The main reason in which I am pursuing higher education is to gain the skills I need to better the world and leave a positive impact. Ever since I was young I felt the need to improve the world, to dedicate my life to a noble and just cause. I have always been someone who wants to give back and use my position in life to do good. I have decided to go to college in order to receive the skills and experience I need to make the positive impact on the world that I wish to enact. In both my career and life in general, I want to contribute kindness and compassion as much as possible to those around me. As for my major of choice, I plan to go for animal science on a pre-veterinary track. I always knew I had to work with wildlife growing up; it was my passion from a young age. I loved nature as a kid, and I felt a strong calling to protect and preserve wildlife. My main goal in life is to dedicate my life to helping others, both animals and people alike. I want to do as much as possible to protect animals, from the endangered species in the midst of the Amazon to the strays in the streets of cities. I am going to university to learn everything I can and be well-suited for my future, as well as take advantage of any opportunity available for volunteering and work related to animal health in college. I do consider my ambitious, as I want to be great at what I do in order to protect and save the environment as much as possible. I am incredibly excited for my future. This past year, as I’ve narrowed down my field of interest and started applying to colleges, my enthusiasm has only grown. I’m excited for the opportunity to go to university and pursue my dreams; I cannot wait to learn as much as I can and prepare myself for my future. I am also very excited for the idea of post-college life; working in animal conservation, going to veterinary school, and dedicating my entire life to the thing that has always held my passions. I can’t wait to see where I end up, what opportunities and jobs await me, and the impact that I can leave behind on the world. My future is right in front of me; I cannot wait to attain it.

One of the biggest challenges I have faced has been overcoming grief and motivating myself to keep growing and moving on despite the sorrow I felt. Last year, my aunt passed away. I was very close with her, and she loved me more than anything. Dealing with the grief from her passing was one of the most difficult things I'd ever had to do. I felt completely ill-prepared, and as though I was sinking in despair. It was very hard to keep going to school, keep up with my work, and continue life as normal. I felt completely out of it, and as those around me lived on normally, I grew quiet and reserved. It was nearly impossible to come to terms with the fact that she would not be able to attend my graduation, or help me pick a college. The idea that I'd never hear her voice again or see her smile was world-ending. It took a long time for me to eventually get better, as months passed and things went back to how they were. I still thought about her every day, of course, but the deep-set despair was becoming lesser and lesser as time went on. I knew she would not want me to wallow in sadness for her, and instead continue to find joy in life, just as she did. It took a long time to finally come to this conclusion, but it was very enlightening once it happened. Overcoming this challenge changed me as a person, and my priorities. My aunt had a caring spirit, and her job in the court system helped people immensely. She loved animals, and was a cat person at heart. Her passing made me reflect on these qualities. Ever since I was a child, I'd already decided I wanted a career that helped and changed the world; reflecting on her impact made this idea set in stone in my mind. I want to make her proud of me, and to do so means to be ambitious in my life, explore my interests, and work hard. She was someone with many friends, went on many adventures, and also had a great career. I want to follow in her steps in this way too. Everyone she came into contact with loved her, and their lives were better for it. I want to be able to have this impact on others, and bring brightness into the lives of all the people I interact with. I decided on a career in environmental conservation as a little kid, and she had encouraged me back then. I plan to follow through with this, and do my absolute best to protect this world and the animals she so adored. Her life and passing changed the way I viewed my future, and made me even more determined to make a positive and beautiful impact on the world, just like my aunt did.

Music has been a part of my life since I was ten years old, picking up a viola for the first time and choosing it to be my instrument for the next eight years of my life. I live and breathe music now, never being able to go a day without it. It's connected me with others, strengthened my friendships, and become a way to express myself and understand my emotions. There are many ways in which music has shaped the way I view the world, the first being very literal; it's changed the way I listen and hear things. Music naturally makes you a more intent listener to the world around you; I find myself listening to the birds, the wind, the trees, the rivers and the rain, every time I step outside. They are all their own melodies, and I am now able to appreciate them fully for what they are. I always struggled with sensory issues as a child, and when things got too bad, music was my escape. It would block out all the painful noise and become a comfort to fall into. It made it so I could take things into my own hands, and focus on the sounds and sensations that I loved. I am a very sound-oriented person. As a kid, I would make sounds in my head as I took a step or assign specific pitches to certain numbers as I counted. Music and sound helped me navigate the world, helped me figure out the way that my brain worked. Everything got its own sound or melody, making life much more interesting and understandable for me. Music has helped me connect to others much more strongly, as well. Bonding over shared musical interests strengthened my friendships. Attending concerts with my friends became some of my favorite memories. Singing along to much-loved songs in the car with my family brought me closer to them. I think a person's music taste says a lot about them as a person, and for me, it has always been the first topic of conversation when I meet a new person. It helps you get to know them, and have something to talk about. I am a part of the school orchestra at my high school, and we are such a tight-knit, fun community in the class because we all have a shared interest and love for music. It feels amazing to be able to talk about it with people who love it equally as much. Music has been one of the most important things in my life, a spiritual and emotional connection to the world around me.