Category: Academic Achievements

Engineers are the creators of our future. I find it a captivating feat how over the past century, the world we live in has drastically changed due to the rapid technological advancement in engineering. To become one of the leading engineers of our future and to design a sustainable world for future generations is a fulfilling challenge I aim to achieve.

My deep-rooted interest in Science started from a young age when I read ‘The time for Kids Science Almanac’ and ‘Popular Science Almanac’. These books sparked my interest in the world of science and technology which led to my decision to become part of my elementary school’s Science Club. The club activities not only stimulated my mind but also allowed my curiosity to grow. I have always found myself interested in learning about how things work and this interest has grown with me over time. Being able to understand the working process of any machine always leads to a unique experience of satisfying my interest.

In 2013, I moved from the Philippines to the UK. Boarding my first long international flight allowed the borders of my imagination about how far technology can grow to expand. Like any child, I was fascinated by the remarkable concept of flight. From observing birds and insects fly to being able to personally experience it was exhilarating. This experience led me to question the mechanisms of flight and through inquiry and research, I was introduced to its engineering aspects.

Immigrating, although the adjustment period proved to be challenging, did not interfere with my academics for the most part. The change motivated me to perform better academically and after two years, I was one of the most excelling students in my secondary school. It also allowed me to build my confidence and communication skills. Understanding that maths and science go hand in hand, I persevered to excel in these subjects and participate in any extracurricular activities available. In Year 10, I took the AQA Level 2 Certificate in Further Mathematics and achieved a grade of A. In 2018, I won the Outstanding Maths Student Jaguar Land Rover Education Award for the Solihull borough. I also took the UKMT Senior Challenge and obtained a bronze award. This year, I participated in the ‘Inventing the Future Innovation Camp’, an engineering competition, where my team and I secured the position of the Midlands Final Winner. We were challenged to create a sustainable transportation system that could be used by the public for the 2028 Summer Olympics in Los Angeles. Within 3 hours, we researched, designed, and created a presentation on a futuristic concept of an elevated bus that ran on hydrogen fuel cells and used solar power. Partaking in this competition was an unforgettable experience and emphasized the importance of teamwork and communication in engineering.

In my spare time, I enjoy learning new languages. I took Spanish as a GCSE and achieved a Grade 9 in it, however my learning hasn’t stopped there. I continue to teach myself Spanish and have recently started Korean. As an individual whose first language is Tagalog, I work hard to improve my English while making sure I don’t forget my mother tongue. From an early age, I’ve realized how much language barriers can impact communication, relationships, and confidence and so I take it upon myself as a challenge to further my proficiency in multiple languages.

As my knowledge in science and maths developed, my interest in aircraft and spacecraft grew. The subjects I study now such as Mathematics and Physics form the foundation of engineering and modules such as mechanics have been particularly enjoyable. Studying further mathematics has been more demanding than I anticipated, however, the extra challenge it provides is stimulating, especially those from the further mechanics content. The opportunity of using mathematical techniques and the application of scientific concepts and theories to solve real-life problems is gratifying and I hope to elaborate upon these during my degree.

Student life can be very exciting and creepy as well. But sometimes each of us might have the feeling that we can’t just cope with our tests, assignments, and various projects. In my opinion, achieving good grades while still having a blast at school is very possible. We don’t have to sacrifice our grades over having fun or otherwise. It is just a matter of setting things right and balancing the equation of getting good grades and having a good social life.

The first tip for getting good grades is to schedule everything. If you are unsure of a specific thing that school life was about before, it is simply to schedule, schedule, and schedule. In case you need to know, in other to have time for assignments, to study, and to attend parties or any social activities, you must have a master plan that guides your daily activities. Actually, you might state that you have a to-do list, however, the to-do list can only take you halfway through your work because you will end up procrastinating, and it is easy with a to-do list. So, what is best for you in getting things done is assigning time for your activities. A secret that you might not know is that if you carry out your activities according to your plan, there will be more available time for other things. Plan how you want to study, plan time how to have a social life, plan time for when friends can visit you, plan how to get good grades, and even plan how to maintain good grades. Technology has made things easier for us, there are great and amazing apps that can be installed on your phone to aid you in focusing and organizing your time properly.

The second tip is to make your study time to be fun. Aside from the fact that you must be serious during your study time, you can make it flexible and fun. You just have to switch the routine of how you study. It is good to be surrounded by lovely people sometimes during your study time, so you can make use of the school library. There are some aspects of your academic work that you can plan to study in the park. Just throw out your big blanket on the field and enjoy nature while studying outdoors. Make sure you take snacks and water or soft drinks alongside. So, planning how to be a good student entails flexibility in the studying schedule because of unforeseen circumstances at times.

