Personal Statement

Chemists are ever chasing the unknown, taking big problems and breaking them down in macromolecules. I, for one, would like to join them on their endless search to understand the basis of our existence. Without an understanding of chemistry, we would know little about the world around us. We’d never understand where we came from, or how our future may look. Chemistry is the foundation on which the rest of the world depends, whether we realize it or not. This is what draws me to chemistry. However chemistry is not an isolated discipline. To master the artistry behind chemistry, one needs more than an understanding of substitution reactions; one needs a base in mathematics and a motivated spirit. This is the key to success in chemistry.

My

In first year physics, it was demonstrations like the Ruben’s tube that drew me into the sciences. I earned first honors in this course, mastering the mathematic operations and physics applications presented. Sophomore year chemistry launched my chemistry studies. It was a mystifying science, one where questions could be endless as much was still unknown. I worked outside of class with my teacher, exploring concepts from nuclear chemistry to molecular orbital theory. What’s special about uranium? What are the implications of Bohr’s orbital theorem- and why is it wrong? From here the seed was planted. Though I lobbied for my school to add AP Chemistry to the course options, there was not enough interest, so I looked elsewhere. I am enrolled in AP Chemistry through Northwestern University’s Gifted Learning Links, and am engaged by the course’s complexity and breadth of subject material. I was willing and excited to give up much of my summer to undertake an advanced level chemistry course. The course was at a university/industry level, shown in the use of ChemSketch imaging software and the integration of iLabs connected to real life data on Geiger

Since the start of high school, I have consistently been the only one of my grade in my mathematics classes. Starting with Alegbra II/Trigonometry and continuing into AP Calculus BC (a class in which I am the only student), I will have taken 5 years of math by graduation. My classes were interactive and pushed students. I recall the frenzy my Calculus classmates and I faced when given one class period to match higher power derivatives to integrals and their equations. Though it was exhausting, my 5 on the AP exam made it worth it. Post- exam, we continued to solidify our skills, most notably through a 3D project involving a given equation and rotation around the x and y axes. My courses outside of math and science, and my success in these, prove me to be not just a student, but a scholar. Even in non-STEM classes I am able to incorporate my love of science. I wrote my independent history paper on whether or not Joan of Arc was a prophet, or merely a woman struck by a neurochemical phenomenon, a topic with much research, but little public