Goal Statement, Admission Essay Example

In presenting my goals in regard to my career, I first must acknowledge that they are inextricably linked to my educational ambitions. The connection is not, of course, unusual; any trajectory in a field or career relies on such a grounding. At the same time, I cannot ignore the reality that my further study will likely take my career in directions not necessarily foreseen by me. I now know that I seek to pursue work in Special Education, and with an emphasis on those aspects of it addressing vision impairment in students. This is, in fact, the object of the doctorate study I desire to undertake. Nonetheless, given the inherent potential for education to introduce new ambitions, let me then constrain my goal to what I am committed to at the present, which is as thorough a doctorate-level foundation in Special Education as my abilities will allow, and one with a distinct focus on how vision issues impact on the field.

It would be agreeable, and also somewhat convenient, if I could express just how my profound interest in Special Education began and evolved. I can assert confidently that the study of it at King Saud University, where I obtained my Bachelor’s degree in the subject of learning disabilities, reinforced my commitment, So, too, have the graduate courses I have undertaken in Vision Rehabilitation Therapy from Western Michigan University strengthened my resolve, and attaining my Master’s has been yet another confirmation of my larger intent. Each class and each academic acknowledgment has provided me with a form of internal support; engaging in the studies and earning the recognition have validated the motivations going to their commencement, and I have been privileged to receive truly exemplary instruction and guidance while on this path. Nonetheless, there was first inspiration of a kind, long before a book was opened or a lecture attended. I cannot isolate when and how this inspiration in me was originally manifested. I can only know that, as far back as I can recall, I have been drawn to exploring how Special Education has evolved, what its real potentials are, and how I may be instrumental in advancing it. Special Education is for me a calling, I believe, much as educators and healthcare workers view their own careers as expressions of who they are as human beings. I may not be able to identify exactly how and where the ambition developed, but I know it is in place, and I wish to make a difference in Special Education.

In a very real sense, and its vague quality notwithstanding, this has always been my goal. My study has also brought me to comprehend how critical my particular focus of interest is, regarding vision problems. The history of Special Education is not marked, in my estimation, by extraordinarily progressive thinking or policies, modern and comprehensive approaches notwithstanding. In an age when so much attention is paid to marginalized populations, and where so much emphasis is attached to addressing realities and concerns unconscionably neglected for long periods, Special Education has still consistently been a peripheral field. It has long been distinguished, in fact, by a kind of hesitancy, likely emanating from ignorance and/or fear of transgressing parameters of potential. Those with special needs, meanwhile, represent an enormous range of impairment, from severe mental disability to relatively minor issues that impede learning and, inevitably, the life of the individual. Those with Special Education needs reflect an enormous variety of attainment impediments, yet they have consistently been grouped under the one, largely unhelpful, banner. As my studies indicate and as my personal inclinations support, effective teaching and assistance may only be accomplished when this pervasive label is set aside, and the real needs are seen and addressed in the light of day.

I am further motivated by how sight itself impacts on this arena. As those not mentally challenged would likely agree, how vision functions is inescapably related to how learning of any kind occurs. This is a process going far beyond the obvious elements of ability to read print and/or discern specific images, although these things may not be discounted. Vision presents the world to us, and this translates into an extension of how our characters develop and how we perceive ourselves. For example, the child with a cognitive or emotional disorder impeding learning and social interaction is already set apart from the mainstream. They must encounter difficulties unimaginable to the “normal” individual, and be taught in ways overcoming their mental and/or physical obstacles. When such a circumstance is compounded by vision impairment, progress must be all the more hindered. Sight is the avenue by which reality is taken in; when this is damaged, an exponential handicap is added. Not only must the child face challenges in place due to special needs, but the mechanism of acquisition further disrupts potentials. As the history of Special Education reveals, in fact, there have been many, regrettable circumstances where a simple problem with vision has actually been viewed as a mental handicap. Exploring how this single aspect of an individual may then be addressed in the arena of Special Education, then, has great meaning for me.

Ultimately, and as expressed earlier, my setting out a specific goal for my life and career here may be attractive, but it would also be a specious undertaking for one first requiring education at a doctoral level. I can only then shape my goal, and present it accordingly, based on what I can, now, know to be true. Special Education is my field, as I have always been drawn to it viscerally and intellectually. This potent interest has defined my academic career thus far, in attaining my Bachelor’s and Master’s in the arenas of learning disabilities, and am particularly intrigued to ascertain all I can in regard to the impact of vision impairment on Special Education individuals. I have said that I want to make a difference, and I feel this profoundly. With my doctorate behind me, I am convinced that I will be enabled to do so, and generate what I hope is a series of goals to be met and replaced by others, as my work in Special Education evolves.