Making friends can also help in getting good grades. Isolating yourself in your room or the school library without a specific reason is not the best always. Your textbooks or lecture notes cannot give you as much fun as you might expect. Sometimes, your only friends in your school might be those you grew up with right from your kids in which you are lucky to be in the same college or university. However, for a memorable time to achieve during your stay at the university, it is essential to make new friends. It is more exciting and always adventurous. You just need to break out of your shell and familiar faces. Apart from academic life, you are supposed to discover and learn more about your personality. In other to achieve, new friends are in the right position to do this. Freshers’ orientation periods are some of the right moments to meet new friends, and this is usually held during the first week of every first semester. You must keep your shyness in the hostel, it is time to be free with people. Since the academic workload during this period is always the lightest, use that opportunity to scout for friends and different social gatherings. Aside from being in a group of friends who love parties, you can create a group that is mainly for a study group. Even while studying, you can always have time for post-exam parties, trips, and so on. It is important to make friends, however, don’t hang out with friends that will make you divert your attention to getting good grades.

As long as having fun in school is good, getting good grades can be a determinant of your future as well, so it is important to stay focused all the time. Aside from attending all lectures, buying all textbooks, or having complete notes, you need to go the extra mile. Studying for exams means covering all required syllabi and sacrificing your time to have fun sometimes. Attempting all class assignments is part, reading up all materials, and many others is a way of going the extra mile.

Another tip on how to get good grades is to have principles and set your rules. Even if it may sound funny and silly, in my opinion, it is important. Setting rules can be helpful for you, and others don’t need to know. The rules can be in the form of ‘I must sleep immediately, it is 10:00 p.m.’, no matter how important a friend might be to you, you won’t accommodate such a visit at that time. So, having principles and following them goes a long way on campus and even outside campus life. To make good grades entails having good principles that guide your activities.

Getting good grades is not possible again during the last year at the university. Your parent or someone else took their time to pay for your fees just for you to have a good education, so you need to appreciate in return by getting good grades. But how do you do this alongside having fun in school? You must start early and very strong. Usually, the first few weeks of every semester are the time most students seem to be most serious. New notes, new bags, everything new; the momentum during this time is always high. It is good to keep this momentum till the end of the semester. Maximize your energy by taking good notes, attending all lectures, doing all the projects, sleeping well, and eating and drinking water moderately as well, in fact just start early, very strong, and keep the momentum till the semester ends.

And the last tip for getting good grades is to figure out what your social life is like. One of the best means to ensure that you do not have a social life that will overshadow your academic life is by not getting involved in all your social activities. It is not sensible for just an individual to be present in virtually all sports teams and at the same time be active in all societies while studying for his academic work. So, what is the best way to have a social life in college? You should only find out the kind of social life that your likes and hobbies can accommodate.

In summary, school life will come and go in a flash, so take time to enjoy it to the fullest by striking a balance between your social life and academic life.

At each stage from pre-school through to university entrance, girls tend to do better than boys. For example, on entering primary school, girls are more likely to be able to write their own names. On the other hand, boys are more likely than girls to be assessed by their schools as having special educational needs. When it comes to subject choice at age 16, there are major gender differences in the popularity of different A-level subjects and even greater gender differences in vocational courses.

Applying material from Item B and your knowledge, evaluate the view that gender differences in both subject choice and educational achievement are mainly the result of the influence of wider society.

Gender differences in subject choice and educational achievement are mainly the result of the influence of wider society because of socialization. Some sociologists focus on factors outside school, such as the impact of feminism or the ways in which parents socialize with their children. Other sociologists see factors internal to the education system like teachers’ attention or equal opportunities policies.

The National Curriculum gives pupils the freedom to choose or drop subjects by making most subjects important until 16. When the National Curriculum was introduced, boys and girls tend to follow different gender routes, and this is shown in GCSE and A levels. Subjects such as food technology and health and social care are viewed as ‘girly subjects’ whereas subjects like engineering and design technology are viewed as ‘masculine subjects.

Gender role socialization is the process of learning the behavior expected of males and females in society. Fiona Norman researched that early socialization shapes children’s gender identity, this was shown by how parents dressed boys and girls differently (girls wore dresses, boys wore jeans), were given different toys to play with (girls played with dolls, boys played with cars) and was encouraged to take part in different activities (girls did cooking, boys played football). Byrne’s research shows that teachers encourage boys to be tough and not to be weak or behave like sissies, girls on the other hand are expected to be quiet, obedient, and clean.

External factors are factors outside the education system, such as home, family, and wider society. The impact of feminism is one of the main external factors. The rise of feminism can be argued to have had an impact on girls’ achievement and can be seen to be one of the factors that have affected the differences in achievement. The increase of feminism is now able to help girls to achieve and have access to jobs that are viewed as high-status subjects like engineering or manufacturing. Feminism has allowed girls to gain opportunities that were previously not available to them.

Internal factors also impact gender differences in educational achievement. Internal factors are factors within schools and the educational system, like the effects of schools’ equal opportunities policies. Due to Sewell’s research, boys fall behind in education because schools have become more ‘feminized’. This means that feminine traits such as attentiveness have been prioritized which as a result disadvantaged boys.

