1. Describe an example of your leadership experience in which you have positively influenced others, helped resolve disputes, or contributed to group efforts over time. (350 words)
My kids are demanding.
From spilled orange juice to my homemade cookies smashed on the floor, it’s a lot to take on as the sole “adult” in the room. My kids fight a lot--Dora steals James’ toys and James pulls Dora’s hair. Edith holds grouches longer than any child I’ve ever met. Ariel is painstakingly shy because she has a lisp. I’ve taught classes as big as 20, endured circular conversations of “Why?” “Why not?” and “How come?”, and held kindergarteners as their temper tantrums left bruises for days afterwards. Kids, with their unflinching honesty and unbridled emotions, can be really mean sometimes.
So why do I do it?
When I teach Sunday School and lead cell groups, my needs don’t come first--theirs do. Whether it’s breaking up a fight or soothing a fear, it’s a responsibility that demands sensitivity. To mirror a child’s feelings, to make them feel understood--these are some of the tasks that have tested my patience. I have messed up before: I learned that kids take things at face value, and sarcasm is not in their vocabulary. Now I know once trust is broken, it takes an eternity of hugs and validation to build it back up.
I am responsible not only for their tears, but also their smiles. It’s so simple yet rewarding to elicit a child’s laugh by giving high-fives, fist bumps, stickers, homemade cupcakes, and praise. Every giggle is like winning an Oscar for my silly puppet shows of Zacchaeus climbing the tree or the whale swallowing Jonah whole. It’s an honor to play a role in their happy-go-lucky lives, acting out essential Bible stories they will encounter again and again as they grow up.
When James and Dora give each other a reconciliatory hug, when Edith learns the value and freedom of forgiveness, I am not just the teacher, but I am also learning from my students’ willingness to change. And when shy Ariel puts her arms around my waist and whispers, “I luf you,” I know I’ll never stop being their jie jie, their big sister. (350)
2. Every person has a creative side, and it can be expressed in many ways: problem solving, original and innovative thinking, and artistically, to name a few. Describe how you express your creative side. (350 words)
When your first play is about a boy who eats so much junk food that he turns into a literal couch potato, you know you’re on the right path to winning a Tony Award. After all, a potato is like a play.
It begins underground. The roots reach for nutrients and a strong grip on the earth. I am alone in my room with the seed of an idea. Lights up on news articles and personal histories collected from hours of research. I dig until I can curl my fingers around what feels like a story: conflict, check. Biting dialogue, check. Characters I want to simultaneously hug and slap, check.
Because my perspective shifts, sprouts spring from the seed’s eyes and the plant breaks the surface, announcing its presence to the world. I grasp opportunities to collaborate with artists and bring it to life. My play no longer flourishes through willpower alone—the countdown to opening night begins.
Life as a potato isn’t easy. There are powerful forces of nature to deal with and the struggle to grow, to emerge stronger than before. Every meeting with an artistic team of visionaries reshapes the play, discovers another layer, or goes off on a tangent--and those are the best conversations. Conversations that deeply move me when an actor shares his own experience about losing a parent, that reaffirm me in my moments of soul-crushing doubt, that validate the reason why I write, in hopes that my stories may resonate with even one person in the audience.
The potato is now ready to be presented to the public eye. Cue gasps, wet cheeks, and laughter. Just as the potato spreads across the globe, whether my plays are performed in a school’s church-turned-theater, a white box in New York, the Stella Adler theatre in Hollywood, or the Old Globe Theatre in San Diego, we clap because we believe.
After experiencing imagination in action, I don’t think I’ll be turning into a couch potato anytime soon. After all, a potato is like a play, not a playwright, and one potato can yield an entire harvest more. (340)
5. Describe the most significant challenge you have faced and the steps you have taken to overcome this challenge. How has this challenge affected your academic achievement? (350 words)
In our house, English is not English. Not in the phonetic sense, like short a is for apple, but rather in the pronunciation — in our house, snake is snack. Words do not roll off our tongues correctly — I was pulled out of class to meet with language specialists, and my Malaysian mother pronounces film as flim.
In our house, there is no difference between cast and cash, which was why at a church retreat, people made fun of me for “cashing out demons.” Classmates laughed because I pronounced accept as except, success as sussess. I was in the Creative Writing conservatory, and yet words failed me when I needed them most.
When my mother asked me to teach her proper English so old white ladies at Target wouldn't laugh at her pronunciation, I cried. It has not been easy. There is a measure of guilt when I sew her letters together. Long vowels, double consonants — I am still learning myself. Sometimes I let the brokenness slide to spare her pride but perhaps I have hurt her more to spare mine.
As my mother’s vocabulary began to grow, I mended my own English. Through performing poetry in front of 3000, interviewing people from all walks of life, and writing stories for the stage, I stand against ignorance and become a voice for the homeless, the refugees, the ignored. With my words I fight against jeers pelted at an old Asian street performer on a New York subway. My mother’s eyes are reflected in underprivileged ESL children who have so many stories to tell but do not know how. I fill them with words as they take needle and thread to make a tapestry.
In our house, there is beauty in the way we speak to each other. In our house, language is not broken but rather bursting with emotion. We have built a house out of words. There are friendly snakes in the cupboard and snacks in the tank. It is a crooked house. It is a little messy. But this is where we have made our home. (350)
8. What is the one thing that you think sets you apart from other candidates applying to the University of California? (350 words)
If I describe to you my life, you’d assume I’m a spy.
After all, I was recruited when I was 11. I receive assignments via email, text, or phone and liaise with PR’s, determining time and location. My assignments require significant travel to infiltrate red carpets and junkets, relaying intel to bosses who sit atop skyscrapers.
Instead of X-Ray sunglasses, I’m equipped only with a mic and a notepad. I pore over my feature stories and rewrite movie reviews in the dead of night. Like a secret agent studying files, I spend hours researching the targets and brainstorming unique questions that will yield priceless insight.
On the job, I work erratic hours and endure weather of all kinds--come stinging rain or blustery ice-cold nights, I face the camera with my objective in mind. Competition with other agencies can get tough--I stay calm under pressure, fight to hold my ground on the carpet, and leap at opportunities to ask questions at junkets. When I get condescending looks from adults on the job, I hold up the badge around my neck to gain access to behind-the-scene areas, grit my teeth and gear up to prove that age is just a number.
Though I’m not setting traps for villains, I do talk with green monsters like the Hulk, Kermit, and Mike Wazowski. I undergo intense training to enter the Scorch Trials, study How to Train Your Dragon, and venture Into The Woods. I conduct intelligence operations with other Divergents, learn the mystical arts under the guidance of Doctor Strange, and sail across Sea of Monsters and Stranger Tides to accomplish my missions.
My content celebrates work by women, about women, and for women. The assets I pursue are those who push for diversity in Hollywood—my mission is to defeat ignorance, the biggest evil of all. It all pays off when I acquire exclusive insight into artists’ lives, revealing another facet of depth. I connect with another human, gain invaluable perspective, and widen my understanding of people.
Real spy or not--I’m happy with this job. It’s just as cool. (345)