One Smile at a Time by Precious-Janae

One Smile at a Time by Precious-Janae - June 2020 Scholarship Essay

My fascination with learning and delving into new and unfamiliar knowledge guides my drive for education. I know that my education is key to my future success and happiness. That is why I value it dearly and put the utmost effort into achieving my academic goals to reach my professional goals. There are plenty of opportunities that my educational journey at Rutgers University has to offer. I plan to discover them all and use them to my advantage as I look onto my future with a prospective career in Speech-Language Pathology.
My ultimate goal is to enter a profession that allows me to engage, interact, and help children in any way I can because I enjoy working with children. At Rutgers, I got the opportunity to do just that. For my work-study placement, I am assigned at the Rutgers Psychology Child Development Center, where I work as a Teacher’s Aide and assist the teacher in their day to day classroom activities. There I got to interact with many children and learn about them—from their preferences to their behavior. One child, in particular, had my attention because he had a disability that set him apart from the children. He did not communicate as effectively or behave like the other children; thus, there had to be eyes on him at all times. He rarely spoke, but could especially when he was comfortable with those who were around him. Just as I took a liking to him, he appeared to take a liking to me. One moment during the children’s playtime, I sat with him on the rug, watched him play, and even engaged with him a little when he would allow me to. His parents came to pick him up, which is usually the cue to throw away whatever you are doing and run, but this one moment, he came over to me and hugged me before whispering, “bye.” It left a smile on my face that carried me well after the day was over, and from that moment, he began to communicate with me more and more. Through my job experience and the inspiration from this to research on children with speech difficulties, I have found a love for speech-language pathology.
My ambition to make a difference in the lives of children while being a part of the medical field and applying my love of language came together in an area that interests me not only from an academic standpoint but also from a personal perspective. I plan to make a difference in the lives that I touch, and with such a passion for my goal in Speech-Language Pathology, I know that I will truly make this dream come true. My one true passion in life will always involve making a difference in the world for others, and with my love for children, it is notably more significant. I want to be a part of what makes our future generations great, starting one little smile at a time.