In this blog post, I’ll summarize my experiences, focusing on my academic journey and school activities during high school, examples of compassion, generosity, and collaboration, as well as my motivation for applying and my career plans.
Academic Experiences and Reflections
I’ve particularly enjoyed English classes since my freshman year of high school. I’ve always identified more with the saying, “I like it because I’m good at it,” rather than “I’m good at it because I like it.” Thanks to my experience living in the U.S. for five years during elementary school, I had no major difficulties with basic conversation or reading comprehension, and the more I participated actively in class and received praise, the more fun English became.
It wasn’t until the second semester of my sophomore year of high school that I began to study advanced English courses with genuine passion. After the standard English class ended, I took advanced classes divided into writing, reading comprehension, and conversation, and I focused particularly on writing and reading comprehension. I was already fairly confident in my conversation skills, but writing and reading comprehension were directly linked to my college entrance exam scores and were crucial subjects for my goal of majoring in English literature.
The passages in the advanced reading class were quite challenging, so I would take a specific question type covered in class and practice it repeatedly during my self-study time using relevant workbooks. For example, if we learned the format and content of “letters” in class, I would look for letter-style questions in past TOEIC or CSAT workbooks at home and work through them. Studying in this way—linking specific question types—built my confidence in handling them, and even when the same type of question appeared on a practice test, I was able to quickly grasp the problem without panicking.
For writing, rather than blindly trying to write difficult sentences, I took a systematic approach by connecting it to reading comprehension. First, I wrote out the sentences from the passage line by line, adding translations as I went. Then, I reversed the process by reading the translations and rewriting them in English. Then, by repeatedly practicing this method—comparing my work to the original text to check for errors—I developed a feel for sentence structure, and my reading comprehension skills improved as well.
As a result of this study method, my mock exam scores improved significantly. As my writing skills improved, the frequency of mistakes in reading comprehension decreased, and I achieved a level of consistency where I typically got no more than one question wrong. The experience of systematically studying advanced English courses also gave me the confidence to decide to major in English literature.
Writing about major school activities and reflections
Among the school activities I participated in with a sense of purpose, the most memorable was my involvement in the American TV drama club. Since I usually enjoyed American TV shows and movies and was familiar with American novels, I joined the club with high expectations. However, once I joined, I was disappointed to find that there were no set activities—it was simply an atmosphere where we would play a TV show every week and watch it freely. Members often didn’t watch the shows properly or just used the time to relax, and I believed this resource could be better utilized for English learning and cultural understanding.
So, I spoke with the club president privately and proposed that we organize our activities more systematically. To persuade them, I drafted a plan myself and laid out a weekly schedule. My proposal prioritized selecting a TV show for the group to watch together, followed by conversation practice using key lines from the episode and open discussions about the show’s plot and American culture. I convinced the members by pointing out that it wouldn’t require much preparation and wouldn’t be too burdensome.
About twenty members accepted the proposal, and through a poll, we selected ‘How I Met Your Mother’ to watch together. This show depicts the everyday lives of friends and features many useful expressions, making it ideal for conversation practice. We each chose a memorable line from the episode, interpreted it, and explained it to our friends. As we repeated this process, we naturally began exchanging jokes in English and mimicking lines from the show whenever we met.
After watching the show and practicing conversation each week, we held a discussion session once a month. Rather than a stressful academic debate, it was a time to freely share our thoughts in a relaxed atmosphere; we sat in a circle like a brainstorming session and exchanged opinions without criticism. Topics flowed naturally—from American pub culture to dating dynamics among friends to thoughts on independence in one’s 20s—and because we didn’t force a set framework, the discussions themselves were enjoyable.
Thanks to these activities, the club evolved from a simple movie-watching group into a much more productive learning space, and I thoroughly enjoyed the time spent sharing ideas with friends who shared my interests. The experience of planning and executing these activities helped me develop leadership skills, planning abilities, and the ability to persuade others.
Examples of Consideration, Sharing, and Cooperation, and My Reflections
A prime example of putting consideration and cooperation into practice can be found in our preparations for the English drama competition. Our class decided to participate in an in-school English drama competition organized by a native English teacher, so we formed a team by gathering classmates interested in writing and conversation. Friends I had become close with in the American TV drama club naturally joined us, and we began preparations by combining various scenes from TV shows to create a script with a cohesive storyline.
While writing the script, I asked the English teacher for in-person feedback to minimize grammatical awkwardness. During acting rehearsals, we faced challenges with facial expressions and the accuracy of our lines, but we gradually improved through the process of watching each other’s performances and exchanging feedback. While some teams experienced conflicts—such as members insisting on specific roles or disagreements during acting feedback—our team prepared by showing consideration and cooperating with one another, allowing us to complete our rehearsals without any arguments.
Thanks to the way we looked out for and helped each other during the preparation process, our teamwork grew stronger, and as a result, we won first place in the competition and received a cash prize. We used the prize money to go on a team-building trip and were even invited to a native English teacher’s home, creating many happy memories. This experience made me realize just how powerful it is to respect others and work together to achieve results, even in competitive situations.
Another example of collaboration emerged during the proposal and implementation of a club activity. Although there was initially some resistance to change, once I personally devised a plan and persuaded the members, they voluntarily participated and divided up roles to run the activity. Through this process, I learned the importance of understanding others’ perspectives and adopting a persuasive attitude, as well as taking responsibility for and leading even the smallest tasks.
Efforts and Preparation Related to Motivation for Application and Career Plans
My motivation for applying to the English Literature Department stems from my desire to study English in depth—not merely as a foreign language, but as an academic discipline encompassing literature and culture as a whole. Rather than pursuing a specialized translation program like the Department of Translation and Interpretation, I aim to broaden my career horizons by engaging with diverse fields—such as British literature, English theater, American novels, and drama translation—through the English Literature Department’s comprehensive curriculum. My academic studies, club activities, and theater experiences have been instrumental in helping me solidify these goals.
First, at the university level, I intend to thoroughly strengthen my understanding of sentence structure and vocabulary through courses in drama listening and translation, with the goal of becoming a translator skilled in “free translation.” In my view, the “best translator” is not someone who mechanically transposes sentences, but a professional with their own distinctive style and a strong sense of responsibility. Such a translator ensures that readers can trust and easily understand the translated work.
After honing my translation skills, I also wish to develop my capabilities as a writer. A writer is both a creator who produces works and someone who can critically interpret content and offer insightful opinions. I want to work on translating Korean literature into English effectively and conveying it to international readers; I aim to bridge the gap in understanding through translations that capture the cultural context, rather than relying solely on literal translations.
In the long term, my goal is to conduct research comparing English literature and Korean literature, compile critical essays, and publish them as a book. My ultimate dream is for that book to be read by many readers and become a bestseller. In college, I plan to diligently complete a variety of courses and steadily build my listening, translation, and critical analysis skills.
Furthermore, I believe the experiences I gained from participating in English plays and club activities during high school will serve as a solid foundation that can contribute practically to my college studies and various projects. My experience leading teams, my approach to refining writing and reviewing expressions, and my ability to collaborate with others to produce results will be of great help in my studies of English literature and in preparing for my future career.
