Olivia Rodrigo’s music resonates with me because she writes about emotions that many people feel but do not always know how to explain. Her songs are honest about growing up, feeling overwhelmed, questioning yourself, and trying to make sense of pain while still moving forward. One lyric that connects deeply to my life is from “hope ur ok,” when she sings, “I hope that you’re okay.” Even though the song focuses on people who have gone through struggles others may not fully understand, that line reminds me of the quiet fear and love I carried while watching my grandparents face serious health challenges. Growing up, I saw their health decline in ways that were painful and frustrating because I loved them and wanted to help, but I was also young and unsure of what I could actually do. Much of what they experienced was connected to nutrition, access, and a lack of early health education. They lived in a food desert, where healthier options were not always easy to find, affordable, or realistic. Over time, I watched poor nutrition, chronic illness, and medication become a cycle that seemed almost impossible to break. At one point, my grandparents were taking around 60 to 70 different medications, and seeing that changed the way I viewed healthcare. It made me realize that medicine is not just about treating symptoms after someone is already sick. It is also about prevention, education, and understanding the environment a person comes from before judging their choices. Olivia’s music has influenced my perspective because it reminds me that vulnerability can become a source of strength. She does not hide from complicated emotions, and that has helped me look at my own experiences with more honesty instead of only seeing them as painful. Watching my grandparents struggle was heartbreaking, but it also became one of the biggest reasons I want to pursue medicine. Their situation showed me how easily people can fall through the cracks when they do not have the right resources, knowledge, or support. It also taught me that healthcare providers need to see patients as whole people, not just a list of conditions or prescriptions. I want to major in Nutrition Science at NC State and eventually become a Physician Assistant because I want to help people before their health reaches a crisis point. I want to educate patients in a way that feels supportive instead of shameful, especially those who come from communities where access to healthy food and preventive care is limited. Like Olivia Rodrigo’s songwriting, I want my future career to be rooted in honesty, empathy, and connection. Her music has taught me that personal struggles can shape your purpose instead of holding you back. My grandparents’ health challenges were difficult to witness, but they gave me ambition, drive, and passion to turn what I saw into something meaningful. Their story continues to motivate me to become the kind of healthcare provider who listens first, understands deeply, and helps patients build healthier futures.

I want to pursue a career in STEM because I have seen how science can either feel distant and technical or become something that deeply changes a person’s life. For me, STEM became personal when I began paying closer attention to the health struggles within my own family, especially the ways nutrition and long-term habits affected my grandparents. Watching their health decline helped me understand that science is not just something studied in a classroom. It shows up in the body, in disease, in food, in medicine, and in the everyday decisions that shape a person’s future. That realization is what drew me toward a field rooted in both science and service. I do not want to learn STEM concepts just to pass courses or earn a degree. I want to understand them well enough to use them to help real people. That is why I plan to major in Nutrition Science at NC State and eventually become a Physician Assistant. I am drawn to STEM because it gives me the tools to ask questions, solve problems, and make informed decisions that can directly improve someone’s quality of life. It challenges me to think critically, but it also gives me the opportunity to care for people in a practical and meaningful way. What especially motivates me is that STEM allows me to address problems at their root. In healthcare, it is easy to focus only on treatment after someone is already sick, but I am interested in the preventive side of care as well. Nutrition is one of the clearest examples of how science connects to daily life. The foods people have access to, the knowledge they have about their health, and the habits they build over time all affect their outcomes. I want to study this field because I know many families are dealing with health issues that could be reduced, delayed, or better managed through earlier education and better support. My goal is to become a healthcare provider who can bridge the gap between scientific knowledge and real-life application. I want patients to leave an appointment not only with instructions, but with understanding. I want them to know why their health matters, what factors are affecting it, and what realistic steps they can take to improve it. I plan to use my degree to help uplift my community by making healthcare feel more accessible, personal, and empowering. Too many people live in situations where healthy food is harder to find, preventive care is delayed, or medical advice feels disconnected from real life. I want to serve communities like that, especially communities where people may feel judged instead of helped. As a future PA, I hope to combine medical care with patient education so people feel supported rather than overwhelmed. Uplifting the community, to me, means helping people build healthier lives in ways that are sustainable and respectful of their circumstances. It means meeting people where they are, listening before speaking, and giving them the knowledge and support to take control of their health. I want my degree to be more than a personal achievement. I want it to be something I use to advocate for better health, increase awareness, and help families avoid the kinds of preventable struggles that I have seen firsthand. That is why STEM matters to me. It gives me the chance to turn what I have experienced into a career built on purpose, service, and impact.

