My life is a culmination of many different decisions and experiences.

Id like to
describe my favorite successful experiences as a student from my childhood. One of
the most memorable experiences that shaped me into the person I am today is
when I got appointed as a class leader in my first grade. Being a leader, has always
been and is an all-time goal for me. I showed courage and leadership qualities
which many of my teachers and peers liked and respected. Possessing good
leadership and helpful qualities, contributed in making me a leader. I was appointed
as the class leader and took the job very seriously. I vividly remember calling up my
friends and other peers in the night to make sure they completed their assignments
and homework. I learnt many valuable things which are crucial in life such
responsibility, accountability and improvised my leadership skills.
Another successful experience in my life was the day I won the TCS national IT quiz.
I was in grade 8, when I first won the award. I didnt win the first prize, I was the
runner up along with my team member. I still remember the proudness in both of
my parents eyes when I held the trophy in my hand. Although deep inside, I still
was whining about not winning the first prize which was bad of me. I promised
myself that the next year I am going to win the first prize. I started working on the
goal as soon as I got home from the competition. I won a laptop from the quiz and I
used the same laptop to prepare for the next years quiz. After a years hard work, I
won it again, but this time as first position. From this experience, I learnt that failure
is a part of success. Hard working attitude was the reason why I won the quiz. I
sometimes question myself, would I ever win again and reach my goal if I hadnt
come in the runner up spot?. Probably not, I learnt many things from this
experience but the most important thing that can be used practically in life is that,
failure is a part of success.
Another one of my favorite experiences is when I applied for a US visa and got
rejected. I received all my paperwork from UCF including the form - I20 and was
ready to depart to the US for my studies, but to my surprise I wasnt given a visa for
my first interview. I got really disheartened since a lot of people told me, that once a
passport is denied for a US visa, getting one in the near future is impossible.
Despite all the negative talks, I maintained a very optimistic approach and was
always persistent. To my dismay, I got rejected the second time as well. Everyone I
know were sure I wouldnt get it but I still stayed optimistic and was very persistent.
I never gave up on myself and on my goals. I went for the interview the third time
and I made it. I got a US visa and this was because of my persistence and patience.
Each of these experiences taught me very important things which are crucial in life
and Ill cherish this moments all my life.
I faced many challenges in my life and I have always overcome those challenges
one way or the other. Although, I successfully overcome each obstacle in my life,
they were few challenges in my life which made me regret why I was in that
situation. One of them was when I fractured my arm and my leg in a car accident. I
am lucky enough to be alive but that accident took a really big toll, both on my
mental and physical health condition. Since I am used to being independent, the
fracture made it much worse for me because I had to depend on people for
everything. My parents, brothers and sisters used to help me out at everything and I
personally used to hate the situation since I was holding them up from their work. I
realized that time was my friend and I was patient for 2 months until all my casts
were removed. I realized that accidents do happen every second and I learnt the
lesson that being cautious all the time is really lifesaving and pays off in a way no
one can imagine.
Another challenge Id like to write about is the time when I was leaving all my
family, friends and country to the US. Although this decision is a very important one,
it was hard for me to leave my loved ones back and come here. Even though Im
adventurous and love exploring new places, it is my first time leaving my family and
friends for a long time. Im lucky enough to have family here in Orlando where my
school is. I regularly video call my family and friends who are back home and keep
in touch with them. My family here are always there for me, whenever I need them.
So, that is how I coped up with this specific challenge and overcame it.
UCF has been exciting so far. Im loving the atmosphere here. I have very friendly
apartment mates and I also made good friends here. I love working out with my
best friend a lot and I always wait for the weekend to come so I can go to my
cousins place and stay with them. Over all UCF has been a very welcoming place
for me, its pleasant, safe and friendly environment makes me feel secure. The
people here are also friendly. All of the people at global UCF have been more than
welcoming and understanding. I like all of my classes and professors who teach me.
All of them are very friendly, professional and knowledgeable. My professors would
describe me as calm, very optimistic and very motivated student. They would also
describe me as a peer-friendly student who is active. I look forward to learning new
things not only in regards with general education but also in respect to world
advancements in technology and other developments. I also look forward to
improving my public speaking skills and other skill sets which are a potentially
useful for me in the future. I also want to overcome my fears and emerge as a
successful knowledgeable human being.
High school and college are very different from one another. Life and experiences in
high school are very different from college. In high school, timetable is already set
by particular people, but in college its not the same. Students are required to
manage their own time wisely, which is a big factor in bringing out success.
Students are responsible for all their time and the consequences. Students are
supposed to balance their responsibilities and set priorities and will face moral and
ethical decisions. Whereas, high school students can rely on parents and teachers to
remind them of their responsibilities and set their priorities. I feel this is true, when I
was in a high school in my home country, my parents used to make my decisions for
me and set my priorities for me. Now that I got into college, I realize that I have to
make important decisions which I never made. In High school, Students are unaware
about what it takes to graduate and in college, graduation requirements are
complex and differ every year. In my high school years, I would just focus on my
final exams and then get a good grade and graduate, but in college its a different
scenario. I have to complete all of my assignments and homework, study and get
good grades in finals. In high school, I never to get 124 credits to graduate but in
college I need those 124 credits to graduate and get a degree. So, Graduation
requirements in college are indeed complex and take a lot of hard work which is not
like high school.

Thank you Professor Rachel,

For reading my homework and grading it. I hope I did well to get an A and I would
also appreciate if the content in this homework stay between us (especially
regarding the homesick and family thing).