My main drive to pursue a degree in Chemical Engineering comes from way back during my days in middle school. I had started to develop an interest in science and chemistry thanks to my middle school science class and that interest began to grow in high school. I had joined a biotechnology program in my high school that allowed me to discover more about working in a lab and learn several important techniques and researches that further increased my love for science. Some of these techniques were lab procedures such as Western Blotting and CRISPR gene editing. Allowing me to practice procedures that skilled scientists do all the time. I was also able to work with others that had similar interests to me which helped reinforce my drive to eventually decide that I would be majoring in Chemical Engineering. The impact that I wish to leave is any kind of positive impact on our world. Being able to work in a lab and produce any kind of product, a drug, or a new type of material that can have a large positive impact on the world is what I would want to achieve in the industry. I want to be able to change lives all from the comfort of a lab and say that I have been able to help further our world in the right direction. My vision for the future mainly focuses on making it through university and receiving my bachelor's degree. I do plan to learn about the industry I am choosing on going into through internships and research opportunities. Being able to be in the companies that I could end up working for will help me discover what goes on inside the industry while also discovering more about my passion for chemistry and making. I have several values that help guide me in my decisions and where I want to go. One of my biggest values is to make me and my family proud. I work hard and stay focused so that I may reach a point in life that I would be proud of, including making my parents proud. Another value is my own morals and values. I don't want to end up working for a company that would harm the world that we live in or a company that doesn't value that work that I would do. My morals keep me moving forward on a path that won't ruin the future that I am working so hard to achieve. I plan to stand out in my field by getting to know the people in the industry. I would do this by using internships and networking to get to know the people in a company that I am interested in so that I can become a well known face in the future. This would allow me to stand out much more than others in my field and I would also be more trusted as the higher ups in the company as well as the recruiters would already have some prior knowledge of my work for them if I were to apply for a real job. I wish to have a real impact on this world while also doing something I love. Chemical Engineering allows me to reach both of these goals which is why I work hard to make sure that my future self can make it to where I want to be. In a lab, making the world a better place to live in.

I'm a person who has been in love with chemistry since middle school. The way chemicals would interact with each other and being able to learn how certain advancements were possible, like using PCR to match the DNA of a suspect to a crime scene. I've always been interested in trying to discover why things happen and chemistry as well as the Biotechnology Academy I am in at my school has helped me confirm my love for science. My parents immigrated here before I was born and worked hard to provide for me and my sisters. My parents raised me to work hard for the future that I want and have always had high expectations for me. I am an optimistic person who always tries to show respect to everyone I meet. I am also a Christian and I go to my church as well as my youth group as much as I can. Through my church, Gaithersburg Presbyterian Church, and youth group I have been able to give back to my community through making letters for senior citizens, volunteering as a counselor for my church's summer school, and helping to restore an elderly woman's home. I have also participated in extracurriculars outside of my school like Tennis at my communities' Soccerplex. I did not receive a substantial amount of money from completing my FAFSA so I have been focusing on applying to as many scholarships as I can to be able to pay for university. My parents will be unable to help pay for my university tuition which is more of a reason for me to research and apply to scholarships as this one. I am trying to leave loans as a last resort because I don't want to end up in debt when I graduate. I always make sure that everyone I meet feels welcome and I try not not be a bystander when someone is being bullied. I think its important to make people feel welcome in a community and to never isolate or bully someone. It is important to explain to children the consequences that bullying or cyberbullying can cause. Inform them of the negative effects that their words can have on a person's mind which is why you should always to kind to people and show them respect. I myself never participate in bullying or cyberbullying and I stay around people who are also against in-person bullying and cyberbullying. One of the most important things that children should learn is compassion and empathy so that bullying as well as cyberbullying won't be so prevalent.