The gender gap in achievement increased after the introduction of GCSEs and coursework in 1998. Mitsos and Browne’s research shows that girls are more successful in coursework because they are better organized and more conscientious than boys. They found that girls like to spend more time on their work, take more care of its presentation, and are better at keeping deadlines. Sewell argues that some of the coursework should be replaced with final exams.

Jo Boaler argues that equal opportunities policies such as GIST (Girls into science and technology) and WISE (Women into science and engineering) are key factors in the improvement of girls’ educational performance. The equal opportunities prioritized girls to have equal access to every subject and encourage girls to do more.

Abstract

The purpose of the paper is to examine self-esteem and academic achievement in adolescents. This paper concluded that children with low self-esteem had lower academic achievement compared to children who had higher self-esteem. Orts, Robins, & Roberts (2008) found that adolescents from ages 15- 21-year olds had significantly low academic achievement when their self-esteem was low. In addition, Paxton, Neumark-Sztainer, Hannan, & Eisenberg (2006) found that early adolescent girls had lower self-esteem than boys which showed that these girls will have lower academic achievement.

Introduction

How is self-esteem related to academic achievement? The author predicts the following: If children do not have self-esteem, then they will have lower academic achievement. However, if children have self-esteem, then they will have high academic achievement. The purpose of the research paper is to examine the association between self-esteem and academic achievement in adolescents.

According to the National Medical Association (2013), self-esteem is defined as how one views oneself in a mental state. Also, according to the Mayo Clinic (2017), self-esteem can be an opinion of what you think about yourself in every aspect. According to Do Something (n.a) around the age group of 15 to 17-year-olds, around 70% of girls do not attend school because they have low self-esteem. In addition, Stage of Life (n.a), states that around 45.5% of teenagers have low self-esteem and reason why they have low academic achievement. Male students in secondary tend to have higher self-esteem than female students in the school (Mahmood & Zaib, 2019). In addition, during the period of adolescence, they have higher self-esteem, which causes lower academic achievement because people demand a lot from them (Tetzner, Becker, & Maaz, 2016).

Furthermore, adolescents who have any impairments have low self-esteem because they have lower academic achievement and ways to adjust to a problem (Farris, Lefever, Borkowki & Whitman, 2013). When it comes to kids coming from foster parents, their self-esteem is low because they have lower academic achievement and potentially have an association with their behavior and social skills (Mihalec-Adkins & Cooley, 2019). However, when it comes to students going to single-gender schools or co-ed schools, females have lower self-esteem when they attend a co-ed school which causes them to have low academic achievement.

Why do adolescents have low self-esteem? The author believes that when students have low self-esteem, they will have lower academic achievement. According to Saha & Tammana (2018), adolescents with low- self-esteem have lower academic achievement. Adolescents with low self-esteem have lower academic achievement, what causes them to have low self-esteem? Wickery (2011) found that parent involvement is significantly related to their adolescent’s low- self-esteem. If parents have low parental involvement at school, their adolescents will have low- self-esteem. If they have low esteem, then they will have low academic achievement.

According to Bronfenbrenner’s Ecological Theory, when it comes to the focus on the microsystem, the parents are in direct contact with their children. When parents are uninvolved or neglectful, children may have lower self-esteem, and when children have lower self-esteem, they will have lower academic achievement. If these children’s parents are not involved in their school or just not involved in their academics, the child will have low self-esteem because they are not being taught or shown how to do things right and not encouraged. Due to this, the child will have low academic achievement because they are not getting help or support from their parents. These parents are not helping the children with their homework, and they are not helping them study for a test they have the following day.

Literature Review

The purpose of the research paper is to examine the association between self-esteem and academic achievement in adolescents. The research question for this paper is: How is self-esteem related to academic achievement? The two peer-reviewed articles that will be analyzed in this paper are McClure, Tanski, Kingsbury, Gerrard & Sargent (2010) and Millings, Buck, Montgomery, Spears & Stallard (2012).

Article 1: McClure, Tanski, Kingsbury, Gerrard & Sargent (2010)

The purpose of McClure, Tanski, Kingsbury, Gerard, & Sargent’s (2010) study was to test characteristics associated with self-esteem and academic achievement among adolescents. Researchers surveyed teens about media and substance abuse. The total amount of participants in this study was 6,522 adolescents. The student’s age range was 12 to 16. In total, 50.1% were male, and 49.1% were female. Furthermore, the students were 68.1% Caucasian, 8.5% African American, 15% Hispanic, and 8.5% Other.

In the study, the researchers were able to show that students have parents who are not demanding and are not responsive in their child’s life; will have high rates of poor self-esteem. Due to having low self-esteem, they will have low academic achievement. They tested this out by having students answer three questions that will assess their self-worth and their physical appearance.

Article 2: Millings, Buck, Montgomery, Spears & Stallard (2012)

The purpose of Millings, Buck, Montgomery, Spears, & Stallard’s (2012) study was to determine how adolescents struggle with mental health and how it affects their academic achievement. The total amount of participants in this study was 5,022 adolescents. The participants averaged from the ages 11 to 16. In total, 50.9% were male, and 49.1% were female. Furthermore, the majority of students were 85.5% Caucasian.

