Personal Statement as My Family

Personal Statement

As my family and I were waiting for the ball to drop in Times Square this New Year's Eve, we did not realize that a bomb was soon to drop on our family. My uncle's wife had walked out on her husband, taking their daughter, and the couple was planning to file for divorce. At the root of their problems was my aunt's struggle with depression and my uncle's difficulty understanding the magnitude of that struggle. Because divorce has traditionally been frowned upon in our East-Indian culture, the news shocked my family and I perhaps more than it would another individual undergoing similar circumstances. Moreover, we never knew that my aunt was suffering from depression. We were shocked to hear the news, especially since they were married for 24 years and seemed like a picture-perfect family. As I witnessed my uncle's divorce process unfold over the last few months, I watched him undergo immense suffering both physically and emotionally. He became very sorrowful and dejected, both because he had lost his wife and because his child had turned against him on his mother's behest. Day by day, the tension of divorce pulled him closer and closer to depression. However, help for my uncle came in the form of a family therapist. The family therapist aided him in dealing with the emotional implications of his divorce, while encouraging his 14-year-old daughter to understand her father's side of the proceedings. I feel that if the therapist had intervened earlier, he perhaps could have saved their marriage and family.

It was partially because of my uncle's experience with family therapy that I decided to pursue a graduate degree in Family Therapy from St. Mary's University. Seeing how my uncle was able to respond positively to the therapist's treatment made me realize that this career path would enable me to help others. Indeed, I became even more aware of this fact when family therapy helped me. Through family counseling, I was better able to reconcile my unique situation of growing up in two different cultures, a situation that was causing a great deal of stress on my familial relationships. During my high school years, arguments between my mother and I grew from bad to worse; we were arguing about everything from grades to dating. I always felt that she was too strict with me and did not allow me to exercise my freedom. She was unhappy that I did not conform to the stereotypical image of an East-Indian girl. I could not understand her perspective, and she could not understand mine. Finally, the arguments became so bad that we sought the help of a family counselor to resolve our conflicts. The family counselor convinced each of us to understand the other's point-of-view. She helped both of us see how cultural differences were at the root of our disagreement. Through the process of self-introspection and contemplation, the counselor's intervention helped us bridge the communication gap that existed between us. When most of my East-Indian friends were choosing a career in medicine, engineering, or computer science, I chose to pursue a psychology major in college because of my drive and interest in exploring human relationships. The success of family counseling in saving my relationship with my mother and the therapist's role in helping my uncle deal with his divorce, however, motivated me to seek a career in Marriage and Family Therapy.

My undergraduate experience as a psychology major has abundantly prepared me to tackle the challenging studies involved in pursuing a this graduate degree. By developing my analytical, deductive reasoning, and critical thinking skills, my undergraduate studies have prepared me to take on newer and more challenging topics within the psychological field. Analyzing case studies in my psychology courses enabled me to assess situations from different perspectives, leading to a refined method of thinking that has helped me to interact better with my college peers, as well as develop excellent interpersonal communication skills. My work as a research assistant in a cognitive psychology lab added to my theoretical knowledge by giving me practical experience in encoding and analyzing data. This experience provided me with the opportunity to use analytical tests and interpret statistical data. Bookkeeping of participants' demographic information also further developed my organizational skills. Having been a research assistant, I have gained a reasonable understanding of research design and the statistics needed to conduct research. For my senior major project, I wrote a research paper on an empirical study that investigated the role of change detection in studies of visual attention in the field of cognitive psychology. This paper was awarded the Sharon Borine award for the best major project in Psychology because of its successful presentation of research and adherence to American Psychology Association guidelines. I strongly believe my research experience will help me attain success in conducting graduate research as I continue to grow in my knowledge at St. Mary's. The success of my research paper further demonstrates my strong written skills, which will ensure me success in writing graduate research papers.

Outside of my family relations and academic pursuits, my volunteer experience has led to a deeper understanding of my world, something that I believe the marriage and family counselor must have in order to effectively help others. My volunteer work involved packaging meals at the Feed My Starving Children Organization, which allowed me to develop a keen sense of awareness and understanding regarding life's fragility and a renewed appreciation of my simple comforts. My volunteer work at senior centers, convalescent homes, and assisted living centers enabled me to entertain seniors and assist them in their daily living activities. Interacting with elderly residents in these facilities provided me a chance to communicate with individuals who were not in my age group, invoking a type of sensitivity towards individuals who are different from me and who are faced with challenging circumstances. Keeping in mind these lessons from volunteering, I plan to be a more capable marriage and family counselor.