In a family of no college graduates or computer scientists, I am halfway through my major in computer science with an emphasis on programming languages. I am preparing to become a computer scientist, software engineer or computer science professor. I have overcome several obstacles throughout my life and I certainly have not allowed these events to undermine who I am: a hard working individual. I have had dedication and love for learning since my early childhood. When I was seven, I remember that I often preferred to read a history, natural science or mathematics book instead of going out to play with my friends in my neighborhood. I didn't choose to do this to isolate myself from playing with other children, but rather because it was more complicated for me to understand the world described in textbooks. I preferred doing long division with more than five digits rather than playing with the other children. My mother would take me to the kitchen table, since I didn't have a desk, so I could learn my multiplication tables. I was seven years old when I learned basic arithmetic and to read. My parents could not help me with my homework as I progressed through elementary school and my innate curiosity and textbooks became my “personal tutors”. Throughout elementary school and beyond, I mainly depended on myself to study. I have been a member of the Mathematics Engineering Science Achievement (MESA) program since my sophomore year of high school. This club allowed me to use my knowledge in science and mathematics to develop a windmill with other classmates, work on a mousetrap car with my sister, and compete regionally in the regional level math competition. ...... middle of paper ......re, the world depends on technology. This reliance on technology has great benefits. It allows scientists to more effectively analyze data, millions of financial transactions, and the distribution of information has been greatly simplified. However, so-called hackers extract data from computer systems to gain illegal access to confidential data. I would like to become a software engineer to thwart hacker attacks and protect the world's computer systems from hackers. If I am selected, I will be able to assist other students and teachers with my knowledge of programming languages. I will devotedly help other student researchers to gain more insights into other fields of study. I will help other students, for example, those of mathematics and physics, in finding computational approaches to application problems in those fields.