Personal Statement

In a family where there have not been college graduates, or computer scientists, I am halfway into my undergraduate major in computer science with an emphasis in programming languages. I am preparing myself to become a computer scientist, a software engineer, or a computer science professor. Throughout my life I have overcome several obstacles and I certainly did not allow these events to undermine who I am- a hardworking individual.

I have had dedication and love for learning since my early childhood. As a seven-year old, I recall that I often preferred reading a history, a natural science, or a mathematics book instead of going outside and play with my neighborhood’s friends. I did not choose to do this to isolate myself from playing with other children, but rather because I was more intricate to learn about the world written about in textbooks. I preferred doing long division with more than five digits than to play with other children. My mother would take me to the kitchen’s table, since I did not have a desk, so that I could learn the times tables. I was seven when I learned basic arithmetic and to read. My parents could not help me with my homework as I progressed through elementary school and my innate curiosity and textbooks became my “personal tutors.” As I continued through elementary school and beyond, I mostly depended on myself to study.

I have been a member of the Mathematics Engineering Science Achievement (MESA) program since my sophomore year in high school. This club allowed me to use my knowledge in science and mathematics to develop a windmill with other classmates, work on a mousetrap car with my sister, and to compete at the regional level in the mathematics competition at the regional level. ...

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...re, the world depends on technology. This dependence on technology has great advantages. It allows scientists to analyze data more effectively, millions of financial transactions, and the distribution of information has significantly been eased. However, those known as hackers pry data out of computer systems to gain illegal access to confidential data. I would like to be a software engineer to counter those hacking attacks and keep the world’s computer systems safe from hacking.

If I am selected, I will be able to assist other students and faculty members with my knowledge of programming languages. I will devotedly help out other student researchers to gain more insight into other fields of study. I will assist other students, for instance, those in mathematics and physics, to research for computational approaches to application problems in those fields.