My goals are to build a successful career in electrical engineering while also continuing to grow in music production, audio engineering, and entrepreneurship. I want to create a future where I can combine technology, creativity, and innovation to make a positive impact on others while building financial stability for myself and my family. To achieve these goals, I understand that success requires discipline, planning, consistency, and long-term commitment. Currently, I am pursuing a degree in electrical engineering at Howard University. My academic plan is to continue strengthening my foundation in mathematics, physics, electronics, and engineering systems while gaining hands-on technical experience through projects, internships, and collaborative opportunities. I plan to maintain strong academic performance, build professional connections, and seek internship opportunities related to engineering and technology throughout college. These experiences will help prepare me for a long-term career in engineering and provide practical industry knowledge. At the same time, I plan to continue developing my music career and technical audio skills. Over the past several years, I have independently learned music production, recording, mixing, and mastering using Pro Tools and Waves Audio. I have already released music on streaming platforms and gained experience in creative direction, vocal production, and digital media. My goal is to continue improving my sound, expanding my audience, and building a sustainable creative brand while balancing academics and engineering. My plan for success includes careful financial planning and resource management. Since college expenses can be overwhelming, I actively apply for scholarships, search for internship opportunities, and look for ways to reduce unnecessary financial stress. Scholarships such as this one are important because they help me focus more on my education and professional growth rather than financial burdens. I also plan to eventually gain part-time employment or paid internship experience related to engineering, media, or technology to continue supporting my educational goals. In addition to academics and career preparation, I believe personal growth and community involvement are important parts of success. I currently volunteer through my church’s media ministry, where I assist with livestreaming, presentations, video recording, and technical setup during services and events. This experience has strengthened my teamwork, communication, and technical problem-solving skills while teaching me the importance of consistency and service. One of the biggest lessons I have learned is that goals require structure and discipline. Similar to the idea of “Plan Your Work, Work Your Plan,” I try to approach my future with clear goals and intentional steps. My short-term goals include maintaining academic success, gaining internship experience, and continuing to develop my technical and creative skills. My long-term goals include becoming a successful engineer, building financial stability, and using both technology and creativity to positively impact others. Overall, my plan is built around continuous learning, hard work, and adaptability. I know success will not happen instantly, but I am committed to staying disciplined, improving myself consistently, and taking advantage of opportunities that move me closer to my goals.

Getting into college means an opportunity, development, and an opportunity to create a better future for both me and my family. As a member of a minority group, I understand that getting into college means access to possibilities that previous generations did not have. Going into college means much more for me than obtaining a diploma. It is about developing my skills, following my interests, and creating my life's stability through hard work. Studying electrical engineering at Howard University seems to be an important step towards reaching all of these goals. Being passionate about engineering from childhood, I see the opportunity to become an expert in the field. Studying engineering requires great analytical thinking, discipline, and constant academic achievements, and this is what I strive to develop during college years. I aim to get enough knowledge and practice necessary to become a successful engineer. At the same time, studying at college gives me the chance to develop my interest in music and creativity. Not only academics, music production, songwriting, and audio engineering consume my spare time. These activities have helped me learn many important skills, including patience, discipline, and the ability to express oneself. I want to combine these two passions to build up a unique future career and make sure that engineering and creativity do not conflict with each other. The last important part of going to college is that it involves growth and perseverance. Working at college and managing everything else has not been easy, but such challenging situations taught me how to be resilient and persistent. I learned how to go beyond my limits and overcome challenges. College has taught me to be flexible and to collaborate with people to achieve common goals despite the existing challenges and difficulties. Furthermore, studying in college allows me to make my contribution to my community and help those in need. Being a black student enrolled in the engineering program, I realize the need to give opportunities for young black people interested in STEM fields. I would like my story to prove for them that it is possible to reach high results in technical and creative spheres. In addition to learning, I plan to do my best to stay active socially. My volunteer work at my church's media ministry has shown me the power of collaboration and leadership and the need to use one's strengths for helping other people. I plan to continue being helpful to people through technology and creativity. Overall, getting into college is about building a foundation for a future that I wish to create. I dream about financial prosperity, personal development, professional success, and the opportunity to contribute to society as an engineer and musician.

