Scholarships: Part II

Earlier this afternoon, I turned in my scholarship application. I'm quite thankful to have friends and blog readers that provided an alternative pair of eyes to help edit my essay. Yes, it was ~45 words over the 250 word limit, but I hope that it won't be a deal breaker. In early December I'll know whether or not I have won a scholarship. Until then, wish me luck! Right below is the final version of the essay that I turned in with my application. Right below is the final version of the essay that I turned in with my application.

--------------------------------------------------------

At some point in our lives we come to realize that each and every one of us possess a unique story worth telling. I want my story to be as colorful and diverse as the food, fashion, history, and languages I will come across during my studies at the John Felice Rome Center. Throughout my studies, I hope to learn from the new ideologies and challenges I will encounter. A desire consumes me to learn from a world larger than myself and to provide myself as a tool from which others can learn.

Being a non-native English speaker, I am certain to provide a unique perspective to the benefit of my peers. As someone born in a different country and having made the United States my home for almost two decades, my unique cultural identity would be a great addition to the JFRC community. Ultimately, I look forward to embracing the cultural disparities I encounter and hold myself accountable to a world different, but united through a human commonality. I hope to learn, befriend, and share with those I meet regardless of physical and political borders.

During my studies at the JFRC for the Spring 2012 semester, my expenses will be afforded by money I will have earned through working a part-time job prior to my expected departure, a private student loan, and a monetary amount my mother will contribute. This scholarship would provide me the opportunity to see more of the world, in which I wish to be more of an active participant by being open to new ideas, lifestyles, and beliefs. By earning this scholarship, it would prove to me that there are people who share and support the same philosophy as I do in improving society through education and social interaction.

Scholarships

I've never applied for a scholarship before. If I did, I probably would have saved a lot of money on my student loans... Anyways, I decided to apply for a few scholarships sponsored by the study abroad program I'm going to Italy with. All I really had to do was fill out a one-page application and write a 250-word essay with the following criteria:

• How I would benefit from the study abroad program?
• What impact would the scholarship have on my study abroad plans?
• How my presence in the program would enhance the program environment?
• How I plan to finance the trip?

Of course, the essay was the hardest part. Basically, I had to write an essay acknowledging each of the four criteria they gave me, within 250 words, expressing my need and desire for funding while staying eloquent and dignified.  The following is what I came up with after 2-3 days of working on it.
_______________________________________________

There comes a time in our lives when we realize our responsibility for the world we live in. We come to acknowledge the potential we have to improve society for ourselves and our posterity. From this, a desire is born to learn from a world larger than ourselves and have an proactive influence upon it. From my studies, I hope to learn from the new ideologies, people, and challenges I will encounter. Being a non-native English speaker, I hope to provide a unique perspective that my peers can benefit from. Ultimately, I look forward to embracing the cultural disparities I encounter and hold myself accountable to a world different, but united through a human commonality. I hope to learn, share, and befriend those I come across regardless of physical and political borders.
    During my stay at JFRC for the 2012 Spring semester, my expenses (i.e., tuition, room and board, fees, etc.) will be afforded by money I will have raised working a part-time job during the semester preceding my expected departure, a private student loan, and a monetary amount my mother (my only income-earning parent) can contribute. This scholarship would provide me the opportunity to see more of the world (and greater community), in which I wish to be more of an active participant. This scholarship would prove to me that there are people who share and support the same philosophy as I do in improving society through knowledge and its dissemination through education and social interaction. 

Andiamo! (Let's Go!)

Just bought a travel guide a friend of mine suggested. He said that it’s the right guide for me during my travels through Italy as it keeps the college student on a budget in mind.

Come nei Film

Imagining myself living and traveling in Italy brings up images of films that started my fascination with the country. I imagine myself walking the same cobblestone streets as Audrey Hepburn in Roman Holiday. I find myself dreaming of walking through Roman traffic and being swept away by an Italian man such as Marcello in Under the Tuscan Sun. I can see myself being surrounded by silent, narrow walls as I ride down a gondola in Venice. I want to sit outside surrounded by strangers, being a stranger to my surroundings myself, and enjoying un caffè (a cup of coffee) or un bicchiere di vino (a glass of wine) as the Italian life and culture consumes me. To be in the presence of things that have lasted more than several generations of human lifetimes… there’s a quiet, humble beauty to it all.

Through this journey, I do hope to go through a transformation, an inevitable self-discovery.  To live life for each and every moment, every sensation and emotion like Katherine in Under the Tuscan Sun or Liz Gilbert in Eat, Pray, Love. Or to be like Frances (Diane Lane), who fell in love with Villa Bramasole, bought it, and found herself, love, and adventure… I want to experience all this Italian romanticism. A romance with the self.

I want to experience all these things. Sure, there may be those that might find my goals as overly-idealistic or romantic, but I think they can really happen for me… We can find love in distant places we may have never dreamed of stepping foot in. We can find our most concrete and beloved selves by keeping an open mind to new opportunities. When my life passes on, I want the next generation of people to think of those that came before them and passionately stepped foot on the very same cobblestone streets they stand on… because I am/will be/was one of them.

Posso Entrare nel Vostro Paese?

This past week I had to turn in a few (actually all) of the documents I needed for my trip.

• A medical history self-evaluation
• Proof of international student health insurance (which I had to buy)
• Housing/Roommate contract
• Photocopy of my passport
• Photocopy of my flight itinerary
• Long term (90+ days) Italian visa application
• etc.

I definitely did a lot of running around this whole week to get all these documents taken care of. Having to buy my round trip ticket(s) and international health insurance, making photocopies of several documents, signing countless forms, trying to interpret vague questions and having to insert my answers to said questions in the small space/box(es) they provide… Tedious work, but I just try to focus on the fact that in just a little over three months I will be surrounded by beautiful people, beautiful architecture, immersed in a beautiful language, and living a portion of my life in a place I never thought I could ever reach.

Everything was pretty standard procedure, but in the back of my mind, there’s that pessimistic part of me that thinks something may still go wrong. For example, having my visa application denied. There’s no reason for it to be, but as humans we always think of the good, but there is that portion of us that tries to stay skeptical/pessimistic in order to expect even the unexpected. So the title of this post was Posso entrare nel vostro paese? meaning “Can I enter your country?”

I’m sure things will run smoothly. I just can’t wait to get my passport back in a few weeks with the Italian visa posted in it. It will be like a tangible promise to a romantic, beautiful future filled with great food, wine, scenery, and a moment that will placidly change my life.

Lo Straniero

Hi! I’m Kenneth and this will be the place where I’ll be putting my thoughts, ideas, and photos of my study abroad experience(s) in Italy. I know that I won’t be leaving for another three months and four days, but preparing for my trip is definitely worth writing about (along with the whole trip itself). This is/will be an exciting journey for me as I have never been to Europe before, and I hope to find an eternal piece of myself during my travels.
The title of this post is Lo Straniero meaning “The Stranger” in Italian. What I hope to accomplish with this blog is to successfully record my whole experience to the fullest that I possibly can, share those experiences with you, and hopefully change our relational status from “strangers” to gli amici or “the friends”.
So, dear stranger, would you be willing to share this journey with me?
KC