Life rarely grants us the privilege of a warning. One moment, we are racing forward, eyes fixed on the open road; the next, we are staring at the wreckage, wondering how everything could fall apart so quickly. These moments—unforgiving, unrelenting—have a way of teaching us, forcing us to confront avoidant truths. For me, they occurred back-to-back: a motorcycle crash that left me shaken and humbled, and the senseless death of a friend that left me questioning everything. Looking at my brand new motorcycle broken, my leg pinned under its weight, all I could think of was “No way”. When you focus intently on something, whether a goal or an obstacle, you head straight for it. This is one of the first things you are told when riding a motorcycle: Look ahead to where you want to go, past the problems, and you will head to your destination. However, like many new riders, I learned this lesson the hard way. On my second day with the motorcycle, I was riding down my street, when I somehow crashed headfirst into the corner of a building. The impact was sudden and unforgiving. luckily, I had all my gear on and walked away with just a few surface-level cuts. It wasn’t just physically painful though; It hurt to hear the crunch, to see the result of my work over three summers destroyed, like a punch. It was the kind of moment where the world tilts and narrows, where even pain takes a backseat to disbelief, shattering the initial feeling of invincibility and freedom while riding. Strangely enough, however, I wasn’t shaken. I clung to the idea that, with effort, I could piece it all back together: the bike, my pride, my vision of control. Walking away from that moment, I felt myself extraordinarily resilient. But I wasn’t. Not truly. The next day proved this. Rawnaq, a friend of mine was shot dead over something as trivial as a parking space. Unlike the crash, there was no fixing this. Nothing in my control could change what had happened. This realization struck firmly, crumbling the lesson I felt yesterday into something deeper, with darker clarity. The resilience I thought I had the day before seemed more like arrogance now. True resilience, I realized, wasn’t just about fixing what’s broken. It was about learning to live with what can’t be repaired. The motorcycle crash taught me one lesson, and Rawnaq’s death taught me another. The crash taught me that we often find ourselves heading toward what we focus on most, whether we mean to or not. At that moment, I was so consumed with avoiding the building that I steered directly into it. That moment lingers in my mind as a metaphor: if you fixate on fear or obstacles, you give them power over your path. The only way forward is to look ahead, past the doubts, and toward the possibilities. Rawnaq’s death taught me something harder: how quickly life can change, and how powerless we are to stop it. His loss was a stark reminder of how much we take for granted—our relationships, our time, even the simple act of being alive. These two experiences reshaped my understanding of resilience. The crash gave me the courage to navigate obstacles, to keep moving despite the fear of failure. Rawnaq’s death taught me to cherish the moments that cannot be reclaimed, to value the people in my life and the time we share. Together, they have become the compass by which I now steer my life: eyes ahead, heart full, and ready for whatever lies around the bend.

1. I learned English after moving to the US at around 5 years old. At first, it was an unfamiliar language and I dreaded talking to my teachers in English. I improved my English abilities through reading books and watching television shows alongside classmates' conversations. I maintain a Bengali-speaking habit but I now possess enough English ability to express myself freely and leverage this language for continued learning. 2a. Managing schoolwork while taking care of family matters proved to be my greatest educational difficulty. I faced the challenge of being the oldest in my immigrant family because I frequently provided translation services to my parents assisted my siblings with studies and worked part-time jobs to support my family. My multiple responsibilities created academic distractions because I constantly needed to balance my commitments with schoolwork. 2b. I mastered my time management skills and asked for help whenever needed to resolve this problem. I established an organized study timetable while accessing free academic help and managing my important tasks in order of priority. I learned how to approach my teachers about my circumstances to obtain guidance and needed flexibility. I transformed these responsibilities from burdensome tasks into experiences that built up my resilience and my ability to manage multiple responsibilities at once. 3. My educational role model would be my father. Despite our financial situation throughout the years, he has always stressed the importance of education to me. My father studied for a degree in something like health sciences in Bangladesh, which was made obsolete by us moving to the US. Due to this, he could not pursue higher education but has always pushed me to. 4a. My target university is a four-year institution where I will study computer engineering. I aim to acquire technical proficiency through internships and research opportunities which will give me practical experience. I will look for mentors while participating in extracurricular activities to achieve academic and professional development. Success lies in education for me so I dedicate myself to maximizing all available learning experiences. 4b. I plan to join the engineering field after graduation to hopefully develop revolutionary solutions for problems and welfare. I wish to serve as a mentor to first-generation students and work for improved access to STEM education opportunities in communities where representation is scarce. Through education, I achieved personal success so I aim to support people who encounter the same hurdles I did. 5. I have volunteered at local community centers, tutoring younger students who were once in the same position as I was. I also work on initiatives related to public health awareness, especially sexual and safety awareness as a student ambassador. I have also translated important documents for my family and community members as well as helped them with job applications. Additionally, I have interned at Roswell Park Comprehensive Cancer Center to develop solutions and discuss inequality in the medical space. These experiences have reinforced my dedication to service and I will continue to serve as I progress in my career.

I experienced through my own eyes how my Bangladeshi immigrant parents dedicated themselves to securing opportunities my generation would benefit from which they never received. My father spent many hours at work while my mother handled multiple tasks to guarantee that I could concentrate on my studies. Their strong determination to reach their goals motivates me to chase my aspirations with equal dedication. The drive to shatter obstacles and help raise my family propels me through my first-year experience as a college student who is the first in our family to attend college. Engineering has become my passion because I constantly seek to understand systems and I actively want to resolve practical problems. My educational pursuit aims to support technological innovation which enhances human life quality especially for those living in underserved areas. The path toward higher education becomes very difficult because of financial restrictions. I work part-time while applying for scholarships to reduce the financial weight on my family. The scholarship award would give me essential financial backing that would enable me to focus exclusively on my studies and pursue my goal of engineering practice. Education functions as my route to impact the world and I dedicate myself to employing it for building a better future.