One example of selflessness I demonstrate is devoting my time and efforts to helping others without expecting to be noticed for it. In addition, I would argue that selflessness does not always mean doing something amazing or receiving any recognition for one's contributions. Rather, it involves being present for others, helping them out in whatever way you can, and making contributions to the community with your deeds. One notable example of such dedication is my volunteering in my church's media ministry. As a media support volunteer, I help with livestreaming, presentations, video recording, and technical setups in church services and events. Even though most of the attention is paid to things that happen on the stage, I understand that the backstage work should be appreciated since it helps create an atmosphere that makes people feel welcomed, inspired, and involved. There have been several times when some technical difficulties emerged, and I stayed back after the services to fix all that stuff in order to make sure everything works properly. Though the process could be quite stressing and time-consuming sometimes, I keep doing my part since I know how much it means for other people within the community. Besides, I try my best to serve people by encouraging and helping them. In the course of studies and throughout my life, I came to the conclusion that, sometimes, people just need someone who would listen to them, motivate and believe in them when they face difficulties in their lives. By helping my classmates with homework, giving advice to my friends in tough times, and supporting others' creative endeavors by making music, I try to become such a person. Another example of perseverance in my aspirations is my path to becoming a musician and engineer. Learning two subjects simultaneously, namely electrical engineering and music production, requires not only devotion but also consistency and determination. During some moments, when I felt unable to cope with my academic, social, and creative commitments, I kept moving since I loved both areas of study. Using music, I want to connect emotionally with the audience and make music that will be relatable or comforting for them. With engineering, I aim at using the power of innovative technologies to benefit society. Additionally, selflessness has taught me to be humble and grateful. Being a helper to others makes me realize that success includes more than achieving something personally; it also presupposes putting your abilities to use to raise others. It turns out that even a simple action like volunteering, giving support, or helping to solve some problems might have an essential impact on other people's lives. Overall, going forward, I am eager to search for new ways to serve other people using technology and creativity within my education and career. My goal is to continue volunteering and supporting my community in any way I can by using my knowledge to influence other people positively. To me, being selfless means having a chance to do some good and help people in their development.

What I like about mathematics is that this subject offers an opportunity to think critically and apply logic when solving various problems. Mathematics not only involves dealing with numbers and performing mathematical actions on them but also helps understand phenomena and find solutions following a step-by-step approach. Solving challenging mathematical tasks develops patience, perseverance, and attention to detail. One of the reasons why I appreciate mathematics so much is the way it is related to engineering and technological innovation. Being an electrical engineering major, I have noticed how mathematics plays a critical role in analyzing circuits and systems, physics phenomena, and technologies. Whatever area mathematics may relate to – whether it is algebra, calculus, or physics formulas and theories – mathematics is at the heart of innovation. Moreover, mathematics proved helpful outside of academic assignments too. Specifically, it has helped me understand how music production and audio engineering work. Both fields require knowledge of timing, patterns, frequencies, sound waves, and many other aspects that rely on mathematical principles. The fact that mathematics is a discipline that requires certain discipline is another feature that I appreciate. There were numerous situations when certain math concepts did not make sense immediately, requiring constant efforts and practice to understand them and achieve improvements. Gradually, such experience made me more confident in tackling challenges. Finally, what makes mathematics so attractive to me is its wide applicability in everyday life. Regardless of whether it is engineering and technology, entrepreneurship, natural sciences, music production, or some other field – mathematics plays a vital role in all of them. Math allows people to be innovative and address problems effectively, which is the case of the society progressing.

