Learning Statement
If I was truly honest with myself, I’d say I knew I wanted to study business in ninth grade. That was when, at my high school, I could join more after-school activities… including the one that ended up making me feel the most welcome: Future Business Leaders of America. Within the first year, I realized that the community welcomed me and the content was engaging. On top of that, I was good at analyzing business data and presenting it. Business as an academic field felt like a natural extension.
Through process of elimination and some mental pro/cons, I basically decided on my two options (specializations) during freshman orientation. If college were only a vehicle to deliver a high school student to a career, my path would be incredibly linear. I was a direct admit to the Foster school of Business and never had any desire to stray from that. I joined business RSOs and got very involved in school programs as a whole. And in my freshman year, due to my involvement with the advising and career centers, I was alerted to a freshman internship opportunity at a Fortune 25 company and after applications, interviews, and orientations, I was interning before I knew it.
(On the whole, the evenings I spent agonizing over whether I wanted to pursue a career in management consulting or investment banking seem laughable now with the perspective that both are the most stereotypical business major answers, and I’m sure I would have found a way to thrive with either choice). But I always viewed college this way: as a step towards getting a job; being a real adult.
It’s only in my last two quarters at UW that I’ve overtly started to reflect on what my college experience encompassed other than pre-professional development, even if most of the activities I sought out (at first glance) were only such. While I was gearing up for the off-campus case competitions that I participated in, my focus was on strategies, techniques, honing skills that would help our team perform better. As I reflect, I remember those same competitions for the food and culture of new cities, advice from professors who came with other teams, unlikely friendships and insights arising from competitors.
I suppose I accomplished exactly what I set out to when I first stepped foot on this campus: I’m graduating with a business degree and am going to work at a company with significant impact on the business world. But, in some senses, I fell into the trap of not fully living and championing all the moments and truths that existed in between the professional accomplishments. This portfolio is an exercise in righting that – in bringing together all of the articles of my college experience that show emotional growth, social discomfort, and humanize my four-year journey, while displaying the preprofessional activities that were important to me while I was here, like my deep dive into the case competitions I participated in.
I appreciate my commitment to professional development throughout my life. If I had to go back, I don’t think I would do it any differently. But this portfolio is a monument to my professional collegiate life through the lens of personal growth – bringing an Honors mindset to a Business student portfolio.
Through process of elimination and some mental pro/cons, I basically decided on my two options (specializations) during freshman orientation. If college were only a vehicle to deliver a high school student to a career, my path would be incredibly linear. I was a direct admit to the Foster school of Business and never had any desire to stray from that. I joined business RSOs and got very involved in school programs as a whole. And in my freshman year, due to my involvement with the advising and career centers, I was alerted to a freshman internship opportunity at a Fortune 25 company and after applications, interviews, and orientations, I was interning before I knew it.
(On the whole, the evenings I spent agonizing over whether I wanted to pursue a career in management consulting or investment banking seem laughable now with the perspective that both are the most stereotypical business major answers, and I’m sure I would have found a way to thrive with either choice). But I always viewed college this way: as a step towards getting a job; being a real adult.
It’s only in my last two quarters at UW that I’ve overtly started to reflect on what my college experience encompassed other than pre-professional development, even if most of the activities I sought out (at first glance) were only such. While I was gearing up for the off-campus case competitions that I participated in, my focus was on strategies, techniques, honing skills that would help our team perform better. As I reflect, I remember those same competitions for the food and culture of new cities, advice from professors who came with other teams, unlikely friendships and insights arising from competitors.
I suppose I accomplished exactly what I set out to when I first stepped foot on this campus: I’m graduating with a business degree and am going to work at a company with significant impact on the business world. But, in some senses, I fell into the trap of not fully living and championing all the moments and truths that existed in between the professional accomplishments. This portfolio is an exercise in righting that – in bringing together all of the articles of my college experience that show emotional growth, social discomfort, and humanize my four-year journey, while displaying the preprofessional activities that were important to me while I was here, like my deep dive into the case competitions I participated in.
I appreciate my commitment to professional development throughout my life. If I had to go back, I don’t think I would do it any differently. But this portfolio is a monument to my professional collegiate life through the lens of personal growth – bringing an Honors mindset to a Business student portfolio.