25 Facts About Me

Here are 25 fun facts that demonstrate my unique personality:

1. I rapped my speech when I campaigned for senior class secretary of my high school. It gained laughs and applause. The speech was in poem-form, with every line rhyming. It took me an average of 2 minutes to recite the entire thing.

2. May 2016, I sent in headshots and body shots of myself to the casting agency for Fast and the Furious 8, and was surprised to receive a reply to my email saying that I was booked as an extra for a day. However, I made the mistake of telling the agency several days for availability, and one of those days was when I had mandatory high school graduation rehearsal. Missing the rehearsal was not an option for me; it would hurt me as well as my fellow seniors who were practicing. Sadly, I could not be involved in the filming, but it would have been great to be in the movie!

3. I do not eat seafood, not because of an allergy, but simply because they taste appalling to me. I can, however, eat seaweed chips! They’re a salty, crispy, thin snack.

4. I grew up watching Barney, Caillou, Sagwa the Siamese Cat, Cyberchase, Dragon Tales, Arthur, and much more PBS shows! Scooby Doo is my ultimate favorite children’s show, with Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles coming close behind. I never watched SpongeBob.

5. My first dream job position was a mermaid; I was inspired after watching several movies with mermaids in them (Peter Pan, etc.)

6. Writing, as you can tell, is a hobby of mine, and I plan to do so for as long as I can! It is an outlet for me and a chance for me to reach a wide audience. I’ve won cash prizes for writing contests and for one contest, I was able to get a personal tour of the Cleveland medical examiner’s office!

7. I love eating crème brulees and vanilla-flavored desserts.

8. Skills I want to learn include whistling, snapping my fingers, and rolling my R’s.

9. I am a multimodal learner – I study in various ways, depending on the context and subject matter. For example, I color-coordinate my folders and notebooks. For my Medical Sociology class, I used a pink folder and pink notebook and pink highlighters/gel pens to write the headings and major concepts. When it’s time for finals, I write a study plan for my tests (what chapters would be covered, what concepts are most important, and how many days I would study leading up to the final, as well as how many hours I would plan to study.)

10. Things I keep on my desk are my lamp, a stapler, writing utensils, post-it notes, my laptop and its sleeve, lotion, water bottle, planner, and phone.

11. I always bring around with me a bottle of hand sanitizer, packs of tissues, a water bottle, and a pack of gum. In class one time, I was the only one who had scissors in handy for an activity, and the teacher announced that I was prepared. In my dorm, I keep around a sewing kit, first-aid kit, tape, scissors, cleaning wipes, and more. Sometimes if my working area is too disorderly, I have to clean it up or it’ll bother me and I cannot focus on my schoolwork!

12. I have one sibling, a brother, who is 494 days younger than me. He’s coming to OSU as well (OSU 2021).

13. Ten songs from my extremely diverse playlist are:

– Elvis Presley – Can’t Help Falling in Love
– No Doubt – Don’t Speak
– Arctic Monkeys – Do I Wanna Know?
– Twenty One Pilots – Truce
– Sia – The Greatest
– Red Hot Chili Peppers – Snow
– EXO – Moonlight ( a K-pop song!)
– One Direction – You & I
– G-Eazy and Kehlani – Good Life
– Drake – Trust Issues

Check some of these songs out if you have not heard some of them before.

14. I attended two concerts in Columbus so far, and I had never gone to a concert before college! The first one was in September and Kesha performed! I loved it and it was free! The second was in January with a band called Starset with opening acts: Liberty Deep Down, Harmless Habit, and 8 lbs under pressure.

15. Favorite on-campus eateries: Union Market (pasta, burgers, salads, sushi and more) and Sloopy’s Diner
Favorite off-campus eateries: Chipotle, Condado’s Tacos

16. Movies I have seen at the Gateway Film Center on OSU’s South Campus are Suicide Squad and the Lego Batman Movie. I recommend these movies!

17. Where do I sit in class? Is there a right place to sit?
For some classes, I sit in the same seat I always do, without fail. For larger lecture classes, I sometimes sit in the second row from the front, while other times I am in the very back.
There is a piece of advice for students to sit in the front so the professor gets to know you and your face, and also so you do not get distracted by other students. However, I have gotten A’s in my classes when I sit in the back. It may help to sit in the front, but for me, it does not hurt to be in the back.

18. I did not learn how to tie shoes until I was 18, a senior in high school. It’s surprising to people who hear this – they exclaim “No way, you are joking” but this is the truth.