I am interested in Nutrition Science because my interest in healthcare began with something very personal: watching my grandparents eat themselves into sickness. Seeing that happen changed the way I understand health. It made me realize that nutrition is not a small part of wellness, but one of the foundations of it. I saw how the food people eat can slowly shape their energy, mobility, independence, and overall quality of life. What made this even more difficult was that my grandparents lived in a food desert, where healthy options were limited and unhealthy habits were much easier to maintain. That experience made me want to understand more than just what foods are healthy or unhealthy. It made me want to understand why these patterns happen, how communities are affected by limited access, and what can be done to prevent people from reaching the point where their health is already falling apart. That is why I want to study Nutrition Science at NC State and eventually become a Physician Assistant. I want to build a strong understanding of how nutrition and medicine work together so I can help people in a way that is both practical and compassionate. The kind of impact I hope to make is rooted in prevention, education, and patient care. I want to be a healthcare provider who looks at the full picture of a person’s life instead of only treating symptoms after the damage has already been done. Too many people are told what they should do for their health without anyone taking the time to understand their circumstances, their habits, or the barriers they face. I want to be different from that. I want to help patients understand the role nutrition plays in their health while also giving them support that makes change feel realistic, not impossible. My goal is to serve families and communities who may feel overlooked, especially those dealing with the same kinds of barriers my grandparents faced. I want to help people feel informed, supported, and cared for before their health reaches a crisis point. The greatest adversity I have overcome so far has been watching my grandparents decline because of the way they ate. It was heartbreaking because it did not happen overnight. It happened little by little, over time, until the effects became impossible to ignore. I had to watch people I loved continue habits that were hurting them, while feeling too young and powerless to change what was happening. That experience taught me maturity in a way nothing else could. It showed me that health problems are often more complicated than they look from the outside. They are tied to access, environment, routine, and years of learned behavior. That adversity was painful, but it gave me purpose. Instead of letting it only be something sad that happened in my life, I have turned it into motivation. It is the reason I care so deeply about studying this field, and it is the reason I want to spend my future helping other families avoid the same pain.

I am passionate about majoring in Nutrition Science at NC State because I have seen how deeply food and health are connected in everyday life. Nutrition is often treated like a side conversation in healthcare, but to me, it is one of the most important parts of prevention, healing, and long-term quality of life. My interest in this field became personal through my grandparents. They lived in a food desert, where healthy and fresh options were limited, and convenience was often easier to find than real nourishment. Watching that shaped the way I think about health. I saw how difficult it can be for people to make healthy choices when their environment does not support them, and I began to understand that health is not only about willpower or knowledge. It is also about access. That experience made me want to learn more about how nutrition affects chronic illness, energy, independence, and overall well-being. It also made me realize how many families are doing the best they can with limited resources. I want to study Nutrition Science because I do not just want to understand the science behind the body. I want to understand the real-life barriers that keep people from being healthy in the first place. NC State feels like the right next step for me because it will give me a strong academic foundation while allowing me to grow in a field that is directly tied to the kind of impact I want to make. I am excited by the idea of taking what I learn in the classroom and using it to help people make practical, realistic changes that improve their lives. To me, nutrition is not just about food. It is about dignity, access, prevention, and giving people a better chance at a healthier future. My long-term goal is to become a Physician Assistant, and that is another reason why this degree matters so much to me. I want to be a healthcare provider who sees the full picture of a patient’s life, not just their symptoms. As a future PA, I want to combine medical knowledge with a strong understanding of nutrition so I can care for patients in a way that is both compassionate and proactive. So many health issues are tied to what people eat, what they can afford, what they have access to, and what they have been taught about their own bodies. I want to be the kind of provider who can recognize those factors instead of overlooking them. Studying Nutrition Science at NC State will help me build that perspective early. It will prepare me for the next steps toward PA school while also helping me develop a stronger understanding of how prevention and education can change lives. I think back to my grandparents and how different things might have been if healthier options had been more available and if nutrition support had been easier to access. That story stays with me because it reminds me that healthcare is not only about treatment after something goes wrong. It is also about helping people before their health reaches a crisis point. That is the kind of work I want to do. I want to serve communities where people may feel overlooked, and I want to help patients feel informed, supported, and understood. My passion for this degree comes from the fact that it connects my personal experiences, my academic goals, and my future career into one path. Nutrition Science is not just a major to me. It is the first step toward becoming the kind of PA who can make a real difference in the lives of individuals and families, especially those who face the same kinds of barriers my grandparents did.

