Leadership Development involves taking a leadership position in a group or organization that you are in or simply acting as a leader in everything you do. I feel that I have had Leadership Development through being a tutor. For the past year and a half, I have participated in a tutoring program at the Bridge Community Center in Columbus. This program is for the children of Somalian refugees in the Columbus area. Each volunteer gets paired with a student that they work with for the 12 week session, and they help them in the subjects of math and English. Many of these students struggle in school because English was not their first language, and many of their parents do not speak English at all, so they cannot help with the students’ schoolwork which is all in English. The tutors work with the students on lesson plans given in both subject and also have the opportunity to bond with the students through games and fun activities. I have had the honor of tutoring the same student for the past year and half that I have been with the program, and it has been the most amazing experience for me. I have gained so much leadership experience through tutoring because it requires me to be a leader and a role model to my student. It has taught me to be a better listener in order to know what the student is struggling with and meet the needs of the student. The experience has also improved my patience since I worked with a fourth grade boy who was very hyper and had trouble focusing on school work. I think that active listening and patience are two extremely important qualities for a leader to have, and I gained both of these through this program. I plan to continue my Leadership Development in other areas of my life by pursuing a leadership position in a club or organization on campus.

Out of all the G.O.A.L.S., I think that Academic Enrichment has been the most important throughout my two years at Ohio State. My entire life in college is centered around my classes and the pursuit of knowledge and understanding in these classes. I am passionate about learning, and I think that learning and gaining knowledge is what Academic Enrichment is all about. I believe that in order to achieve Academic Enrichment, I must challenge myself in all of my classes to retain the information that is being given to me and to understand it on a deep enough level to apply it in the future. My major of biochemistry has definitely proven to be a challenge for me that I have gladly accepted. My classes are difficult and require a lot of time and studying to understand the material, but I have enjoyed that challenge. I have learned the best ways to study and learned so much about the way that I learn as an individual. One of the hardest things for me to learn in college was how to learn. Everyone learns in a different way, and part of Academic Enrichment is understanding the type of student and learner you are. Once I learned what worked best for me in terms of comprehension in class and studying, I was then able to truly excel in my classes. The most difficult classes I have had to take thus far were Organic Chemistry and Biochemistry, and I applied my new found learning and study methods to these classes and did very well in both.

To me, original inquiry means participating in research projects and pursuing your own creative ideas. I think that original inquiry is important to my own future career in the medical field because there is so much research that goes into new treatments, medications, vaccines, diseases, etc. The medical field relies on research in all areas to make improvements in existing medical practices and to create completely new methods, techniques, technology, and treatments that advance the field. There is also a lot of research that goes into diseases and cancers that do not yet have a cure or an effective treatment plan. Since I plan to work in the medical field in the future, it is important for me to understand the research process and get involved with research on campus, so I can understand that aspect of the medical field. I would like to start working in a research lab on campus to fulfill the area of original inquiry in my own life. I have started looking into different research projects of professors on campus so that I can find something I am truly interested in and passionate about. After my time working at The James Cancer Center, I have become interested in cancer research. I plan to start contacting the head researchers of some of the projects I am interested in to try to obtain a position in a lab. Participation in research is also important for medical school applications which will help me in my goal to get accepted and go to medical school after I graduate.

Global Awareness 

Global awareness is important to me because I want to learn and understand other cultures. I feel that people should study and travel to other countries in order to expand their knowledge of the world and how people of different cultures interact. Communication between cultures is a key factor in business, medicine, education, and so many different industries. I think that understanding other countries and their languages, cultures, and ways of life will help me in any career I decide to pursue. In the past, I have incorporated the idea of global awareness into my life by taking Spanish in high school, participating in Spanish club, and traveling. I love to travel to different places and experience different cultures. A few of my favorite trips have been to Puerto Rico, France, and Italy. I learned a lot about each country while I was there and enjoyed trying new things in each place. To expand my global awareness in the future, I plan to study abroad during my time at Ohio State and to minor in Spanish. I decided to further my education in Spanish throughout college because I am fascinated by the language, and I think it is an important language to learn since Spanish is spoken in 20 different countries, and nearly 14% of the U.S. population speaks Spanish. I believe it will help me communicate with a wider range of patients in my future medical career. I also would like to study abroad to a Spanish speaking country to deepen my understanding of the language and the people who speak it. Although I will have a focus in Spanish, I would still like to travel to many other different countries to learn more about their language and culture as well. I also want to participate in science related research abroad to tie in aspects of my biochemistry major to global awareness and to learn how the science fields differ in other countries.

Service Engagement

Service has become a big part of my life in the past few years. I have participated in many community service projects in my hometown through KEY Club, a community service club at my high school, and National Honor Society. I really found my passion for service as president of the National Honor Society at my high school. I organized projects to donate money for breast cancer and a classmate with leukemia, clean up the school neighborhood, collect toys for a children’s hospital, and serve a community dinner. Through these activities I learned how gratifying it was to help others and give back to the community. It also made me appreciate all the blessings I have had in my own life and motivated me to give back to others. To continue my service in college, I started volunteering at the James Cancer Center on campus as a Registration Ambassador. I have already met so many amazing coworkers and inspiring patients. I plan to volunteer at the hospital for the next four years to maintain my service engagement in the Columbus community and to gain experience in the medical field. Since I hope to become a doctor, service will always be an important aspect of my career, and my volunteer job at the hospital will help prepare me for this. I also want to join a service club on campus that deals with issues outside of a clinical setting to expand the range of my service engagement.