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Maxwell Bulatao

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Finalist

Bio

My name is Maxwell Bulatao, and I am a senior at Brandon Valley High School in South Dakota. I love music, my axolotl, reading, and Brooklyn Nine-Nine. I want to go into engineering because I have always been defined by science and logic, and a career where I get to apply both is a dream come true. While I love work, I believe the most important thing is to live life deeply and spend time with the people you love, doing the things you love. I am a hard worker, which is the trait I am most proud of because it has nothing to do with money, status, or where I came from, and I apply it to everything I do.

Education

Brandon Valley High School

High School
2022 - 2026

Miscellaneous

  • Desired degree level:

    Master's degree program

  • Majors of interest:

    • Mechanical Engineering
    • Electrical and Computer Engineering
    • Biochemistry, Biophysics and Molecular Biology
  • Not planning to go to medical school
  • Career

    • Dream career field:

      Mechanical or Industrial Engineering

    • Dream career goals:

    • Employee

      Nekter Juice Bar
      2024 – Present2 years

    Arts

    • Brandon Valley Bands

      Music
      2022 – 2025

    Public services

    • Volunteering

      Brandon Valley High School — Tutor
      2024 – Present
    • Volunteering

      SALSA — varied based on where I volunteered
      2022 – Present

    Future Interests

    Advocacy

    Politics

    Volunteering

    Tim Gjoraas Science and Education Scholarship
    My passion for science runs deep, as deep as memories of a young boy trying to find his way, as the blood in his veins, and his beliefs, held exceedingly tightly, that tell him who he is. From a young age, I have been very curious about the nature of the world around me and how it worked. I would bust open broken toys and take apart office supplies to see how they worked. I would then use what I learned to try and fix things and make sense of the world. That is why I am passionate about science. To me, every problem had no limit to its solutions. When I was six or seven years old, the solutions were easy, they were obvious, and they did not have any real world repercussions. But, as I grew older, the adversity became more serious and more difficult to solve. Divorce, money, a pandemic, they seemed like problems with no solution. This is partly because they are not issues that a child should be dealing with. Nonetheless, I applied scientific thinking and got through them, even though the solutions were often not scientific and I just needed to change the way I saw them. As I grow older, the problems grow more complex, but I still believe that the best way to tackle them is through the lens of science. This is why I plan to major in mechanical engineering. Something about machines, how things can be made easier with technology and design, excites me. I want to use what I learn and apply this to the world. To the hungry, to the homeless, to those in need. To me, one of the most pressing issues of today is climate change, and my hope is that someday, my work can help solve the many problems created by it. Though the problems of today are complicated and I am still just a kid, I will not surrender. I have come a long way since I was a little kid, and I still have a long way to go, and I will keep going. Any problem, no matter the size or scope or how many people it affects, has a solution. I am inspired to make even small contributions to science and technology, because small steps forward are still forward movement. When the going gets tough and resolve feels impossible, the one thing I can count on is science.