Option 2: The Future of Human Connection In today's world, technology has revolutionized communication. People are able to instantly connect with individuals all around the globe through various technological innovations like social media sites, streaming media, texting apps, and communities. However, technology has impacted our ability to connect with one another in many ways, as it has made individuals feel more digitally connected but less emotionally connected to each other. Therefore, in order to preserve authentic human connection, we need to be intentional, empathic, and utilize technology as a means of connecting rather than substituting it for authentic interactions. First, it is important to encourage individuals to remain authentic both online and offline in order to cultivate meaningful human connection. Many times, social media tends to encourage users to put on a false image for others and therefore make their relationship or friendship superficial. Real connection exists when individuals feel comfortable enough to share and discuss their vulnerabilities with each other. It could happen among friends, family members, or within communities and artistic circles. Authenticity will ensure that people feel heard and understood rather than judged by others. In the future, it will be important for people to have places to speak their mind honestly and freely without fear of being criticized for it. Secondly, technology has been used to promote human connection if we utilize its potential to bring individuals together and provide them with opportunities to engage with each other. I was able to experience this firsthand through my passion for music and media. Being an independent artist and producer, I have had the pleasure of engaging with fans and fellow musicians from various countries around the world thanks to technology. However, at the end of the day, it does not matter what technology has enabled us to do, but what feelings and understandings lay beneath the interaction between individuals. It taught me that true human connection has nothing to do with physical proximity; it is all about emotions and relatability. Finally, I have seen the significance of connection during my volunteering for my church's media department. While helping out with the livestreaming and various presentations, I realized that my role was to provide an opportunity for people who could not physically be there to join and feel included and involved. I used to think that my media volunteering was only meant to help people watch the sermon but now I am confident that I am helping with the cultivation of connection. The most important thing for maintaining human connection is that technology serves as an augmentation of communication and not as a substitute for human interaction. Listening to people, taking care of one another, spending time with one another, and showing compassion are always important. With the development of artificial intelligence, virtual interaction, and social media, it will be especially important to master emotional intelligence and empathy. As far as the future is concerned, authentic human connection will rely on individuals choosing intentional relationships rather than convenient ones. Meaningful connections can only be formed based on consistency, trust, good communication, and mutual support, whether it is friendship, family bonding, romantic relationships, or community engagement. Technology can be used to find, contact, and communicate with people, but actual connections will remain emotionally honest and reciprocal. From my personal standpoint, I want to contribute to stronger human connections using engineering skills and my musical talent. I would like to use my engineering knowledge creatively without losing sight of the human side of communication. Through media, music, and future engineering projects, I would like to help build something that connects people.

My plan to make a positive impact on the world includes the use of my technical expertise to help, inspire, and connect with others. Having pursued studies in the field of electrical engineering in addition to being deeply involved in music and media creation, I would like to integrate all these three things in order to influence people's lives for better. One of the areas that I am currently using to make a contribution to my community is volunteer service in the media ministry of my local church. In such a position, I help organize livestreams, video recordings, PowerPoint slideshows, and set up technical equipment during the services. This may seem unobtrusive and inconspicuous to some extent; however, after becoming a part of such a team, I came to understand the huge role of media and technology in uniting people, promoting their messages, and providing space for encouragement. In the future, I wish to become a professional engineer able to contribute to further technological innovations and improvements. The thing is that technology has the power to make communication and life easier for millions of people across the globe. Therefore, I would like to apply my knowledge in engineering to improve the quality of people's lives through the implementation of new solutions. Another way to make a positive impact that I will definitely utilize is the creative aspect in my life – I love music. Indeed, the arts and entertainment industry plays a key role in influencing our minds and helping to cope with challenges. Being passionate about the music business, I will try to produce songs that would encourage and motivate people when they are struggling. Moreover, another area that I plan to explore to make a positive contribution to society is representation and mentoring. Being a black student of electrical engineering who works in music, I plan to motivate other students like me. Thus, I would like to inspire black young men and women to follow their dreams without paying attention to what the society might say about them. Making a significant difference doesn't necessarily mean getting lots of attention from people. I strongly believe that making a positive impact starts with consistency and service. Therefore, in the future, no matter where I end up in my career, I will do my best to help my fellow community members through volunteering or teaching them new things. To conclude, my plans include the use of technology, creativity, and service to assist people.

It is important to have a diverse representation of people in STEM careers because innovation grows stronger if people with different backgrounds, cultural and personal experiences are involved. The fact that science, technology, engineering, and mathematics play a huge role in almost every area of our lives means that we must be sure that these people who are involved in innovations represent diversity of the environment around us. Without diversity in STEM, we lose a lot of opinions, voices, experiences, which might lead to limited creativity and development. Another thing that makes representation in STEM important is that it inspires and motivates young people. When students see engineers, scientists and other representatives of the field who are like them or similar to them, they will be more motivated to join the profession. For underrepresented students, it may mean even more because it shows that talent and intelligence is not a matter of race, gender, culture, etc. As a black student who studies electrical engineering, I understand how important representation in the field is. Traditionally, STEM lacked representation of minority groups and it still does now to some extent. By seeing successful black engineers, creators and innovators, I get inspiration and motivation needed to move forward despite any obstacles or stereotypes. This reminds me that I can do great things in my life and that people from every ethnicity are supposed to be provided with opportunities. Furthermore, diversity in STEM is necessary since different communities face different problems. People who come from different places and have different experiences will have a greater chance to notice these problems and deal with them properly. Engineers and scientists create products, systems, and innovations that influence millions of people and having a diverse group of people working on something can make a difference. The last but not least thing about representation in STEM is that it provides us with an opportunity to destroy existing barriers in order to increase diversity in technical areas, promote equity and social advancement. Many minority communities have always been discriminated against and it has prevented them from joining certain professions where they could make great contribution. I personally hope that I would be able to contribute to diversity by becoming an electrical engineer who combines his passion for technology, music and innovation. Being myself and succeeding in this field will show everyone that representation matters and it opens up a lot of new opportunities. In conclusion, I believe that diversity in STEM is very important for many reasons and it can positively impact society and people who take part in such processes.

