Geography Personal Statement Example 11

The immense size and complexity of the world, its societies and how they function never fails to amaze me. I am living in a crucial period of the history of resource management. This is a serendipitous time for generating more sustainable methods of harnessing, distributing and consuming the earth's resources. I wish to play an active role in this revolution. CSPE (Civil Social and Political Education) sparked my interest in interdependence and really made me aware of the world around me. Coming from a diverse family and living in multiculturally contrasting capitals for a large part of my life has subconsciously enlightened me about macrosocial interaction and given me a synoptic view which benefits me when learning and reflecting on geographical issues. Moving to Ireland during the reign of the Celtic tiger and living through the recession highlighted how important the economic issues were in impacting the environment and people and fused these concepts together for me.

I write to express myself and to share my opinion. I have won numerous in-school awards for poetry and essay writing competitions in England, the Republic of Ireland and Nigeria. A specialist organisation called AIDS (Africa Is Done Suffering) published two of my essays on their blog and I have been offered an opportunity to write an article about interracial social hostility for the Huffington Post. Being deeply passionate about the refugee crisis the UN tweeted at me thanking me for my support. This was an achievement for me because I respect the work they do empowering women in disadvantaged communities and publicising energy issues during the Rio 20+ conference that took place earlier this year. As a prefect at Grange school I introduced a mandatory recycling system for the whole school, and also while there I was part of a team that raised 1,000,000 Nairas (£4000) for a charity supporting deprived women with breast cancer. Being a subject leader for Geography and Sociology, my main activity is to tutor Year 12s. I specifically chose this because I wanted to show them a better-rounded view of the topics and how easily they connect with the world around them. Against strong competition I was given a director role in the Wymondham College Young Enterprise Team. Our business adviser created a new position for me as environmental director because he thought I integrated contemporary dilemmas with business objectives effectively.

For some time I have been subscribed to The New Economy Magazine, poring over the energy section especially, taking advantage of the fact the topics portrayed intrinsically ties in with the subjects I am currently taking. I am also a frequent roamer on the Ecomagination website, which has similar benefits. Reading books such as 'The Upside of Down' by Thomas Homer-Dixon and 'The End of Poverty' by Jeffery D.Sachs have helped me gain more credible knowledge about my interests. Taking the Language Leaders course taught me useful, transferable teaching and presenting skills, on which I drew heavily when I spent two weeks volunteering in a summer school in Jamaica. Interacting with international volunteers, mostly trilingual Europeans greatly improved my French and further widened my cultural perspective. I worked at the front desk at Functional Gifts Printing Company in Lagos for 3 weeks. I learnt to handle customers patiently and quickly and enjoyed working in a creative environment. I also suggested designs, which were then to my delight adapted by the business. In my spare time I enjoy cycling, though not competitively, and arts and crafts, especially string art and hand-made collaging.

My choice of degree course has been strongly influenced by my interests in and concerns about social, environmental and economic issues. I believe that my appreciation of the need to interlink concepts and grasp complex systems will stand me in good stead and that my experiences will enable me to adapt to the pressures of degree level work and make the most of the opportunities university life offers.