This blog post explores how to concretely and persuasively demonstrate your commitment to majoring in East Asian History in your academic plan. It presents strategies for expressing academic sincerity through related regional studies, historical source interpretation skills, and language learning plans.
Reasons for Pursuing the Major (Why Choose This Major)
Historical dramas share many similarities with modern dramas centered around conglomerates. Listening to political discussions by my father’s side, I repeatedly realized that events similar to those I learned about in history textbooks are still unfolding today. This experience made the saying “All history is contemporary history” truly resonate with me.
Historical facts are not confined solely to the past; they often have significant connections to our present reality. I came to believe that understanding the past is essential to grasping the present, and that this is precisely what makes history such a wonderful discipline—it provides the insight to see into the future. This sparked my desire to study history, leading me to apply to your university’s Department of History. Even today, Korea faces significant friction with neighboring countries over historical issues. Since each side makes different claims, I also feel a strong desire to verify what is true and whether what I learned in textbooks is factual. Therefore, I aspire to become a scholar who studies East Asian history to understand not only our own country but also its neighbors.
Academic Plan and Goals
Upon admission, I will dedicate myself to my major field for four years. First, I plan to research the histories of East Asian empires such as Southwest Asia, Japan, China, and India. Based on this, I intend to deeply explore the histories of mutual exchange between these nations and examine how their interrelated histories influence today’s international relations. I will also focus on understanding Eastern philosophies, essential for comprehending these nations. Since Chinese characters are indispensable for historical source research, I will consistently study classical Chinese from my first year. Around my second year, I plan to stay in China or Japan to visit historical sites that will provide new experiences and aid my academic studies. To this end, I intend to cultivate my foreign language skills in advance by attending language academies for Chinese, Japanese, and other languages.
Furthermore, I will strive to build a liberal arts foundation across diverse fields such as philosophy, politics, economics, and science to enhance my overall societal understanding. Given that my goal is to immerse myself in my major field, I am determined to study diligently and will strive to become an academic excellence scholarship recipient throughout my four years.
Post-Graduation Plans
After graduation, I plan to pursue graduate studies. Since my dream is to become a professional scholar, I believe I need to deepen my academic depth. If exchange student programs are available in graduate school, I plan to actively utilize them to broaden my horizons. I believe that researching history alongside students from other countries will be a valuable opportunity to develop an objective perspective, free from closed-mindedness or narrow views.
I understand that our country, especially Japan, has many historical issues. What’s regrettable is that Japan has long been preparing extensively in various areas, putting Korea at a significant disadvantage. At this juncture, I wish to study professionally to uncover facts that could aid Korea’s historical diplomacy. Furthermore, I aspire to teach this knowledge to students. While I haven’t set concrete goals in this area yet, I am certain about my dream of becoming a historian. I plan to dedicate myself wholeheartedly to my studies until I achieve that dream.
Self-Introduction (Life Philosophy, Values)
There was a book titled “What is Justice?” that was popular for a while. While its content was somewhat challenging for me, I believe the book’s value lies in the very act of contemplating what justice is. Learning history from textbooks and observing events in real life often led me to question what is truly right. Of course, I understand that everything is complex and cannot be judged in black-and-white terms. However, just as history is often called the history of the victors because it is written by the powerful, I do not believe that thinking solely from the victor’s perspective is the correct viewpoint.
Perhaps historians are people who must judge what is right and wrong with a perspective as cold and clear as a judge’s.
Friction often arises over history. Neighboring Japan, in particular, frequently seeks to justify its own history. I sometimes think that if Japan were to acknowledge its role as a war-guilty nation within its own history, Asian society might not be what it is today. A mature person must be able to admit their own mistakes and reflect on them. I believe historians should be those who guide the people sharing the same history toward adopting the attitude of a mature individual.
