2. I have never studied abroad. Unlike majority of other students at KMLA, I have no experience of learning English in countries like US, UK, or Canada. Upon entering high school, when I realized that many of my friends had lived abroad and was already good at English, I felt a huge inferiority. This motivated me to do my best to raise my English ability in high school.
3. I have two siblings - younger brother and younger sister. My parents always told me to be a good person so that my young siblings would follow my footsteps and learn from me. It was the first 'responsibility' I felt in my childhood.
4. My grandparents were very conservative people. When my family lived in Seogwipo city, which is near my grandparents' home, we often had to join ancestral rites in grandpa's home. I felt so irritated whenever I joined those ancestral ceremonies, especially in Chu-Seok and New Year's day, since I thought these ceremonies were all perfunctory and meaningless.But my grandparents viewed them differently, emphasizing the value of tradition and family.
5. My mother was once middle school Korean Language teacher few years ago. She is now learning 'Education Psychology' to achieve doctor's degree in graduate school. I'm always inspired by her unceasing passion and enthusiasm towards learning.
6. My father is surgeon; he is working at his own office. Thanks to my father, my family haven't had much financial difficulties. My parents have always supported my education, thankfully.
7. My favorite sport is swimming. When I swim, I overcome my fear of failure, feel the adrenalin, and enjoy the crescendo of heartbeat. In the freshmen year, I joined the school swimming club H2O and, as a district representative member, participated in Gangwon State Athletic Championship water polo division. I achieved bronze medal with my team members.
8. When I was in middle school, everybody called me a 'nerd'. Believe or not, I was the student who was cracking the books in the classroom, even in break periods. Now I don't think being a nerd was a good choice for me, though at that time I defined myself as a 'studying-only' student. After entering high school, now I'm trying to socialize with my friends, chitchat with roommates, and enjoy the life with 'others'.
9. When I was in middle school, my favorite subject was Mathematics. Mathematics puts high value on precise definitions, acute solutions, and solid proofs, which raised my abilities to think critically and calculate accurately. I also enjoyed reading the books about the history of Mathematicians, from Pythagoras and Aristotle to Gauss and Euler.
10. I enjoy listening to music. There is no such a favorite genre since I listen to a variety of genre, ranging from rock, ballad to classic and hip hop. However, I'm sure that my favorite singer is Lee So-Ra, the female Korean musician who has released seven albums so far.
11. Now I'm working as a member of school press, Minjok Herald. Minjok Herald was a great opportunity for me to learn how to write articles, organize ideas, and be responsible. Since junior year, I've worked as a head of Writing Crew of Minjok Herald. I hope the next edition in March would come out as soon as possible.
12. My favorite movie is Batman - The Dark Knight, which was produced by Christopher Nolan. The reason why I like this movie is that the plot, characters, and theme were all best. Above all, the character of Joker -acted by Heath Ledger - was very impressive. I'm very looking forward next Batman movie that will be released this year.
13. Though I like reading books, I don't like literature that much. Nevertheless, I really enjoyed reading books in literature courses so far; in British Literature class, I've read Emma by Jane Austen, The Picture of Dorian Gray by Oscar Wilde, Waiting for Godot by Samuel Beckett, and 1984 by George Orwell. To be honest, I didn't enjoy reading Emma, because I was not so attracted by the topic it deals with - the life, scandal, and marriage of aristocrat women in England. On the other hand, I loved reading 1984, because I was so interested in its dystopian theme and shocking ending.
14. I'm the member of English Debate Society. As aforementioned, I was not so good at English when I first entered KMLA. I really tried hard to raise my English ability since I felt a huge inferiority to others. Luckily, I was selected as a new member of EDS and tried my full best to raise my public speaking ability. It helped me a lot. I jointed my national and international debate competition with my debate club members. Last year, I also worked as a vice chief of EDS.