19. I enjoy getting e-mails and regular mail.

20. I always prefer sleeping in the bottom bunk of the bunk bed. I hate climbing the ladders.

21. The first time I flew on a plane was December 2016, when I was 18. It was a thrilling time but I was anxious most of the way!

22. I have not ventured out of America yet. In 2018, I plan to go to China to change that.

23. I like routine. I went to the same elementary school from K-8 and the same high school from 9-12. And I tend to order the same things on a menu over and over again.

24. I pronounced Vaseline as “Vase-sa-leen” all my life but apparently the correct pronunciation is “vass-a-leen”.

25. My favorite board games would be Life, Mousetrap, Sorry, and Monopoly. I never cheat at games but my sibling always did.

Honors & Scholars Essay – My Essay and Tips for Yours!

In fall of 2015, I was preparing my Common App application for Ohio State (I submitted September 30 – so early!), and I wanted to enhance my undergraduate education by being in either an Honors program or a Scholars program. Both have their merits and benefits; it just depends what each individual seeks in their college experience. To me, Honors is a more academic-focused experience. Pros are that you can schedule earlier than the vast majority of students (even before some seniors), take classes that are smaller and cover a greater amount of material on a deeper level, and live in Honors housing. Of course, Honors courses are harder than regular classes, but some welcome this challenge! However, Scholars also offered some appealing traits; there are 17 themes for the Scholars programs, catering to different interests. You also get to live and learn with your Scholars cohort your first year on campus (it’s a requirement!) and in addition to that, you all take a 1-credit hour seminar course that counts for grade and credit! Both programs allow you to be more involved because they have activities and events exclusive to those programs.
I liked Health Sciences Scholars the most, based on what I read about on the Honors & Scholars website. (https://honors-scholars.osu.edu/) However, you are not able to choose your preferences for what Scholars program you are placed into until winter or spring. (Around Christmas time, I found out I was offered to be in Scholars, and then I was told that I can choose my top 3 choices for Scholars programs at a later time.) Then March 31, I was emailed saying I got into my first choice! So yay!

It is not mandatory for those applying to OSU to apply to Honors & Scholars as well; it is a supplementary essay! If you are interested in applying, continue reading:

The prompt I had to answer for applying to Honors & Scholars was: How would your five-year-old self see you today? Considering your past experiences and your future ambitions, who do you feel you are becoming now? In what ways are those two images congruent, or divergent?   (350-500 words)

I have included my entire essay for my readers! (The one I submitted to OSU) It gives you a glimpse of my life and how my childhood experiences have shaped who I am today.

Green Eggs and Ham

    “Let’s read Green Eggs and Ham, Mei Yi,” my mom said as she pulled out a slim hardcover book and patted her hand on the sofa, motioning me to sit beside her. I was five years old, and learning English along with my mom. At this time, she was not a U.S. citizen, so both of us were trying to understand more about American culture. I have fond childhood memories spending rainy afternoons with my mom surrounded by boxes of books and reading to my heart’s content.

During elementary school, I was shy and struggled with learning two languages simultaneously. I would recede into the comforts of my mother’s arms. I would also try to conceal that I was bilingual, because I felt different and wanted to be more like my peers. When students would ask what my Chinese name was and for me to speak in my dialect, I felt like they were pointing out how different I was. When I got older, I began to realize that being different was not a bad thing.

My five-year-old self would be surprised at my intellectual curiosity. I immersed myself into situations outside of my comfort zone, and soon I became accustomed to talking to strangers. In ninth grade, I completed a year-long school project collaborating with a team from the American University of Paris. I even spent a week in college dorms 100 miles from home, which forced me to adjust to unfamiliar settings. Now I am more comfortable with meeting new people and find it easier to strike up conversations.

Today, my five-year-old self would see me as a role model to others and be proud of how I transformed from a timid, hesitant caterpillar into a resilient, powerful butterfly. I am becoming more confident in myself and my abilities. Although I may be nervous about conquering challenges, like public speaking, I still step up and face them head-on. Now, I take control of my future and engage in my community by volunteering at the hospital, tutoring my peers, and being a senior mentor to two freshmen. It is important to set an example for others and I want to share my experiences with them.

My past and present self are congruent because we both love reading and place a high priority on learning. However, these two images are also divergent because I am more responsible and outgoing. I seize the moment and take advantage of all opportunities. I feel like I am turning into a person who doesn’t follow in someone’s footsteps or who hides in the shadows, but who forges my own path. This is part of growing up. Maybe one day I will even be courageous enough to try green eggs and ham.

Image result for green eggs and ham

This is what my childhood copy of the book looked like. I can still vividly remember where I was sitting with my mom in the living room when she read to me. (I was on her left, and I was closest to the front door.) It was sometime in the evening, with the sun slowly sinking into the horizon. Thanks Mom for my earliest memory.