My academic and professional goals are rooted in my passion for healthcare and my desire to make a meaningful difference in the lives of others. I plan to continue my education in the medical field and build a career where I can care for people in a direct, compassionate, and lasting way. I have always been drawn to healthcare because it goes beyond science. It is about service, trust, and being able to support someone in moments when they are at their most vulnerable. I want my future career to reflect that purpose. The way I have given back to my community has played a major role in shaping those goals. One of the most meaningful ways I serve is by consistently donating blood. This is something that has become especially important to me because it is also something my dad and I do together. What makes it so meaningful is that it is not just a one-time act. It is a habit of giving, a shared commitment to helping people we may never meet but who may desperately need it. Every time we donate, I am reminded that something as simple as showing up can save a life. Whether that blood goes to someone in surgery, someone injured in an accident, or someone battling a serious illness, it has the power to give another person more time, more hope, and another chance. Being able to do that alongside my dad has made the experience even more personal because it reflects values that were modeled for me at home: showing up for others, giving when you can, and understanding that even quiet acts of service matter. Another important way I have given back is through my role as an organizer and tutor for the Young Professors tutoring club at Cabarrus Health Science Institute. For three years, I have helped tutor other students and support them academically. That experience has been incredibly rewarding because I know how frustrating it can feel to struggle with schoolwork and how much confidence can grow when someone takes the time to help. Tutoring allowed me to do more than explain assignments or review material. It allowed me to encourage others, be patient with them, and help them believe in themselves. As an organizer, I was also able to take on leadership responsibilities and contribute to creating an environment where students felt supported. Both of these experiences have inspired me to make a difference in the world in ways that are both practical and personal. Donating blood has shown me that service can be quiet but powerful. Tutoring has shown me that investing in others can create confidence and opportunity. Together, they have taught me that making a difference is not always about recognition. It is about consistency, compassion, and being willing to give your time, effort, and care to improve someone else’s life. These experiences continue to shape the person I am becoming and the future I want to build. They have strengthened my commitment to a career in healthcare and deepened my belief that true impact comes from serving others with empathy and intention. Whether I am helping save a life through blood donation or helping a student succeed through tutoring, I know that giving back is not just something I do. It is who I am.

One teacher who deeply influenced me in high school was my psychology professor, Dr. Barry Johnson. I took his class during my junior year at my early college, and although I learned a great deal about psychology, the biggest lesson he taught me went far beyond the subject itself. He changed the way I think about disagreement, conversation, and the value of truly hearing people out, even when their beliefs are very different from my own. Dr. Johnson was not the kind of teacher students easily forgot. He was a short, older man who had previously worked as a police officer, and he carried himself with a strong presence and a lot of life experience. From the beginning, it was obvious that he and I did not share many of the same views. He was conservative and deeply religious, while I held very different political beliefs and was not religious at all. In many situations, that kind of difference could have created distance, but in his classroom it created something much more meaningful. He did not avoid difficult topics. Instead, he connected psychology to real-world issues like gun violence and other serious social problems, which led to honest and sometimes intense class discussions. I often found myself debating back and forth with him, challenging his ideas while he challenged mine. What made those moments so important to me was that I never felt dismissed. Even when we clearly disagreed, he listened to me, respected my perspective, and made space for me to speak. That taught me something I will always carry with me: learning does not only happen when you agree with someone. Sometimes it happens most when you are pushed to think deeper, explain yourself better, and truly consider another point of view. Through those conversations, I learned important psychological concepts, but I also learned how human behavior, personal experiences, and beliefs shape the way people see the world. Dr. Johnson changed how I approach life because he taught me that disagreement does not have to mean disrespect. In a world where people are quick to shut each other out, he showed me the importance of listening, standing firm in my beliefs, and still being open to learning from others. I will always remember Dr. Barry Johnson not just as a psychology professor, but as someone who helped me become a more thoughtful, confident, and open-minded person. That is a lesson I will carry with me for the rest of my life.

Growing up, I learned that health is about so much more than what happens in a hospital or doctor’s office. I saw that firsthand while helping care for my grandparents as they dealt with serious health problems and a long list of medications. Watching the people I love struggle every day opened my eyes to how hard illness can be, not just for the patient, but for the whole family. It also showed me how important guidance and education really are. When families are already overwhelmed, they need support they can actually understand and use in real life. That is why, if I am awarded this scholarship, I want to use my future career in healthcare to help patients and their families improve their lives through education, compassion, and practical support. Nutrition is one of the most powerful tools we have, but many people are never taught how much it can truly affect their health. I want to help change that. To me, nutrition is not about strict diets or trying to be perfect. It is about giving people the knowledge and confidence to make choices that can help prevent disease, manage symptoms, and improve how they feel every day. For someone living with heart disease, cancer, arthritis, or an autoimmune disorder, even small changes can make a real difference in their energy, strength, and quality of life. If I had the opportunity to educate patients and families, I would start by listening. Every family is different. Every patient has their own routines, struggles, and limitations. Some people may not have easy access to healthy food. Others may feel confused by medical information or discouraged by how hard change feels. I would want patients to feel supported, not judged. I would explain things in a way that is simple and realistic, focusing on steps that feel possible instead of overwhelming. Whether that means helping someone understand how lowering sodium supports heart health, how anti-inflammatory foods can help with pain, or how balanced meals can improve energy and recovery, I would want my guidance to feel useful and encouraging. I would also want to include families in that process, because health does not happen alone. Families often become caregivers, motivators, and advocates. When they understand how nutrition affects long-term health, they are better able to support the people they love. Even small things like learning how to read food labels, preparing meals at home, or making healthier versions of familiar foods can become meaningful steps toward a better life. This is personal to me because I know what it feels like to want more for the people you love. I know what it feels like to watch someone struggle and wish there was a way to make things easier. That experience shaped not only my passion for healthcare but the kind of provider I hope to become. I want to be someone who helps people feel heard, understood, and empowered. I do not just want to treat illness. I want to help people live better, longer, and fuller lives.