In the study, the researchers made these students answer a four-point scale ranging from strongly agree (3) to strongly disagree (0). They gave a survey to students to answer questions involving their self-esteem. If students get higher scores, it means their self-esteem is high. The study was able to show that if a student has low self-esteem, they will most likely have any mental health. If a student struggles with mental health, they will have low academic achievement.

Conclusion

The purpose of the paper is to examine self-esteem and academic achievement in children. This paper concluded that children with low self-esteem had lower academic achievement compared to children who had higher self-esteem. Orts, Robins, & Roberts (2008) found that adolescents from ages 15- to 21-year olds had significantly low academic achievement when their self-esteem was low. In addition, Paxton, Neumark-Sztainer, Hannan, & Eisenberg (2006) found that early adolescent girls had lower self-esteem than boys, which showed that these girls would have lower academic achievement. The authors recommend that parents should be more involved in their children’s school at the very start. We now know that less parental involvement will have an increase in low self-esteem, and with low self-esteem, lower academic achievement adolescents will have.

References

1. Cvencek, D., Fryberg, S. A., Covarrubias, R., & Meltzoff, A. N. (2018). Self‐concepts, self-esteem, and academic achievement of minority and majority North American elementary school children. Child Development, 89(4), 1099–1109. https://doi-org.mimas.calstatela.edu/10.1111/cdev.12802
2. Giofrè, D., Borella, E., & Mammarella, I. C. (2017). The relationship between intelligence, working memory, academic self-esteem, and academic achievement. Journal of Cognitive Psychology, 29(6), 731–747.
3. https://doi-org.mimas.calstatela.edu/10.1080/20445911.2017.1310110
4. Hassan, A., Jami, H., & Aqeel, M. (2016). Academic self-concept, self-esteem, and academic achievement among truant and punctual students. Pakistan Journal of Psychological Research, 31(1), 223–240. http://search.ebscohost.com.mimas.calstatela.edu/login.aspx?direct=true&db=psyh&AN= 2017-03286-012&site=ehost-live
5. Khan, I. K., Mahmood, A., & Zaib, U. (2019). The interplay of self-esteem with the academic achievements between male and female secondary school students. Journal of Human Behavior in the Social Environment.
6. https://doi-org.mimas.calstatela.edu/10.1080/10911359.2019.1611517
7. Mcclure, A., Tanski, S., Kingsbury, J., Gerrard, M., & Sargent, J. (2010). Characteristics associated with low self-esteem among US adolescents. Academic Pediatrics, 10(4), 238-244.e2.
8. Millings, A., Buck, R., Montgomery, A., Spears, M., & Stallard, P. (2012). School connectedness, peer attachment, and self-esteem as predictors of adolescent depression. Journal of Adolescence, 35(4), 1061-1067.
9. Yang, Q., Tian, L., Huebner, E. S., & Zhu, X. (2019). Relations among academic achievement, self-esteem, and subjective well-being in school among elementary school students: A longitudinal mediation model. School Psychology, 34(3), 328–340.
10. https://doi-org.mimas.calstatela.edu/10.1037/spq0000292

There is a huge difference between secondary and higher schooling when it comes to managing time and academic responsibilities. In secondary education, there was once the sort of mastering that includes a clarification of everything. On the other hand, when students enter university, they find out that what they research is a lecture, that only includes superficial data and the rest is their job to recognize about and explore further (Britton & Tesser, 2001). Time management is a skill that each student must now not only know, however additionally apply. A lot of college students complain about jogging out of time when asked to do a positive task, they get frustrated due to the fact they are not capable to make it earlier than the deadline. Time management is extremely important, specifically when it comes to University College students because it will improve their grades and decorate their productivity (Laurie & Hellsten, 2002). However, most of the time college students face troubles like mission aversion and uncertainty, so they begin to procrastinate because they lack organizational skills. As a result, students will now not be able to arrange obligations according to their priorities, so they get distracted easily, ending up procrastinating. As we can see, time management is quite necessary to any university student, and it is one of the keys to higher tutorial achievements (Kelly, 2004).