15. I despise those who spend time meaninglessly. Whenever I watch someone is doing 'nothing', I just can't stand the situation in which I'm running out of time and that person is just discarding the valuable time. That's perhaps why I fought with my sister when I was in middle school. I scolded her for not using her time effectively and she couldn't understand why I was so concerned about her daily life.
16. I have a puppy named 'Terry'. He is very cute, and always inspires me to think about the preciousness of life of animals. Whenever I return to home, I play with Terry.
17. While most of my friends are enthusiastic about iPod, iPhone, iPad, or Galaxy S2, I'm not so interested in these new inventions. I don't think these newly released electronic devices are convenient. They are rather too complicated to utilize. I'm just satisfied with my original cellphone.
18. My favorite subject is Physics, and now I'm the member of Physics Experiment Club Hyeum-narae. With other four members and under Mr. Kim Yonsoo's instructions, I've conducted advanced level of Physics experiments, wrote research papers about Physics phenomenon, and managed Physics lab every week. I joined Korean Young Physicists' Tournament few days ago, and my team achieved Grand Prize in the final round.
19. When I was young, I really liked Roald Dahl. He wrote The BFG, Charlie and the Chocolate Factory, and Matilda. I still like reading his stories, because they always inspire me to grow my imagination and break my confinements in the daily life.
20. Few years ago, I read an autobiography written by a high school graduate. He graduated Korea Science Academy. He was from very poor family and he was not so good at science at first, but he never gave up and always tried his full best to become better. He was finally admitted by Princeton University and I was surely impressed by his story. His book, I think, was one of the main motivation why I chose international field and decided to go US college.
21. When I was young, I enjoyed playing piano. Everybody even called me the piano prodigy. From some certain moment, however, I found myself enjoying and practicing piano much less than before. Upon entering high school, I almost quit practicing piano. I truly regret my decision not to practice piano. My fingers do not follow my order any more.
22. For past two years, I've always tried to take the hardest and most challenging courses provided at KMLA. I took AP Physics C, AP Chemistry, Linear Algebra, and Differential Equations for science, and for humanities and language, I took AP European History, Economics, AP Comparative Politics, British Literature and World Literature. I all enjoy these rigorous subjects, no matter how challenging they are.
23. I really hated morning exercise in the freshmen year. Dressed up with a heavy uniform, I had to trudge toward gymnasium and practice Kendo for thirty minutes every morning. It was so stressful for me that I couldn't adapt to the lifestyles at KMLA in the first semester.
24. My friends at KMLA often calls me 'Jeju Boy'. But I don't like this nickname. I often feel that calling me 'Jeju Boy' somewhat confines my wider ego and deeper potential. Please call me with another nickname.
25. I've once really enjoyed using Facebook. I still use my Facebook account to socialize with friends, teachers, and neighbors, but now I'm not as passionate as I once was.
26. Vision Trip was my first experience to go to US. At there, I learned that there are so many people in the world and confirmed that I really want to spend my college years with those various people.
27. I'm planning to major in engineering or natural science. Nonetheless, I don't think I will only focus on these subjects in the college. I hope I would get much wider chances to learn a variety of subjects as well.
28. I usually go to bed early and get up early as well. Due to this inherent lifestyle, I always tend to wake up earlier than my roommates and wake them up. Especially in the last winter vacation when I prepared KYPT for a month, I had to wake up my teammates every day at 7 o' clock. It was so frustrating to get up early every day and wake them up; but I accepted it as my natural duty and responsibility. It was a great experience that I've always felt responsibility everyday morning.
29. I enjoy reading college essays. Some essays are really boring, but some other essays really inspire me a lot. I really want to write my unique essay some time. Though I know it is tough, I'm ready to enjoy this.
30. At KMLA, there have been many good seniors who personally helped me to survive at this school. They mentored my life and career, allowed me to join club activities, and consulted me whenever I felt frustrated. Now they are graduating this school this weekend. Now I want to give same amount of help and advice to juniors.
