Global Awareness: I have always been enthralled by the world around me. In high school, I took many history classes that taught me about the world and its development. The biggest revelation I had from these history classes is that the world is the culmination of actions from people like you and I. This realization has driven me to broaden my horizons even further. My first step in doing so is going on right now, I am taking a course in English history that has the bonus of going to London over winter break (New Years 2017)! My continued study of history, people, and cultures will, hopefully, provide me with a holistic and sagacious view of the world.
Original Inquiry: I think it can be agreed that any student at Ohio State has some amount of curiosity, if we did not, why would we come to a research institution? That being said, I have been, primarily, interested in the biological and natural sciences. When I was a senior in high school, I interned in a research lab that was studying the effects of a certain protein, Brevican, on memory retention, in the hopes of better understanding the mechanism for Alzheimer’s Disease. But, recently, I discovered I also have a love for philosophy and the complex ethical and intellectual dilemmas that drive our societies’ choices today. To synthesize these two loves, I have chosen to pursue a biology major, and a minor in bioethics. Together, these two will allow me to study both sides of science: the intellectual and the philosophical, which will, hopefully, aid me in realizing my dream of attaining a Medical Degree. Too often, I think, people are so focused on discovering or creating the next “thing,” without thinking about the implications of their actions. I hope my studies will make me circumspect in this area.
Academic Enrichment: I do not think it is necessary to talk about the challenging courses that I will take during my time at Ohio State, that is just a prerequisite of being an honors student. What really enriches one’s education, in my opinion, is diversity. Rather than just taking a bunch of science courses since I am a biology major, I should strive to take courses in other disciplines, like economics, or history, or political science. Furthermore, I am going to push my learning outside the classroom, like the study abroad in England, or working in a research laboratory.’
Leadership Development: I am currently a part of the bioethics club here at Ohio State, and I really enjoy it. I have considered, in the future applying for a leadership/organizational position, so that could be a possible leadership opportunity. Otherwise, I hope to grow as a leader through volunteer work and working with other people.
Service Engagement: Seeing as my career goal is to be a physician, whose principal responsibility is to help other people, I should definitely have a strong service background. Service is probably the easiest of the G.O.A.L.S to achieve–there are no prerequisites or preferential traits. If you are willing to help, you can help. The most obvious way to engage in service is to help the community, whether it be volunteering at a soup kitchen, tutoring inner city students, or something else, there are virtually endless options. However, there could be actions that might not be,at first glance, considered “service.” For example, working in a research lab to develop a new vaccine may fall under the “Academic Enrichment” category most obviously; but, in reality, it is primarily service, since the goal of the vaccine is to protect people from disease. Therefore, I look forward to having a wealth of service engagement.