In the applicable literature there are incredible variety of tutorial studies focusing on the relation between time administration and academic achievements. The associated literature confirmed that the time management mind-set and skill ranges of university college students and the results of these competencies on their academic achievement. The research printed that a majority pupil possesses moderate stage time management competencies and solely a extensively small portion has excessive degree time management abilities (Yilmaz, Yoncalik & Bektaş, 2006). The literature printed that the students’ time administration skills have an effect on their tutorial success at a massive level and the skills are one of the predictors of tutorial performance. The relevant literature recommended that students have to start to gather time management senses on their own in their primary faculty years by using studying substances on the difficulty or with the aid of the framework of psychological counseling and practise studies utilized in schools and adopt positive time administration attitudes and strategies to decide how and the place they spend their time (Lisa & Robert, 2008). The more than a few group of students who exploited time-saving proficiencies incredibly had prosperous tutorial achievement. They accomplished these students who do no longer use time saving techniques in their instructional surrounding having notably decrease tutorial as in contrast to outcomes college students who appoint time- administration procedures have considerably higher success (Mercanlioglu, 2010). To calculate the cumulative time spent working in the course of a week, these objects had been additionally added. Time administration practices have been confirmed to be some of the top indicators towards attaining a excessive degree of tutorial success and performance. They no longer only influences on the success but the usage of time management strategies also serve only one reason that means that there are multipurpose fulfilled through time administration (Fazal, 2012). Taking part in complaints and being engaged in other backyard class activities, not inevitably a job, however being energetic in group also has a robust correlation to attaining excessive educational achievements. Various research showed that time management practices serve for many purposes now not solely for challenging performance of the students. Time administration practices show the way no longer only to a high stage of tutorial performance, but to precise physical condition and decrease stages of stress. The predominant reason of the existing learn about used to be instructional competency, using time managing techniques, test pressure, and test proficiency (Faisal, Miqdadi, Abdulla & Mohammad, 2014). Academic competence scores were hooked up to some extent increased in the contemporary pattern indicating that college students located path material/content encouraging and playing their classes.

Dimensions of Time Management

The useful using of time and managing time requires procedures and proper fine planning behaviors. One can make use of time effectively and accurately by means of maintaining time logs, placing immediate and long- standing goals, prioritizing responsibilities, developing to-do lists and arrangement, and prepare one’s workspace, as research of in the past duration and ample how-to books proposed (Sabelis, 2001). Time saving methods and behaviors can be categorized into several groups and be liable to contribute to a wide variety of crucial traits in general. There are three surfaces of time administration behaviors: short-range planning, long- vary planning and time attitudes (Laurie & Hellsten, 2002). Short-range planning is the functionality to set out and systematize obligations in the short duration of time. Long-range planning competence is to deal with everyday jobs over a longer time point of view through retaining follow of considerable dates and putting targets by way of inserting adjournment (Alay & Koçak, 2003).

Long Range Planning

Long-range planning ability to have long-range objectives and having disciplined routines. Various researchers named it as having grasp of a desire for agency and it is comparable to long range planning. To collect a précis on the day-to-day jobs that necessitate to be executed, time limits and priorities which increases the appreciation of having manipulate over time so, in the long run, planning permits one to deal with all things to do (Kelly, 2004). It directs to have much less appreciation of control over time because it may also be tackling to be acquainted with how tons effort requires to be completed inside hours, days or weeks; it can also even be the straight away measurable impact of planning. This gives the affect to point out that time management practices accomplish to have an have an impact on on academic achievement, however that’s now not all they have an effect on (Brigitte et al., 2005). It was once also found that the college students had superior average academic achievements who accounted using goal oriented time management practices.

Short Range Planning

Short-range planning was described as time administration things to do surrounded with the aid of each day or weekly time structure and cover the things to do such as putting goals at the graduation of the day, planning and prioritizing day by day behaviors and creation work contents (Yilmaz et al., 2006). Numerous studies invented that short-range planning behavior, forecasting of time in the short run, surrounded via the time enclose of a week or less, installed a optimistic relationship to grade factor average. Short vary planning in interface with accomplishment decided was once expectantly related to dealing performance as nicely (Noftle et al., 2007). Likewise, most of the research that control for the pupil time do so by using figuring out total time committed to the course, a variable normally determined to be unimportant. Academic fulfillment skill the academic goal that is completed by using a student, instructor or institution recognize over a specific brief period (Lisa & Robert, 2008). In a different lookup finding it has been validated that there exists a positive massive relation between students’ grade factor averages and the time attitudes and the short-range planning.

Time Attitude

Time management demands a key shift in emphasis: concentrate on results, now not on being busy. There are a lot of cases with humans who waste their lives in discolored doings and achieve very small for the reason that they are setting their labors into the unsuitable obligations or weakening to center of attention their exercise successfully, set up that two time administration workings directly affect the collective tutorial achievements (Mercanlioglu, 2010). The grasp of how their time requires to be used up or planning together with utilizing brief and lengthy duration dreams and time attitudes or college students carried out that both planning and encouraging time attitudes initiated that they had lots more time to finish their everyday jobs because they experiences greater in control of how their time was once exhausted therefore understanding when they had to kingdom no to things to do (Kaushar, 2013). The literature printed that time management practices that related to the individual’s attention and attitudes about time administration and is comparable the appreciation of having manage over time. Therefore, time attitudes comprise the grasp that the man or woman is in manage of time the perception that the individual is correctly managing his time and the appreciation that the person is making optimistic utilization of time (Karim et al., 2015).

Completing my college degree is of utmost importance to me. I consider this as a major gateway for job opportunities such as a promotion within my current profession field, an increase in higher wages, and the opportunity to apply for management positions within my place of employment. The purpose of this paper is to discuss my academic background and what motivates me to select and attend GCU. In addition, discussing my program of study or degree, my future goals or plans and how have the concepts and assignments in UNV-103 course prepare me for success in my future courses.

