GKS-U Personal Statement

Hello, I've been working on my Personal Statement for GKS-U this year and I need some feedback to Improve, please help me.

Is it strong enough?

Thank you in advance

These are the following topics I must mention.

- Motivations with which you apply for this program

- Family and Education background

- Significant experiences you have had; risks you have taken and achievements you have made, persons or events that have had a significant influence on you

- Extracurricular activities such as club activities, community service activities or work experiences

I am trapped. I’ve been trapped and not capable of getting out from my feeling of love for South Korea. Attention of mine has been drawn by the beauty of Hangul and Korean language which has difficult grammar but unique to be learned. Soon as my ears hear them (Korean) speak, I'm captivated by the sounds of pronunciation. How much I love it, made me start learning to read and write Hangul since Elementary School by searching the material on the internet until I kept following the development of South Korea that amazed me. From one of the poorest countries has become a leading country in many aspects, provides me a desire to take a look and experience directly how is the real Korean culture like through Korean Language and Literature major that I'm intending to take. Especially how is the interaction process that occurs in a homogeneous society like South Korea with their Pali-pali (??-??) culture which is way different from Indonesian culture. Likewise, advanced technology also better and a strict education system make me eager to study and compete there. The rapid development of relations between Indonesia and Korea also provides me a willing to take a part in introducing each culture.

Born in a family that no one has ever graduated from bachelor’s degree stimulates me to pursue my education higher. Both of my parents really support me as I am the first son of three children. Since I was a kid, my father had instilled the importance of education even though my mother gave me freedom to explore the world. However, due to the economic condition and the cost that they couldn’t effort gave me an obstacle in fighting for the national university, but it doesn’t cut my passion to keep struggling because I would like to help and improve my family’s economy. In early 2019, things were getting worst until eventually my parents decided to separate. For the first time in my life, I felt so empty, broken, and hopeless. Along the year I suffered from depression until I met someone, she was a new friend of mine at school who realized me that talking is one of the best ways to heal the inner wound. I kept hanging out with her, kept sharing stories until I escaped from depression, I managed to find my new dreams and my new vision of life. Since then, I started to open myself to share stories with other people, as well as helped and listened to their problems to ease the burdens they had carried.

Right now I live with my father in my aunt's house because we don’t have one, while my brother and sister live with my mother in her hometown. Now my father works as a taxi driver and my mother as a small merchant. Since then, I started to used to live independently and take care of everything on my own that my mother always did for me before. Although we are far apart, we always communicate also comfort and remind each other. My parents probably still childish as they always have a fight even when they're not together, yet as the first son I must become an adult for my family. A great grateful is what I feel for these to happen, so that I could learn many things, like I used to blamed my father for everything, but actually there was no one's fault, it all had become destiny, and we only had to enjoy the plot and take the lessons. Also, now I'm often to over thinking, but I'm able to handle it as long as I'm reading a book or even articles on the internet.I was born in Semarang. However, I was brought up in Jambi. My education began in Elementary School number 124, I had not concerned about the competition yet even though I always obtained the top ten rank. Then, I went to Middle School number 7 that is one of the best middle schools there. For the first time, I felt the strict competition in education. Nevertheless, I was able to compete and obtained the fifth rank. After one year in that school, I must move to West Java for my father’s job, I went to a private school. There was the first time I joined the school organization of students council. I learned to think critically and work in team. Here either I started to find new hobbies, felt curious and learned many things like started to learn English and learned 3D animation software, and started to dream for study abroad so that I studied hard and maintained my grades at school. One year later, I must move again to Central Java because of the family economy problem was getting worse. Again, I attended a private school in Semarang. But I successfully graduated as the best student with the first rank in my school. Afterwards, I continued my study to High School number 10 and took Science major because I was really curious and I loved it when I studied in the laboratory, when I examined plants and animals’ structure and the characteristics of base and acid also calculated the atom configuration. Here also I started to do what I like and joined schools activities, like scout and joined in mountain climbing. Be known and relied on by many teachers made me become a class leader, so I could improve my leadership skills. Teachers' trusts on me oftentimes made me pointed to take part in competitions like stock investment simulation competition, accounting competition, and pre-physics Olympiad. In the second year, I started to feel overwhelmed by the major even though I could still catch up and maintained my grades. But I found out that my actual passion was in Language and Literature.

Since I graduated from Middle School, I had tried to enroll in the school I hoped, yet I failed and went to High School number 10 instead. In the second year of my high school, I tried to enroll in a scholarship program to study abroad that I had waited for since in the second year of middle school, yet I failed again. In the third year I tried to enroll in the same program, and the result still the same. After graduated from high school, I really hope I can study in my favorite university, unfortunately for three times I failed again. I'm starting to be tired, but doesn’t mean that I stop to keep trying, I'm starting to make a peace and be friends with failures, starting to accept it patiently. All I must do is keep making effort and enjoy the process. This is become a valuable experience for me so that I'm not easily give up on my dreams. In fact, failure is a sign that we have achieved the next level of life.

In high school, I joined organization of Class Representative Assembly with Public Relations position that required me to be able to communicate goodly and dare to speak in front of the public. I often joined seminars and forums. Also, joined English Convention Club that trained my writing skills, even I participated in English Debate Competition. As well as I joined Theater extracurricular, I found my new family, we fought together, oftentimes we performed on school's events, and participated in a Theater competition for the first time in my life.

In my lifetime, I have been through much rough and happy times that is a process of maturity. Earned much lessons and life values that help me to survive in this harsh world. Obtained much experiences that changed my perspective and participated in many activities that influenced my personality. I lost everything, but I earned more than what I expected, somehow that was everything. I’m certain that the opportunity will come at the right time, and when I get it I will prove that I’m not going to waste it and I can survive.