Flying from Seoul to Baltimore to attend Johns Hopkins felt as intergalactic as transcontinental. Vividly aware now that I was the first person in my family to attend college in the US, I had become a trailblazer and felt it frightening at first. Generally, doing my best to avoid Koreans so that I could speak English exclusively, I soaked up the vast range of diversity in America that filled my heart with songs and my dreams of multicultural celebrations, people of all colors, languages, and backgrounds. Within months if not weeks upon arrival, I was already taking it upon myself to extend a helping hand to those less fortunate than myself of any ethnic background or language.
I have had the opportunity to directly mentor a high school dropout from East Baltimore who wanted to improve his employment prospects. My goal was to help develop a curriculum for his GED preparation and gain a holistic awareness of the challenge in the design and implementation of the program. He earned his GED certificate in 2 months, and I had an opportunity to learn about the harsh realities of America’s inner cities and the unique challenges in education for inner-city populations. I also seek lifetime volunteer engagement in this area alongside my professional career.
I am currently engaged in research with my advisor designed to shed light on why people find themselves motivated to help marginalized communities. Our research findings offer theoretical implications for what motivates giving and outline practical consequences for how charitable campaigns can encourage potential donors.
I have found a great deal of extraordinary joy in the fact that we arranged for the participants in our study to donate to World Vision to support undernourished children in Korea.
I look forward to many more actionable insights at XXXX.
Sample Diversity Statement for Graduate School