My College academic path started back in 2006, where I was enrolled at Coastline Community College to obtain my associate degree. During this phase of my life I was working in the military. Managing the requirements of my work and degree program had become quite stressful to the point where I had to place my studies on hold on numerous occasions. Eventually, I had completed my studies where I obtain an associate degree in Human Resources and an associate degree in Business Management. After completing my associates, my next step in my academic path was to obtain my bachelor’s degree. This was a struggle, because I was looking for a reputable university with accreditation and a management program that I will be able to take online. I was motivated to select and attend GCU because it meets all these requirements. Additionally, GCU is a Christian oriented university which this tie perfectly with my religious ideals.

My program of study at GCU is a Bachelor of Science in Applied Management. This degree prepares students to learn various aspects of management, including marketing, business communications, financial decision making, global business strategies, and innovative organizational behaviors. As a student in this degree program, I will have an excellent array of career options in management roles such as general manager, an operations manager, district manager, sales director, administrative service manager, marketing manager or a manager analyst.

After completing my undergraduate bachelor’s degree, I am planning to study for my master’s degree. This decision is mainly due to financial stability, personal achievements, and the opportunity to pursue a top-level managerial role in my professional field. With an MBA, I have more chances of receiving a higher pay rate which will eventually makes me financially stable. In 2019, there was a press release from the Graduate Management Admission Council which reported that the median annual salary for an MBA student in the United States is $115,000 (Graduate Management Admission Council, 2019). Obtaining my MBA is a long-time personal achievement of mine. This allows me to be an exemplar to my kids to show them that anything is possible if you put your mind to it. I also believe obtaining my MBA will help me to propel towards a top-level managerial role. I know it is extremely competitive in today’s workforce and this degree will make me more marketable.

The concepts and assignments in this course taught me the fundamentals on how to be a successful student in my future courses. For example, I learnt about the support system (instructor, counselors, and tutors in their respective fields) that is available at GCU and resources (GCU Loud Cloud LMS, GCU library, writing center, etc.) I have access to if I am needing assistance. During this course, I was also able to improve my academic skills such as prioritization, time management, communication (especially towards instructor and peers), writing skills, teamwork and more. I believe this course was necessary because it helps with getting acquainted with online learning.

In concluding, I am focused on achieving all goals and implementing all the strategies required to be successful during my academic journey at GCU. I look forward to all future courses and because of this course I will be prepared of what to expect.

The prominence of GIS and Remote Sensing has gained immense importance over the past few years, especially for environmental management. My primary motive to study Geographic Information Sciences (GISci) at Central Michigan University (CMU) engenders from the massive advances in GIS and Remote Sensing Technology in the U.S., which I would like to replicate in India. Although India is making significant strides in that direction, we are not quite there yet. I believe education from the CMU would be the next best step in my career as a scientist.

I have completed a B.Tech in Electrical and Electronics engineering. In the face of increasing population and anthropogenic activities that degrade natural resources and ecosystems, I experienced few of devastating environmental issues like urban sprawl and environmental pollution after which I developed a special interest towards environmental studies, I want to contribute to the environmental conservation and management which has persisted me to focus on geoinformatics. I have also completed an M.Tech in Environmental Geomatics from JNTU, Hyderabad. I realized that this field is truly where my interests lie, as a result, I performed very well in my masters, scoring 72.82 percentage and was awarded the degree in distinction.

My academic accomplishments can be exemplified by my contribution to science, specifically, conservation at a landscape-level. My master’s dissertation title ‘Conservation prioritization of forest ecosystems using geospatial technologies’ quantified deforestation, forest fires using multi-temporal remote sensing data for prioritization of threats and conservation hotspots. I primarily used the grid cell approach and carried out the research at the National Remote Sensing Centre (NRSC), Hyderabad. In addition, a portion of my dissertation has been published in the journal Environmental Monitoring and Assessment, with the title ‘Geospatial monitoring and prioritization of forest fire incidences in Andhra Pradesh, India’. Along with this work, I have contributed to a few other projects at NRSC which have been published in reputed journals such as Ecological Engineering and Current Science. I have presented my work at a few international conferences too.

In the past two years, I have gained experience with several applications of geoinformatics for monitoring the environment and for change assessment. Initially, I worked as a project assistant for tsunami inundation studies at the Council of Scientific & Industrial Research – National Geophysical Research Institute (CSIR-NGRI), integrating numerical modelling and GIS for generation of tsunami vulnerability at coastal regions and produced inundation maps. Furthermore, I have worked as a project scientist for “Geospatial inventory of coffee plantations at National level” (GEOCUP) under Indian Space and Research Organization (ISRO) – Coffee Board collaborative project. In both positions, I learnt various nuances of GIS, image processing software tools such as ArcGIS, ERDAS IMAGINE, PCI Geomatica and QGIS. Though my work has produced valid results, I believe better skills (in terms of advanced GIS techniques, programming and modelling) could produce more significant results for predicting and forecasting. With that in mind, the MS (GISci) program has advanced courses in the context to improve my knowledge and carry out progressive research under the guidance of experienced faculty.

