In this blog post, I’ll summarize my academic efforts and school activities during high school, examples of how I practiced consideration, sharing, and cooperation, and the steps I took to prepare for my future career.
Academic Experiences and Reflections
I view studying as a promise I make to myself. I believe the strength that enables me to keep that promise is perseverance. Many of my friends make thorough plans, but it’s not easy to actually stick to those plans until the end and turn them into tangible results. I’ve always viewed studying not merely as a matter of making plans, but as a promise to myself, and I’ve strived to keep it until the very end. Therefore, for me, studying was a struggle to keep that promise.
When I was young, I was particularly fond of computers and video games, and I had trouble focusing on other subjects. Until my first year of high school, I was so absorbed in these interests that I sometimes neglected my studies. Because I focused only on what I liked, my grades suffered, and my teachers were concerned about my attitude in class.
However, realizing that a solid study ethic was necessary to sustain my passion for these interests over the long term, I resolved to focus on my studies. I made a study plan to study language, math, and foreign languages every day without fail, and other subjects every other day, dedicating roughly two hours to each subject on a regular basis. Whenever I felt tempted to take a break, I reminded myself of the promise I had made to myself and persevered with my studies. Even now, I study every day with the determination to faithfully keep that promise.
Major Extracurricular Activities and Reflections
The field I was most interested in was gaming, and I was particularly immersed in strategy games. During that time, I would sometimes pull all-nighters and put my studies on the back burner to focus solely on gaming, which caused my grades to drop and led to problems with my attitude toward school life. At the time, having fun was my priority, but in the end, it was a situation I was dissatisfied with myself.
The turning point came when I joined a club founded by friends preparing to become game programmers. The competition and the gap in skill levels I encountered in the club were deeply discouraging. When I participated in a small high school competition and failed to even make it past the preliminaries, I went through a slump, thinking, “Perhaps the path of a programmer isn’t for me.” Although I distanced myself from gaming for a while, that experience forced me to face my limitations head-on.
Even during that slump, drawing on my prior experience with computers, I began fixing the club’s laptops and computers. In the early days, there were many errors that were difficult to resolve, but as I learned step by step through conversations with my advisor, I became able to solve computer problems quickly. My advisor took notice of my ability to explain concepts and solve problems, and I was entrusted with the responsibility of computer repair and maintenance within the club.
Through my club activities, I reaffirmed my passion for gaming and, at the same time, developed a desire to learn about computers in greater depth through different approaches. I set a goal to go beyond simply enjoying games and systematically build my knowledge of computers so I could apply it professionally.
Examples of Consideration, Sharing, and Cooperation, and My Reflections
The most meaningful activity I participated in at school was the inspection and maintenance of the computer lab. I developed a close relationship with the club advisor and received a great deal of help from him; at his suggestion, I began assisting him with his work after school. At first, there were many errors I couldn’t fix, but as I learned from him, I gradually became able to resolve more and more issues. Eventually, I created a “regular checkup” schedule to systematically manage the school’s computers.
By fixing computers and explaining how to troubleshoot them to my friends, I discovered the joy and fulfillment of helping others. I felt a deep sense of satisfaction knowing that my efforts facilitated others’ learning and work, and I was grateful for the trust my peers placed in me by coming to me whenever they encountered problems. At the same time, this experience motivated me to immediately recognize my shortcomings and work to improve them, driving me to put in even more effort to develop my skills.
Efforts and Preparation Related to Motivation for Application and Career Plans
This academic attitude and my club activities served as a catalyst for solidifying my career aspirations. My consistent commitment to keeping my study commitments and the practical experience gained through problem-solving became my motivation to pursue computer engineering professionally. The computer repair experience I gained in the club and the feedback from my teachers helped me clarify my goal of developing practical skills.
As I prepare to enter college, I have developed a dream of studying diligently in an environment where I can receive more specialized education. I believe the regular study habits I developed in high school, my problem-solving experience, and the sense of responsibility I learned through collaboration with others will be valuable assets for my future studies and career preparation. Building on this foundation, I aim to deepen my knowledge in the field of computer engineering, develop practical skills, and grow into a professional.