My engagement with the arts and specifically music has greatly impacted my life since childhood. While initially viewed merely as entertainment, it soon became a vehicle of expression, story-telling, and self-awareness. Music production and songwriting gave me an opportunity to develop my creative side and gain valuable experience in confidence, discipline, and self-expression. As I came to realize the power of music to touch people's hearts through common emotional experiences, I became more engaged with music as something more serious than mere entertainment. The desire to compose music like some great artists who managed to convey their feelings through songs made me start working on music production, educating myself in recording, mixing, and mastering on such software as Pro Tools and Waves Audio. Thus, my hobby developed into a real passion for the long run. Furthermore, engagement with the arts taught me various skills other than creative, which turned out to be crucial throughout my life. Music production requires a lot of patience, consistency, critical thinking, and attention to details. As a result, I learned how to be persistent and patient and keep producing music despite minor setbacks, learning how to cope with frustration, make progress through trial and error, and produce music even if not much progress is visible on the surface. Moreover, being able to observe how people interact with music made me understand the importance of creativity and how much one can accomplish using creative abilities. When seeing that people are able to feel what I was trying to express through my music, I got an understanding of how valuable creativity really is and the fact that music has the power to make people feel better about themselves and give hope. Overall, being actively engaged in arts helped form my identity and shaped some of my future plans. With interest in music along with computer science and programming, I became attracted by the idea of audio engineering, which gave me a new perspective on creativity and made me realize that it is possible to combine creativity with knowledge about technology. Moreover, creating music is something I love, since it gives me pleasure to see ideas take life and form. Even though creative jobs might be unpredictable, I will not give up and continue improving and educating myself in order to reach my goals. While being aware that the field requires effort and dedication, I will keep studying music and audio engineering and use my knowledge and abilities to pursue my passion in life. To sum up, engagement with the arts had a positive impact on me, making my life have a clear purpose and helping me gain valuable skills and confidence while giving me unique opportunities as a person. Link to my compositions: https://open.spotify.com/album/7G3Bg3Ts0LaspOVYDwPD8n?si=IjHs8v_DRXysAdmDi2AsMA

Growing up, I've understood that giving back to the community does not necessarily mean doing something big or noticeable. Rather, it often means using one's skills, efforts, and time to help someone else and to leave a good impression no matter where one finds himself/herself. One of the primary ways that I give back to the community is working in the media ministry of the church that I attend – using my technology skills to support its various services and events. As a member of the media ministry in ICGC Fuller Temple, I help to organize livestreams, presentations, video recording, and technical preparations during church services and other special events. I also work on creating online materials and social media content to help both members and visitors stay informed. While the front-stage performances may attract attention, I have come to realize that all other backstage activities are equally important as well and contribute to ensuring successful organization of events and creating a welcoming atmosphere in which people feel encouraged and inspired. For me, giving back means helping others in any possible way. I strongly believe that every person has something valuable to offer to the community. Although I am sometimes not very vocal among other people, I have understood that I can also make a difference by bringing my creativity, technical skills, and efforts. Whether helping people solve technical problems or working on livestreams, I understand that I help keep people engaged. Additionally, I also believe that one can give back through music by inspiring others. As an independent artist, singer, and producer, I write and sing songs that help me channel my emotions and share stories with others who may relate to me. Learning patience and consistency from music helps me achieve many goals, and I plan to further use it to inspire others. Community service also allowed me to grow as a person, helping me understand the importance of responsibility, leadership, teamwork, and humility. Working in the interests of other people has helped me realize that success cannot be determined only by my accomplishments, but by my ability to use them to help others as well. As I pursue education in electrical engineering and music in college, I would like to find more ways to use my technical knowledge together with creativity and to help people around me. To conclude, giving back to the community is important since communities thrive thanks to people working together to help each other. Even minor acts of service can make considerable differences in other people's life. I am convinced that if everybody gives back by helping in whatever way possible, we will have more chances to bring some positive changes in our community's future.