In this blog post, I’ll summarize the efforts I put into my studies and school activities during high school, what I learned from resolving conflicts, and how I prepared for my future career.

Academic Experiences and Reflections

I really love the proverb, “Many a mickle makes a muckle.” This saying perfectly describes my approach to studying. That realization came one morning before a Korean history exam when I came down with gastroenteritis. The exam covered a vast amount of material, but I wasn’t feeling well and couldn’t sit at my desk for long. I had to endure the pain while repeatedly running back and forth to the restroom, and I felt a mix of anxiety and frustration, thinking, “I should have prepared better in advance.”
Nevertheless, I couldn’t give up on the exam, so I decided to make the most of even the brief moments I had. Every time I went to the restroom, I took my Korean history summary notes with me to read, and whenever my stomach felt better for a moment, I’d get up and start memorizing again. Even if the information didn’t sink in right away, I didn’t give up on reading and repeating it over and over. The result was astonishing. I scored a perfect score on that exam, and only then did I realize that I had been mistaken about studying.
Up until then, I had thought of studying as a one-time task that required sitting for long periods, but I learned that consistently gathering small chunks of time is actually more effective. After this experience, I began to systematically utilize short breaks during class, travel time, and my commute, breaking them down into minutes. I even used the moments when the teacher was joking during class to mentally review the material, and while commuting, I recalled what I had memorized to reinforce my learning. This approach to studying—building up knowledge bit by bit—transformed my study habits, making them more efficient and sustainable.

Major School Activities and Reflections

Participating in the app development club was an experience that brought me great passion and joy. I believed that apps are a medium through which people can connect based on ideas and technical skills rather than academic credentials, and the friends I met and worked with in the club shared this same mindset. We brought together friends with outstanding ideas and technical skills, complementing each other’s strengths as we worked on projects together.
In the club, our advisor and upperclassmen provided immediate technical advice and reviewed our plans, allowing us to quickly address any shortcomings. Even when we pulled all-nighters to develop our apps, the excitement of the work outweighed any fatigue, and I voluntarily and actively participated in school festivals and external promotional activities. We were passionate about promoting the app we created and finding sponsors, and through that process, we felt the joy of growing together as club members. Through these activities, I took on the role of leading underclassmen, first as vice president and then as president, and that experience itself was a great honor and a valuable learning opportunity.
However, there were also many moments of frustration during my time in the club. The hardest part was when I keenly felt my “technical shortcomings.” Even after creating design blueprints and pulling all-nighters, there were times when we were technically unable to implement the core features we needed to deliver immediately. I also felt helpless when these challenges coincided with exam periods or competition deadlines, creating a double burden. These experiences, however, only strengthened my resolve. I decided to delve deeper into my major—including computer science—to acquire relevant knowledge more quickly and bring my ideas to life.

Examples of Consideration, Sharing, and Collaboration, and My Reflections

While serving as president, I once faced a conflict with another club. The robotics club raised an issue, claiming that our app club had encroached on their territory and taken their spot at the festival. From our perspective, we didn’t believe we had encroached on their territory at all, so we felt baffled and wronged. However, I realized that if we responded emotionally, it would ruin the festival itself.
So, I first calmed myself down and listened to them until the end. Instead of arguing, I sincerely apologized, asked if there was anything we could do to help each other, and expressed my willingness to discuss a resolution.
Surprisingly, as soon as I apologized, their agitation subsided, and room for dialogue opened up. They also acknowledged that their reaction had been excessive and expressed their own apologies. Through this experience, I learned that—just as the saying goes, “The one who loses is the one who wins”—sometimes taking a step back and offering understanding and an apology first is the wiser way to restore relationships and resolve conflicts.
Since then, I’ve gained a deeper understanding of the importance of collaboration and maintaining relationships, and this experience became an opportunity to apply what I’d learned—how to manage my emotions and guide conversations—in real-world situations, even during conflicts. As a result, the festival concluded smoothly, and a foundation was laid for both clubs to collaborate in the future.

Efforts and Preparation Related to Motivation for Application and Career Plans

I had a strong desire to dive headfirst into the ever-expanding field of computing. Just as a smartphone can be viewed as a type of computer, computer technology is expanding in various forms, and I wanted to experience that change firsthand and contribute to it. So, together with friends, I started a project with the goal of “Let’s build a computer.”
Designing core components ourselves or implementing programs to control motors was difficult with the parts and skills we had, and despite multiple attempts, we were unable to achieve the desired results. While we were able to disassemble, reassemble, and tweak existing products, our attempt at a completely original creation ended in failure. I kept trying in my garage throughout the summer break, and honestly, that process was a time of “failing spectacularly.”
This experience taught me two lessons. First, passion alone isn’t enough to achieve everything. Second, passion is nonetheless an essential prerequisite. In fact, by repeatedly taking things apart and putting them back together with my own hands—and learning firsthand how the parts fit together and function—I gained a much deeper understanding of computer components and assembly methods. I became so proficient that I could visualize the motor’s assembly process and the operating principles of its components with my eyes closed, gaining a practical sense that I could never have acquired through rote memorization alone.
Moving forward, I will maintain an attitude of constantly trying new things without fear of failure. While failure is always a possibility when learning and applying technology, nothing can be gained without trying. With this mindset, I aim to build up my specialized knowledge and develop practical skills, so that I can actively take on challenges and continue to grow, no matter what technical field I encounter.