 

Tips for writing your H&S essay:
Do not make it a repeat of your resume or the rest of your application. Do not just list out a slew of achievements. Instead, focus on one particular aspect of your life (a slice of the pie) and talk in depth about that.
Brainstorm. I take pieces of plain white unlined paper and draw bubbles to make a mind-map diagram. I spend at least a half-hour freewriting, jotting down whatever pops into my head.
For this specific essay, you can divide part of the paper into sections. One part can say “Five-year-old self” and “Present day self” and then list all the differences and similarities. Also, I thought about what my dream job was when I was five, and I remember myself saying “Mermaid” to my relatives. I didn’t use this idea in my essay, but it helped me recollect what I was like as a child: very imaginative yet quiet.
Ask family and friends about what you were like as a child and what they have noticed about your growth (academically, personally, etc.) They can help spark memories you may not know you have about yourself! Pull out the old scrapbooks from your house attic if you want to as well.
It may not be complete in one sitting. My essay writing took a process of a few months. Just start early and continue working on it a bit at a time. I started in August (August 1, I believe), being the proactive person I am by nature.
Have three people review it. (Just make sure you have others proof-read it besides yourself.) Actually, this number can be adjusted based on what you feel is right for you. I think I had at least five people look at my essay: my upper-class English teacher, the English teacher’s assistant, two college advisors, and my close friends.
-Use Google Docs or an equivalent. With Google Docs, you can share it with others via email with a few clicks of a button, and they can comment on it while you are simultaneously looking at the document from your own device. Also, Google Docs saves your document automatically so it will not be lost if your power suddenly shuts off.

To future OSU applicants, best of luck with your essays! I hope my essay provides inspiration and my tips are helpful to you!
P.S. I still have not tried green eggs and ham.

P.P.S. (7/28/17): I went to the restaurant Hangover Easy which has a wide selection of creative brunch items, and I finally tried the dish Green Eggs and Ham! It costs less than $8 and is a huge portion!

About Me

 

Photo taken by Jo McCulty, OSU Communications

I am a rising senior from Cleveland, Ohio, majoring in Public Health with a Sociology specialization. I am minoring in Asian American Studies!

My love for scarlet and gray and everything OSU-related began before I was even a teenager. I was inducted into the Office of Diversity and Inclusion – Young Scholars Program during the sixth grade. This program has helped guide me in my journey to college and was extremely influential in getting me to where I am today. YSP provides me with academic, social, and financial support. I continue to give back to the program through being an Ambassador (Autumn 2016 – Autumn 2018) and a Summer Bridge Experience Peer Leader (Summer 2017). One of my passions is helping others achieve higher education, especially first-generation college students and/or minorities! YSP is my second family.

A leadership role I was involved in is Co-President for Global Health Initiative, a student organization that raises awareness about global health issues and the vast field of public health while empowering members with knowledge and skills to advocate for others and make a difference. We have international volunteering, local volunteering, educational outreach with youth, and events (which include lobbying at Capitol Hill each spring, and major campus events such as Research Mix & Mingle and Pre-Professional 101). We connect students to faculty who conduct research (RM&M) and to upperclassmen or graduate students in their majors/careers (Pre-Prof 101) to help them gain more perspectives and develop professionally! During my freshman year, I was general body member and during my second year, I was event planning co-chair.

Another organization I have been involved with since freshman year is MUNDO, which stands for Multicultural Understanding through Nontraditional Discovery Opportunities! We learn about different cultures and perspectives, serve around the community and around the world, and lead our peers in being open-minded to diversity. We cover a wide range of topics related to social justice and human rights. I have participated in their Los Angeles experience for winter break 2016, their New York City experience for winter break 2017, and planned and participated in their Spring Break Experience for 2018. For freshman year, I was an active member, and evolved to being Social Media & Marketing Correspondent and an Action Team Member for sophomore year. For my junior year, I hope to be on action teams for one or both of the academic breaks.

Outside of academics, I enjoy reading, spending time with friends, and listening to music. Writing in my e-portfolio is another hobby that I enjoy greatly! In the future, I plan on attending graduate school (getting a combined 3+2 BSPH/MPH in Health Behavior and Health Promotion). While I am not certain what careers I want to pursue, I want to continue exploring my options to narrow down my ideas. Currently I am highly interested in mental health, minority health, community health work, maternal and child health, and more. I am always open to making new connections so do not hesitate to send me an email! Furthermore, I am willing to offer advice to other students! (dang.157@osu.edu)