As an immigrant and first-generation student, I never dreamed of going to college with a four-year scholarship, don’t even mention graduate school. Receiving my Master of Finance offer letter from the University of California, Irvine, I burst into tears and looked at the letter again and again. However, the expensive tuition imposes a big challenge for me: my parents came to the United States without speaking any English, so they are earning minimum wages to support our family. Even though I plan to take up a part-time job, I still need to borrow some money to fulfill my tuition and living expenses to attend school. This scholarship would allow me to reduce the financial pressure on my family and free up more time and headspace for me to focus on my academics and be more involved in extracurricular activities and social services. With this scholarship, I can spend more time managing the new student Chapter of Ascend, a non-profit Pan-Asian organization for students and professionals with a vision to enhance the presence and influence of Pan-Asian leaders and serve as a collective voice for the community. Experiencing discrimination as a Chinese immigrant myself, I hope to actively participate in Ascend campaigns to combat Anti-Asian Hate and break the “model minority” myths and stereotypes. I can also have more time volunteering in organizations such as Circle K International to help other students like me through tutoring and mentoring sessions. Many of them feel inferior and insecure due to their immigration backgrounds and limited English skills, so I will share my personal experience hoping to inspire them to embrace the challenges and chase their dreams. My ultimate goals are to ease the racial barriers in higher education and the workforce as well as to empower others coming from similar underserved communities as me. Although I am confident that I will be able to make the most of my time at UC Irvine and strive hard to make this educational endeavor a resounding success, I am humbly aware of how much of a difference a less financially unburdened mind can make towards gaining an edge in this highly competitive world of business and finance. All in all, I see this scholarship as a crucial financial aid to achieve my dreams and a responsibility to carry on the legacy of the art of giving. It means someone believes in my potential to eventually become a person to make our community better.

“The fob of our class”, “That Chinese girl who has a heavy accent” … All these words I heard from school brought me nightmares almost every day. Coming to the United States at the age of fifteen, I was overwhelmed by the totally different culture and felt like a social outcast in my class. One day, as usual, I sat at the cafeteria by myself to translate my homework assignments during lunchtime. A lady came, with a big smile on her face: “Hi! Do you need help with your homework?” I was so surprised that I just shook my head. “Ok, no problem! If you need help in the future, just come to our after-school program. I look forward to seeing you there!” She then handed me her card. Ramany, Site Coordinator at the YMCA of San Francisco. It was the first time someone approached me so friendly and offered me help. So I decided to drop by a few days later. The classroom was transformed into a tutoring center with staff and volunteers from the YMCA. When I stood awkwardly at the door, Ramany called me: “Hey, I am glad that you came! Grab a chair here.” With my limited English skills at that time, Ramany listened to my concerns patiently. Not only did she tutored my homework, but she also gave me a chance and made me feel comfortable chatting with her. More importantly, she encouraged me to speak up in class and believe in myself. And I realized I had been lagging and feeling negative because of the voices around me, not because I was not capable. As she tutored and talked to me more, I became better in English and more confident. Academically, I jumped to the top ten percent of my class; personally, I learned to embrace my challenges and give back to the community. The next year, under Ramany’s encouragement, I started to volunteer at the YMCA program in a middle school, where I had the opportunity to tutor other students like me. Many of them feel inferior and insecure due to their immigration backgrounds and limited English skills, so I share my personal experience hoping to inspire them to embrace the challenges and chase their dreams. Neither of my parents speaks English nor went to college, so it was very difficult for me to seek guidance from them. Ramany was the person who selflessly shared her experience and advice on higher education. She also inspired me to go to college and graduate school to achieve my goals to become a lead financial analyst and eventually start an organization with a mission to give back to the community. I was able to graduate early with a major and a minor from UC San Diego and am going to pursue a Masters of Finance at UC Irvine. From a quiet girl with limited English skills to a student leader with community awards, I am beyond grateful for Ramany’s help through this challenging journey. There were numerous times that I was lost and wanted to give up, but Ramany's values constantly motivate me to push myself out of my comfort zone as well as to work hard and smart for my dreams.

This is me and one of my local students in the Dominican Republic. It was also the third year I immigrated to the US. From staring blindly in the classroom to jumping to the top 10% of my class, I was nominated to the volunteering project to offer English tutoring to students in the DR who yearned to learn English but had few teachers available. As an ESL student myself, I took a lead role in teaching and used my experience to engage my students. In three weeks, all my students went from not knowing any English to basic proficiency.