Name
Personal Statement
Prompt 1
For big amount of time, I summoned all the courage to live in a completely different
world. That was the farthest stretch of my comfort zone I had taken in life. I am fully aware
of the size of challenges I have encountered, but to study with different people with the
climate that has successfully attacked my immune system was the biggest for me. As an
Indonesian international student, I would consider going abroad to continue my education as
the biggest risk I had taken in my entire life. By the time I graduated from high school, I had
decided to study to the United States. It was undoubtedly a huge step for someone like me,
but studying in the States has always been my dream. So when it finally came true, I felt ten
times braver to get what I desired.
Sure enough, my first days were a struggle. I noticed there were lots of different
English accents, and not knowing what the professor said in class was one of the scariest
things I have ever experienced. But then I remembered how I didn’t come to the States for
nothing. I found a way to overcome that obstacle, and learn to adapt faster than I ever did.
Since then, I have been and still consider every risk that appeared to be a fuel for me to
advance my personality which would help me approach the world as a better individual.
I have been scrutinizing every step I took to elevate my understanding about the
meaning of difference. Every single day was discovery: from discovering how usual it is for
Americans to eat ice cream in the winter to finding the anger of my friends driving in the
snow while I was amazed persistently of the white objects that colored the plain and boring
roads. I discovered how my strong viewpoint of the complex difference of the world was
shaped.
Having an identity as a Chinese in a foreign Indonesian country where the news are
consumed by tragedies caused by the differences between the two races were difficult facts I
had to embrace. I think humans are naturally afraid of something different in appearance, just
like an elephant is afraid of mice—regardless of its size.
It is concerning that society prescribes this fear of difference into what we believe or
to any label of identity we own. These differences should spark curiosity and let diversity
beautifies us rather than dividing us. The point of why this experience was enlightening to me
was that I could see myself from a different viewpoint. However, studying abroad had also
provided me with a chance to share my culture to my American friends and they had grasped
differences easier than I thought. There were moments when my thoughts were proven to be
wrong about people. The phobia of difference never really existed.
Through my experience as an international student in the United States, there is
always a choice to open myself toward every differences in any nature, which would make
for a great investment as every business woman should have to allow broad input for the best
result she can possibly produce in the future.
Prompt 2
“Budak saya yang terbaik lah ni orang!” shouted my Malaysian friend in the
Microeconomics class. It left everyone in great silence but me. I completely understand what
she meant because of our similar language root that we shared in Southeast Asia. “Budak”
would mean slave; such a strong and harsh word to use to call one’s best friend, yet such a
usual, or even intimate, word to use in Malaysia. Every other student stared blankly, trying to
find the code of what it meant in our faces. “She said that I am her best girl,” said the other
person, and all class members were nodding their heads, as if to say, “Oh!” - disregarding
other meanings the sentence may had.
Understanding these kinds of differences have developed also my understanding in new
cultures, language, or even various ways of cooking. One cloudy Sunday, I was asked by my
roommate to go to an American church with her. Even though I am Indonesian, I approved of
her request without further thinking. In the holy house of all Christians who attended the
service, I was surprised that the people there allowed me to give a speech about my culture
and the church which I came from. I could not come to any disagreement and be against my
will, so I went to the podium and had the world in my words.
As all the sentences began pouring from my mouth, the face—even the face of a child
sitting in the 20th row—was the most enthusiastic treasures I could find on that day. I felt
extremely happy about their response and interest in knowing about my culture, just as much
as I want to understand theirs. Ever since that moment, I became curious about different
cultures that could possibly have significant changes for me in the future. I realized that this
kinds of cultural exchange opportunity could happen anywhere or anytime.
My friends have often describe me as a very diverse, cultured, pleasant and active
woman. One of my distinguishing characteristics is the diversity of experiences I possess. I
have a Brazilian-Chinese mother and a half Indian-Indonesian father. My families are
diverse, and this element has given me a broad outlook, with varying degrees of cultural
understanding. I appreciate diversity from a very early age, and my easygoing personality,
had given me tendency to befriend people from different races. By appreciating other people
and their culture, I can gain new perspectives on the lives of others around me as well as
around the world. Through each other's diversities, I become more aware of my own and gain
a sense of pride out of it.
Thus, I believe that this experience has made me a woman with broader perspective and
a good understanding of people. More than what I have studied in school, my study abroad
experience has shaped me to be the person that I am today; a person who believe that
knowledge is the key to connect with other people. Moreover, The Hult International
Business School offers the most important point in developing the ability of its students to
perceive the world in the most profound way and therefore, I would like to embark on a
journey of more diversities.