In this blog post, I will summarize my academic efforts during high school, school activities, examples of collaboration and conflict resolution, and experiences exploring career paths related to my major for my application to the Department of Industrial Design at Kookmin University.
Academic Efforts and Learning Experiences During High School
I graduated from a high school specializing in electronic design. When I first enrolled, I felt that the curriculum didn’t suit me, and I originally wanted to pursue a humanities track and attend a typical university. However, my parents told me that specialized technical skills would help me find a job, so I decided to apply. At first, out of defiance, I wasn’t very proactive about my studies. Then, during my freshman year, I took a required theoretical course for my major and found myself unexpectedly interested in it. Since there wasn’t much else to do outside of my major coursework, I took Introduction to Design and Fundamentals of Information Technology to learn computer skills. Although this was initially just a way to relieve boredom, I gradually began to find it enjoyable and started to understand the material. In particular, I gained confidence when I received higher grades on assignments in the computer graphics course than my classmates. Since I already had a basic foundation in art and was also strong in computer-related subjects, I began to feel hopeful about my future.
Since I was already studying in the field of design, I decided to plan a career path that suited my aptitudes. Building on my foundational training in basic form and sketching, I focused on studying design planning using multimedia. I even pulled all-nighters working on assignments that involved creating basic sketches for character or animation production and bringing them to life graphically. Through repeated practice, I became as natural with graphic design tools as I was with a pencil, and based on this foundation, I received professional training in product design and visual design. In product design, I became able to create basic drawings more than twice as fast as others, and through various experiments, I gained the confidence to create my own original works.
Campus Activities: Activities I Pursued with Purpose (up to 3)
During high school, my goal was to join the design skills club. The design skills club was highly competitive and difficult to join without strong skills, but many students applied because of its track record of achieving excellent results in skills competitions through practice. I, too, wanted to participate in competitions alongside talented peers and achieve success. To join, I prepared for an interview and a practical test. In the interview, social skills—such as maintaining good relationships with seniors and juniors—were important, and since I had a clear goal, I was confident in my preparation. However, during the practical test—which consisted of five categories: basic drafting, perspective, detailed rendering, character design, and sketching—my confidence waned because my hand-drawing skills were lacking.
To increase my chances of passing, I took the test multiple times; I took it during the second semester on my third and final attempt. I focused my practice particularly on detailed rendering and sketching; for sketching, I practiced drawing products exactly as I saw them, and for detailed rendering, I repeatedly practiced rendering with consideration for shading and composition. On the day of the exam, I was able to concentrate intensely and passed on my first attempt. After joining the club, even more effort was required. I practiced sketching every day, even on weekday evenings, and during my freshman year, I continued to practice by copying basic sketches. Although it was tedious, I trusted the advice of my seniors and devoted myself to practice. Starting in my sophomore year, I began creating conceptual sketches and, building on the skills I had developed, refined my own ideas—such as a docking speaker—which I eventually entered into the Skills Competition.
Examples of consideration, sharing, cooperation, and conflict management during my college life
The Design Skills Club required a great deal of practice and collaboration to participate as a team in the Skills Competition. While preparing for the competition in the latter half of my sophomore year, we first needed to come up with an idea to present. In the Design Department, rather than recruiting team members first, we each proposed our own ideas and submitted sketches, after which we voted to select team leaders and form teams. I submitted the “docking speaker” idea I had been conceptualizing; inspired by a donut-shaped mini humidifier, it combined portability with the convenience of docking and featured a cute design.
As a result of the vote, my idea ranked among the top, so team members gathered around me, and I suddenly found myself leading the team as the team leader. I took the lead in meetings with a proactive attitude, explaining the characteristics and areas for improvement of my idea and incorporating my teammates’ opinions to begin refining it. My teammates offered various suggestions on specific details—such as the position of the control buttons, the structure of the sound chamber, the speaker area, and the power supply layout—and I incorporated these into the final design drawings. Through the collaboration of many people, we created a prototype and submitted it to the competition, achieving a satisfying result. Through this process, I learned the value of collaboration and the importance of incorporating others’ opinions into the design.
Motivation for Choosing My Major and Experiences in Career Exploration
Contrary to common perceptions of a designer’s role—and unlike a scientist who addresses inconveniences in daily life—I define a designer as someone who discovers new and universal conveniences. I believe that convenience in daily life is not merely the removal of inconvenience, but rather arises from instilling a new sense of convenience and beauty. For example, the docking speaker I designed was not simply an improvement on the inconveniences of existing speakers. By introducing the portability of a “compact” design and the convenience of “docking,” and by incorporating “cuteness” through its donut shape, I simultaneously offered users both convenience and aesthetic appeal. I believe that if this product were actually developed and sold, it could provide customers with new convenience and unexpected beauty.
I aspire to become a designer who creates products that harmonize interest and convenience, targeting early adopters. I applied to the Department of Industrial Design at Kookmin University because I wanted to professionally study the process of product development and manufacturing. To this end, I consistently worked on foundational studies, sketching practice, and idea generation throughout high school. By repeatedly sketching design ideas for devices—such as a compact humidifier that minimizes vibrator errors and a portable dehumidifier shaped like a vacuum cleaner—I have deepened my understanding of devices and built my knowledge of household appliance design. I have also strengthened my technical skills by using computer programs for technical drafting and drawing. Based on these challenges and consistent practice, I am confident that I can continue to tackle more challenging coursework in college.
