Below is my personal statement I wrote for my graduate school applications, as written for Loyola (because I like the way I integrated Loyola into the paragraph better than how it did for other schools). I'm proud of it. I feel like it is a strong piece of creative writing in which I was able to put my soul into it, but is also purposeful and informative. I'm putting it here because I feel it's a good summary of where I have been and where I am going. :)
J.K. Rowling
wisely writes in Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets, “It is our
choices…that show what we truly are, far more than our abilities.” In the three years since I graduated from
Hope College, I have made choices that have drawn me well outside my comfort
zone. My desire to always live true to
myself led me to choose to leave graduate school two years ago, to volunteer
with college students, to teach in Russia, and to teach at a local university. While making each of these choices was
difficult, I am grateful because it is precisely the challenge and diversity of
these choices that have led me to this place where I can confidently choose to
pursue a career in chemical education.
My first summer of
doing research with Dr. Jason Gillmore as an undergraduate epitomized
everything I loved about science: discovery.
I worked towards the synthesis of two substituted
perimidinespirohexadieneone photochromes in order to clarify the direction of
their ring opening in the presence of UV light.
As the synthesis proved unattainable, the group has since tried other
methods to elucidate this. From there, I
investigated the cathodoluminescence of minerals [information withheld for internet publishing]. We determined that it was possible to
distinguish classes of feldspars with this method, further indicating its
potential for use as a forensic tool. I
continued to pursue research in graduate school at Michigan State University,
where I worked with Dr. Jim McCusker to elucidate the mechanisms of photo-dynamics
in chromium complexes towards designing better dye-sensitized solar cells.
Each of these
experiences excited the scientist in me, and most had valuable and meaningful
real world applications, but I noticed that none seemed to engage me
uniquely. I also had begun to realize
that I have leadership gifts. I am the
leader that is willing to challenge the status quo and is willing to take the
time to encourage and equip the people under my care. I took joy in applying those leadership
skills as a teaching assistant: I moved desks in my recitation section to
encourage discussion, and I took pleasure in my labs in looking after the
stragglers to make sure they didn’t get lost in the mix. I began to question if laboratory research
was truly how I wanted to be spending my time, when I was discovering a passion
and a gift for working with people.
I chose to leave graduate
school to support myself as a laboratory technician at a small local industry
while I explored avenues to use my leadership skills. I volunteered with a student ministry
organization where I mentored students individually and in small groups, and
trained them to use their unique gifts in leadership. I also spent a month and a half at a youth
camp in Russia teaching conversational English.
Each of these came with their own challenges—from event organization to
teamwork to resource scarcity to cultural differences. Both experiences gave me joy in walking
alongside young people—hearing their thoughts about life, watching them grow into
their potential as I encouraged them and taught them, even when they couldn’t
necessarily receive it. But the
challenges of teaching in a foreign country brought me life, while the
challenges of running a student movement drained me.
With these
experiences in hand, I came to teach at Grand Valley State University. I have found a unique joy in this job. Every semester brings a new challenge. The first semester was making it through a
presentation; this semester was drawing hard lines with compassion. In rising to these challenges, I see students
who were apathetic towards chemistry engage with difficult concepts that they
initially thought were beyond them. Teachers
who give students the tools they need to succeed and the encouragement to
believe that they can succeed are gifts, and I believe that I have the
skills, gifts, and experiences to be one those teachers. I want to continue to
challenge, encourage, and equip students by teaching at a community college,
where I can focus on teaching, and impact a corner of the higher education
world that often gets left behind.
Challenges are
part of every career, and I’ve experienced them in working in a lab, in student
ministry, and in teaching. The difference
is that the challenges I’m facing as a teacher enable me to grow in ways that I
want to grow. My students challenge me
to have patience, to think critically, and to think creatively. I am looking at programs like yours so that I
can learn how to do that better.
Coursework at Loyola would ground me firmly in my knowledge of
chemistry, while participating in chemical education research, such as with Dr.
Patrick Daubenmire, offers a valued opportunity to gain understanding of the
teaching and learning of science.
Cooperative learning experiences were scattered throughout my education
at Hope, and studying them from the other side would help me pass on the critical
thinking skills and self-understanding I gained from some of those experiences
to my own students. My choice to become
a chemistry educator brings together my scientific ability and my passion for
the lives of young people in a way that engages and utilizes my
creativity. I look forward to bringing
the fullness of who I am to the field of chemical education, and I am eager to
make Loyola a part of that journey.
