Iakov Efimenko
Prompt: Describe your intellectual interests, their evolution, and what makes them exciting to you. Tell us how you will utilize the academic programs in the College of Arts and Sciences to further explore your interests, intended major, or field of study.
Courtesy of my grandmother, I started reading quiet early; by the age of five I had a plethora of astronomy books under my belt of knowledge. Planet Earth, the solar system, and the idea of the cosmos were so fascinating that it was the only thing I read and for my birthday, New Years, or any other occasion, such books was what I asked for.
My passion for astronomy, like a flask, shaped my liquid and premature identity. Through the understanding of cosmos I developed my own perspective on the world and the importance of life and the individual. Through it, I began to form an idea for the meaning of existence, and although my family are all Eastern Christian Orthodox, my ideas of origin were shaped otherwise. I continued drinking from the ever flowing river that the universe represents and for years I was inspired and awed by the unfathomable numbers and possibilities that exist in the system we call our universe.
I sworn to myself that I would become an astronomer, study the sky, observe the distant galaxies and distant planets never touched by other eyes. But I also always looked ahead, and as passionate as I was about the cosmos I realized that my thirst for cosmic knowledge could not fuel and sustain me for life; I matured. Intellectual interests more or less intertwine with careers, and a career path that would possibly lead me into a field that has recently lost majority of it's funding and therefore lost hope and promise for near future, is not something I intend to rush into fueled only on raging passions.
Nonetheless, I was lucky, not that I would be doomed as an astronomer, but thanks to my high school biology teacher I began to develop an interest for biology. In my perspective biology deals with a universe of it's own, a universe of processes and events that occur on a level closely observable and relatable to each of us in our everyday lives, and like that of the cosmos, the knowledge of the biological world is not set in stone; everyday new discoveries in the field permeate universities, hospitals, and labs. To me biology also contains a large humane component to it; whilst cosmology or astronomy may answer questions that may be relevant to us in a million to billion years, biology answers that which may save villages ravaged by malaria today orr a cancer patient that may not live to celebrate his birthday, The applications of biology are limitless, the funding is evermore increasing, and the opportunities are endless, and thus biology holds promise and hope now, that I once saw in astronomy.
As one of the top and most competitive establishment for pre-med I intend to devote myself to Cornell's rigorous and competitive courses. Furthermore I intend to utilize to my advantage the shadowing programs that Cornell offers that set you up with physicians and allow you to gain more experience in the field. Most importantly, you can study and absorb knowledge introduced by others, but to me the most important aspect of learning is discovering, and therefore I see research as one of my top priorities which as a top research institution, Cornell will help me succeed in.
"such books was what I asked for"---> such books were what I asked for
"may save villages ravaged by malaria today orr a cancer patient that may not live to celebrate his birthday"---> may save villages ravaged by malaria todayor a cancer patient that may not live to celebrate his (next? ) birthday
"and thus biology holds promise and hope now, that I once saw in astronomy. "---> and thus biology holds (the same ) promise and hope now, that I once saw in astronomy.
Overall the topics great and your writing prose is excellent. It makes sense and sounds like a good personal voice coming alive through your writing, but you got to work on your conclusion. If you want to really impress the reader try tying something in from the intro into your conclusion. Try being creative. If you do that your essay will be killer (sorry for the awk word choice) and Cornell will be lucky to have you.