Certain interactive sessions with experienced scientists and academicians during my master’s education, and at NRSC have further motivated me to pursue research opportunities in geoinformatics. My research interest lies in using remote sensing, advance GIS technologies, statistics, and programming for studying physical and environmental geography. After graduating, I wish to pursue doctoral studies further identifying new challenges, My long-term career goal is to seek a research and teaching position.

I am looking forward to pursuing MS in GISci, to interact with the distinguished faculty and participate in the research activities, conferences facilitating my development as an individual and I am confident that would make a positive contribution to ongoing research work at the university I see a clear fit for my skills and interests at the Department of Geography & Environmental Studies, CMU.

Determining the factors that influence the academic success of students has been the subject of many studies over the past couple of decades. Academic success is defined as the acquisition of learning objectives, which are primarily measured through a grading system (Jay & Zain, 2019). A vast wealth of related literature is available to anyone seeking to study more on this topic. A knowledge of these factors is not only important for the students, but also for the educators since research findings on this subject can serve as a basis for further learning and teaching improvement. Various studies show that academic success can be influenced by multiple factors that can be student-related, social-related, and university-related. However, the presence of these factors does not in any way, eliminate a student’s responsibility for his or her own success.

Student-Related Factors

Student-related factors are those that are internally related to a student’s engagement to study and learn. These factors include the individual’s habits, attitude, cognitive abilities, and personality. In a study conducted at the University of Southern Queensland Australia, the researchers have found out that the most significant predictor of a student’s academic success in the university is his or her previous academic success in high school (Burton & Dowling, 2005). To increase the reliability and validity of their research, they have created a learning profile for each of the participants. This learning profile includes several assessments that measured the student’s cognitive abilities, personality traits, and learning preferences. The participants’ grade point averages (GPA) have also been obtained. Results of their study show that those students who have been academically successful previously have carried with them their habits and the discipline which began even before they have entered the university.

A student’s personality has also been a factor that can influence his or her academic success. One study shows that extroverted students are likely to perform better than introverted ones (Burton & Dowling, 2005). Various courses now require group projects and presentations that require teamwork. For this reason, extroverted students are more likely to become successful because they are more inclined to socialize and more comfortable doing team projects.

Another interesting study determines the relationship of a student’s sense of purpose in life to his or her academic achievement. The study shows that when a student has a sense of life purpose, he or she tends to be more engaged in his or her studies (Smithikrai, Homklin, Pusapanich, Wongpinpech, & Kreausukon, 2018). This self-engagement leads to self-motivation for learning. The student then becomes more proactive and willing to learn.

Social-Related Factors

The family is also an important factor that influences a student’s academic success. A study shows that students who are experiencing family problems are less likely to develop a proactive attitude in learning (Mustaq & Khan, 2012). Aside from stress from studying, family stresses such as parental support, family income, parent’s level of education, and other negative situations at home can affect the student’s motivation to learn.

University-Related Factors

The university must ensure that it has adequate facilities that can promote student learning. These facilities include both material and immaterial. Material facilities include laboratories, libraries, classroom facilities, among others. Immaterial facilities include the competence of professors and teaching methodologies (Mustaq & Khan, 2012). A study shows that students who have access to great school facilities are more engaged to learn (Jay & Zain, 2019). Moreover, the challenge for tertiary education is to create a curriculum that can cater to growing cultural diversity in the university. It is not enough to acknowledge diversity. The aim of educators should be to achieve a state of inclusivity for everyone.

Conclusion

A student’s academic success can be influenced by several factors. These factors can be student-related, social-related, and university-related. However, whatever external environment a student may be in, his or her power to make the right choices remains unrestricted. Learning responsibility still lies on the student. The university can facilitate this learning and the family or another social group can support this learning. Ultimately, however, the power lies on the student if he or she will be passive or become an agent for his or her own learning and academic success.

References

1. Burton, L., & Dowling, D. (2005). In search of the key factors that influence student success at university. Higher Education in a Challenging World, 2 (1), 23-32.
2. Jay, A., & Zain, R. M. (2019). The impact of facilities on student’s academic achievement. Research Gate. Retrieved from: https://www.researchgate.net/publication/337590619_THE_IMPACT_OF_FACILITIES_ON_STUDENT’S_ACADEMIC_ACHIEVEMENT
3. Mustaq, I. & Khan, S. N. (2012). Factors affecting student’s academic performance. Global Journal of Management and Business Research, 12 (9), 21-25.
4. Smithikrai, C., Homklin, T. Pusapanich, P., Wongpinpech, V., & Kreausukon, P. (2018). Factors influencing students’ academic success: The mediating role of study engagement. International Journal of Behavioral Science, 13 (1), 1-14.

