* PREFACE: This is the personal essay that secured me a seat in Columbia's Journalism School and NYU's Journalism Institute for my Masters. When I discussed the Dean of Texas A&M Law School loving my essay in my previous post, it was a very very similar essay to this one - very similar. I remember wishing I could read someone's personal statement/statement of purpose back when I was applying, so I figured, why not post it here? AHHHH I still cannot believe that this essay is ivy league material, so without further ado, here she is!! *
Monét Guilbeau
Statement Of Purpose
I remember my first love clearly. I was seven years old, riding my bike around the backyard, repeatedly cascading myself down the minor slopes it contained. My mom surveyed me, occasionally giving me celebratory feedback on my stunts. As the sun began to set and my time outside drew to a close, I swiftly pedaled back to the porch. As I flicked the kickstand into place and rested my bike on its side, my mom said something fascinating.
"Good job sweetie, that was phenomenal."
When my mom first said that word, I was charmed by its complexity. Phenomenal looked like rich violet swirls with hues of pink, twirling with passion at twilight, exploding into stardust. That word did not roll off the tongue but rather sat on it, with the sound morphing into the edges of one's mouth, concluding in a comforting lull. Phenomenal sounded phenomenal, and in that moment, I fell in love with words and knew they would define my future.
This childhood fascination marked the genesis of my lifelong mission: to become a beautiful and brilliant thinker. I became fascinated with words because they were alluring and specific, leading me to scrutinize every word I came across. As my lexicon grew, I noticed that I could communicate my thoughts with an unyielding precision, drawing listeners in with my flamboyant language, indirectly opening their minds to mine. I also noticed how people alter their gaze in response to words, read or spoken. By the lift of a brow or the hardening of eyes, I began to read words off of a person's face, creating a new invaluable language.
Throughout all of this, my life has been phenomenal. With supportive parents, I was never denied the opportunity to pursue my passions. This exposure led me down several paths, but I discovered not only my talent, but my natural gift: writing. Words have been my sanctuary, but writing is my joy.
Even as a young student, I thoroughly enjoyed tasks that my peers found laborious, be it reading, annotating, report writing, or even simply diagramming a sentence. As an English major, I learned how negative space in a poem speaks louder than the lines and how to consolidate heaps of information into a few persuasive pages. I have excelled studying at Texas A&M University these past few years, leaving me with a glimmering 4.0 GPA and aspirations to make my words metastasize until they reach the ends of the earth.
Through having my hand in debates, presentations, and speeches, I could focus on the ordering of my words, alongside their presentation. Watching others, I noticed how people agree to bad ideas if they are presented beautifully and how people can despise great ideas due to poor presentation. My study of philosophy and rhetoric demystified this phenomenon: the realm of linguistic strategy and the hunt for truth. I familiarized myself with these texts to refine my discernment and organization, a decision that has enhanced my writing skills tenfold.
What I have learned about myself is that I not only love words, I value them deeply. Only a few spaces value the melodic nature of language, with journalism encompassing my appreciation for the aesthetics and style nestled within the written word. I have primed myself for this day, with my rigorous studies and campus involvement fine-tuning my skills, allowing me a taste of my future as a researcher and writer - all that is left is to master it. As I embark upon this new chapter of my academic journey, I carry a profound appreciation for the enchanting power of words and I am ready to add mine to the discussion.
My voice was made to cover the abstract aspects of life, the things people struggle to readily articulate. I want to diverge these sensations myself, and with a curious heart, I know I can. Every category of journalism intrigues me, but personally, I am drawn to the world of fashion journalism, where words become the palette for painting vivid sartorial landscapes. Working as a runway model, I gathered how the fashion realm requires a richness of vocabulary to capture the essence of style, requiring logophiles such as myself to bring the expressions of others to life through an incapable medium. I want to investigate the world for this reason, applying words like appliqués to the stories I bring to life.
My mission is clear: to use my drive as a writer to bring the experiences of others to the public sphere, cloaked in brilliant language and manifold meaning. I want to make readers not merely see, but feel the elegance, chaos, and allure of the human experience. With my curiosity, an unwavering dedication to the written word, and a heart brimming with anticipation, I am poised to embrace the world of journalism as the tapestry of words that it is. I am prepared to weave the rich narratives and themes of our world into masterpieces of prose, ultimately, to share and honor the lives of others with my finest words.
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