The quality of Rice's academic life and the Residential College System are heavily influenced by the unique life experiences and cultural traditions each student brings. What personal perspective would you contribute to life at Rice? (500 word limit)
The concept of self-identity is something unfathomable to a toddler simply due to lack of experience at such a young age. I, like most kids ten and younger, had adopted my parent’s identity: well-educated, middle-class, Hindu, and moderate both in politics and lifestyle. However, as middle school rolled around, I began to form my own opinions, modifying the perspective I had maintained diligently for ten years.
A large part of my new beliefs stemmed from the people and environment around me-as I am realizing now-that growing up in the Bay Area might have been my greatest blessing.
My parents who immigrated here for their graduate studies retained many of the conservative ideologies of late twentieth century India. I, a first generation kid in the United States, was, thankfully, free to form my own ideas of society without the influences of traditional India. In the Bay Area, the sheer amount of cultural diversity taught me to accept people of all backgrounds regardless of race, orientation, or religion. I found myself progressive, maybe even liberal, and ready to debate and discuss the most controversial issues of our age like global warming and gay marriage.
The Bay’s dynamic industrial sector also affected me; just twenty miles from my house, big name like Steve Jobs and Elon Musk rose to acclaim in my lifetime. What I learned from them was that anyone could build something great from the ground up, a philosophy that characterized my evolution into high school.
I have tried to find this passion in everything I study, whether it be science, birds, or astrophysics. However, my desire to join the Rice community comes from seeing this very vitality for learning and curiosity that I hold so dearly within the university.
Furthermore, the research at Rice Institute for Global Health involving low-cost point-of-care devices for developing countries is something that resonates with me as it aligns with my work in building a point-of-care device to diagnose degenerative diseases; a project that won second place at the California State Science Fair 2016.
Building upon my love for birds, the Rice Outdoors program is a great part of the Rice community that I instinctively felt a connection to. It seems to be comprised of people who share my love of outdoor exploration.
When I am outside on a crisp, cool night with just my telescope, a peace and serenity washes over me, the likes of which no other activity can replicate. Since my freshman year as an amateur astronomer, I have strived to learn as much as I could in this field; my efforts culminating as a semifinalist at Siemens Competition this year for my project in Astrophysics. To carry my passion to the next level, there is no better place than Rice University's Campus Observatory where I will get to meet like-minded people.
In essence, Rice provides a stunning versatility in both scientific research and opportunities to delve into other diverse fields like ornithology and astronomy that feed my constant interest to learn.