days during dinner. Thanks to my crazy family of nurses, I began to consider one day becoming a nurse myself.
Now, I'm sure you're reading this wondering why in the world I'm going on about nursing when it very clearly states on my application that I am a biology major. Don't worry, I'm getting to that! The thing is, I was never one of those people who knew PRECISELY what they wanted to do starting promptly at age three after an eye-opening, life-affirming experience. It took me quite a while to discover my passion for Biology. Because of this, I started my college career at Fort Lewis College in Durango, Colorado with no clear goals or idea of where I was going, though I was convinced it was possible for me to simultaneously ace my full-time college course load AND attend every single house party known to man. Bet you can guess how that turned out. Showing my parents my report card at the end of my first semester of college with two C's and a D was one of the most humiliating moments of my life. I had wasted thousands of dollars and my chance at an out-of-state college experience, and for what? A bunch of blurry nights that always ended with my face in the toilet? I realized that a college education wasn't just going to magically fall in my lap, and that I was going to have to change my approach. I moved back home, got a job, and started over at the local community college taking prerequisites for nursing school.
The hurdles weren't over yet, however. After a year at community college, my GPA was up to a 3.8, I was on the Dean's List, and I had started to fall in love with Biology while taking classes like Anatomy and Physiology, Pathophysiology, and Microbiology for nursing school. The whole concept of illness was mesmerizing to me, I loved how the symptoms that manifested in the body created a mystery to be solved. I finally decided on Biology as a major, hoping to one day enter medical school, and I transferred to Arizona State University. I secured myself an apprentice position doing undergraduate research where we chemically simulated schizophrenia in rats, administered a cutting-edge antipsychotic, and then mounted their brain tissues on slides and analyzed them for intracellular changes in the neurons. I was finally in my element, and then my world flipped upside down.
On September 17th, my mom called me and told me my parents were divorcing after 26 years of marriage. I fell into a pretty severe depression over the next few weeks. Getting out of bed was next to impossible, let alone going to class. After spending two days just laying on the floor, I called the Student Health Center for help. I saw a therapist who advised me that I needed to be with my family and take some personal time. I was diagnosed with depression and with my therapist's help, I medically withdrew from my classes and took three months off of school and work to get myself together.
Those three months were the darkest period of my life. Still, I was begrudgingly aware that the world doesn't stop just because you want it to and I eventually had to pick myself back up and face my future. Because of the divorce and the rapidly falling economy, both of my parents faced significant financial hardships. Money had never been a problem in the past, but thanks to the cost of my parents' divorce, the capsizing of my mom's medical transcription company, and the fall of the real estate market, my parents lost almost all of their money. They no longer had the money to financially support me, so I had to figure it out on my own. Long story short, I got a job as a manager at a coffee shop in Arizona, met my fiancé, and a few months later, we moved to Seattle for a new start.
Things since then have improved dramatically for me. I got myself a full-time job as a manager at a bakery, navigated through the intricate financial aid and out-of-state student application process, then began school at Bellevue College nine months later. Although keeping up with work, school, my relationship, AND my newfound financial responsibilities was difficult at first, I learned to manage my time and finally earned myself straight A's for the winter quarter.
Admission to University of Washington would mean the world to me. Having had so many obstacles to overcome just to GO to college, admittance into such a prestigious university would be the cherry on top of my journey thus far. If admitted, my plan is to complete my Bachelor of Science in Physiology as well as participate in undergraduate research again. As for my Post Baccalaureate studies, I plan on applying to medical school at University of Washington as well as other reputable schools around the country. While I know that I want to be a pediatrician, I have many ideas about what type of pediatrician I would like to be. I am interested in a variety of specialties, including Neurology , Psychiatry, and working with children with autism. I am fascinated by the brain and what happens when things go "wrong," whether it be chemical/structural disorders, cognitive delays or developmental disorders, or issues with mental health. As I mentioned before, the process and effect of illness on the body is extremely interesting to me as well, therefore I am also considering Oncology and Pathology as possibilities. In order to accomplish this, I am currently volunteering at Seattle Children's Hospital in the Inpatient Child Life Room, and hope to shadow pediatricians of different specialties after putting in my time there. I will be applying for admittance into various summer programs, specifically the Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center's undergraduate research program for the summer before graduation. Additionally, I am currently working as a medical transcriptionist for a Psychiatrist who works at a residential treatment center for emotionally and behaviorally at-risk adolescent girls.
The University of Washington is my first and only choice for continuing my college education. I believe that UW's nationally-recognized research facilities as well as world-class faculty and ample opportunities available to undergraduates will bring out my full academic potential and help me further develop my passion for biology and physiology. After the struggles and lessons that I've learned along the way I can confidently say that I am fully committed to my education and have finally found my direction, which will hopefully include University of Washington. My life experiences so far have undoubtedly groomed me to be the best student and person I could be; growing up in my nurse-filled family has taught me compassion, flunking out of Fort Lewis taught me self-discipline, going back to school introduced me to my love of Biology, and having to start all over after my parents' divorce taught me independence. I believe that I would be a great asset to your school, and if admitted, I will not let you, or myself, down.