Throughout my high school career I have made a lot of achievements, and faced challenges I thought I couldn’t overcome. I have made great progress in school and in my personal life. I have also overcome challenges. I know these things that I have accomplished and overcome will help me move forward in my future.

The achievements I have made are both personal and academic achievements. In band my clarinet choir made it to state, and I recieved a 2 on my solo I performed last year. With personal achievements I have countless of hours in community service. I have volunteered at Polka Days since 7th grade. Another community service event I do is the Bay Beach Wildlife Sanctuary play. I have done the play every year since freshman year. I have also participated in two walks that raised money for charities or local organizations. The first walk that I took part in was a walk for making strides against breast cancer. I did this walk because my Mom, and Grandma both fought and battled breast cancer, and I wanted to help others who struggle through it and their family. The second walk I took part in was the walk for wildlife. I participated in this walk because I show a passion for animals. Proceeds went to the wildlife sanctuary to help sick and injured animals. These have taught me how to take pride in my community, and in myself.

Challenges came my way giving me a horrible time, but I have always fought my way through them. Life hasn’t always been easy, which is expected in everyone’s life. I have lost close family members. After losing these close family members I thought that i would never recover. I have realized they will always be there. When I lost my Grandma Greene to lung cancer I thought I wouldn’t cope with it. I went to school, and I could not focus anymore, I even started to shut my friends out because losing her made everyday a challenge. One day at school I went to the math pod to take a math test that I had to make up, and I became so stressed and overwhelmed with everything going on. I thought of my grandma, instead of feeling sad, I felt her presence with me watching over me and helping me. Ever since that day I always know the family members I thought I lost continue their presence in my life. This will help me in the future because I know with their help I can accomplish anything.

The achievements I have accomplished, and the challenges I faced were necessary to bring me where I am now. Helping others is the only way to complete life, and I have already helped a lot and I am willing to help even more. I know these achievements and challenges will help me pursue my dreams in college and the future. I think that River Falls is the right place for me to make achievements and conquer challenges to come.

Engineers are the creators of our future. I find it a captivating feat how over the past century, the world we live in has drastically changed due to the rapid technological advancement in engineering. To become one of the leading engineers of our future and to design a sustainable world for future generations is a fulfilling challenge I aim to achieve.

My deep-rooted interest in Science started from a young age when I read ‘The time for Kids Science Almanac’ and ‘Popular Science Almanac’. These books sparked my interest in the world of science and technology which led to my decision to become part of my elementary school’s Science Club. The club activities not only stimulated my mind but also allowed my curiosity to grow. I have always found myself interested in learning about how things work and this interest has grown with me over time. Being able to understand the working process of any machine always leads to a unique experience of satisfying my interest.

In 2013, I moved from the Philippines to the UK. Boarding my first long international flight allowed the borders of my imagination about how far technology can grow to expand. Like any child, I was fascinated by the remarkable concept of flight. From observing birds and insects fly to being able to personally experience it was exhilarating. This experience led me to question the mechanisms of flight and through inquiry and research, I was introduced to its engineering aspects.

Immigrating, although the adjustment period proved to be challenging, did not interfere with my academics for the most part. The change motivated me to perform better academically and after two years, I was one of the most excelling students in my secondary school. It also allowed me to build my confidence and communication skills. Understanding that maths and science go hand in hand, I persevered to excel in these subjects and participate in any extracurricular activities available. In Year 10, I took the AQA Level 2 Certificate in Further Mathematics and achieved a grade of A. In 2018, I won the Outstanding Maths Student Jaguar Land Rover Education Award for the Solihull borough. I also took the UKMT Senior Challenge and obtained a bronze award. This year, I participated in the ‘Inventing the Future Innovation Camp’, an engineering competition, where my team and I secured the position of the Midlands Final Winner. We were challenged to create a sustainable transportation system that could be used by the public for the 2028 Summer Olympics in Los Angeles. Within 3 hours, we researched, designed, and created a presentation on a futuristic concept of an elevated bus that ran on hydrogen fuel cells and used solar power. Partaking in this competition was an unforgettable experience and emphasized the importance of teamwork and communication in engineering.

In my spare time, I enjoy learning new languages. I took Spanish as a GCSE and achieved a Grade 9 in it, however my learning hasn’t stopped there. I continue to teach myself Spanish and have recently started Korean. As an individual whose first language is Tagalog, I work hard to improve my English while making sure I don’t forget my mother tongue. From an early age, I’ve realized how much language barriers can impact communication, relationships, and confidence and so I take it upon myself as a challenge to further my proficiency in multiple languages.

As my knowledge in science and maths developed, my interest in aircraft and spacecraft grew. The subjects I study now such as Mathematics and Physics form the foundation of engineering and modules such as mechanics have been particularly enjoyable. Studying further mathematics has been more demanding than I anticipated, however, the extra challenge it provides is stimulating, especially those from the further mechanics content. The opportunity of using mathematical techniques and the application of scientific concepts and theories to solve real-life problems is gratifying and I hope to elaborate upon these during my degree.