Throughout history, there have been millions of scientists who have discovered many technological breakthroughs that dynamically transformed human life. From the Scientific Revolution, Galileo Galilei’s discovery of the telescope led to the boundless exploration of space. In the 19th century, Carl Benz patented the first car that revolutionized transportation. In the 20th century, Martin Cooper invented the first mobile cell phone that allowed users to communicate with one another under a global network. As shown, these technological advances give us the ability to function efficiently and effectively. However, complex scientific knowledge and reasoning are required to make such advances. As an upcoming high school senior who is beginning college applications, this is why I want to continue to pursue higher education. I want to contribute to my community with new scientific ideas developed through my years of higher education. Pursuing higher education is a privilege. I have always had a passion for contributing to human society. As mentioned, the scientists and engineers of the previous centuries have greatly inspired me to also discover breakthroughs that can help the world. However, I would need a solid foundation in education in order to achieve this milestone. Not only does higher education allow me to contribute to human society, but it also gives me the opportunity to better myself as a whole. My high school years were able to provide me with the stepping stones to how the world works around me. Although this may be sufficient for some people, I believe that there are still more things that I need to educate myself on beyond high school. Through higher education, I can gain new perspectives and insights from the peers and professors around me. With this privilege, I can express my intellectual thoughts to others more confidently and truthfully. Over the course of this summer, the two extracurriculars that I’m proud to be a part of are my Congressional App Challenge (CAC) and volleyball team. For my CAC group, we are an efficient team that develops mobile apps for users online. In one of our recent projects, we created an app called MediRemind that acts as a pill reminder for users who are suffering from Alzheimer's or any sort of memory loss. Through this app, users can be reminded when to take their pills through an appealing user interface. Since I am a person who enjoys serving my community, my CAC team helps me develop apps that can help those in need from my community. Additionally, another extracurricular that I’m proud to be a part of is my volleyball team. My goal over this summer was to stay fit and maintain healthy habits; thus, volleyball has given me the opportunity to achieve these goals while making the experience enjoyable with my teammates. Last but not least, something that I have always found a passion for was problem-solving. As a young kid, I always sought out new riddle and puzzle books that I could try in my leisure time. This habit of mine continued into my years in high school where I began searching for challenge problems revolving around computer science which was my field of interest. With this passion of mine, I hope that I can use this skill to help solve the leading problems of today’s society. Overall, I look forward to pursuing higher education so that I can have the tools to help the world around me as well as develop new perspectives and insights from my peers.

Have you ever wondered what a conversation with your future-self would be like? My original song, Dear Future-Self, was inspired by me wondering about how I would be in the future; thus, I created a time-capsule song so that my future-self can look back on what my present-self had to say. Throughout the piece, I gave my future self advice revolving around a healthy mindset when striving towards his goals. I could imagine my future-self getting lost in the rush of life, so I reminded him to pursue whatever leads him to peace and happiness throughout the song. Although this song was recorded with only my voice and piano, I am proud of what I have come to produce. I hope you enjoy my song!