A Personal Quality, Accomplishment, and Talent, Personal Statement Example

Q2: Tell us about a personal quality, talent, accomplishment, contribution or experience that is important to you. What about this quality or accomplishment makes you proud, and how does it relate to the person you are?

I see myself as a leader because my experiences have helped me develop strong organization and communication skills and one of my major personality traits is perseverance. I first started playing piano when I was still quite young. My piano teacher would urge me to continuously practice to realize my true potential as a piano player. I took her advice to heart and would practice piano for almost three hours every day. After five years of hard work, I eventually earned grade eighth piano certificate. The experience taught me that there is no shortcut to success. We discover our real self only when we push ourselves to the limit and are willing to do whatever it takes to achieve the goal. This may be why I even take challenges that others may avoid due to the efforts required as well as the time investment needed. I just have to convince myself that the goal is worth chasing for.

My life experiences have also helped me built strong organizational skills. During high school, I was an active member of the student association and my additional responsibilities as an association officer in addition to be being a student meant that I had to learn to efficiently use my limited time resources. As an officer, I organized volunteer events such as charity ball and have remained active in co-curricular activities even in college. I am Vice President of External Affairs at Diablo Valley College’s International Students Club (ISC) and my selection was also due to my strong leadership and organization skills. My greatest achievement as Vice President has probably been successfully organizing International Educational Week which is one of the largest events on campus and is attended by more than 300 students. My responsibilities included seeking permission from school authority, scheduling programs, and ordering supplies and equipment. Thus, I was involved at almost every stage from planning the event to organizing the event and presenting final report to all the relevant stakeholders.

Communication skill is another strong point of me. I have been able to acquire strong communication skills because I enjoy working with people from diverse backgrounds and the success of any project is also determined by how effectively team members communicate with each other and how effectively leaders outline the project goals. In addition to communicating with other officers in ISC, I also communicate with external stakeholders including for-profit organizations and cultural societies whose generosity makes it possible to enhance the students’ academic and cultural experiences.  In addition to school environment, I also enjoy meeting people from diverse cultural backgrounds in private social gatherings. By communicating with those from different cultural backgrounds, we become better aware of our stereotypes and biases and develop more objective thinking patterns.

As an Economics major, I will not only bring unique perspectives to class due to my exposure to both eastern and western economic systems but will also use my experiences and ideas to enhance students’ campus lifestyle experiences. I also hope to further increase cross-cultural exchanges as well as promote tolerance and mutual respect among student groups on campus.