In this blog post, I’ll summarize my academic efforts and school activities during high school, my experiences with empathy and collaboration, as well as my motivation for applying and my career plans.
Writing About My Academic Experiences and Reflections
When I chose Korean History as my social studies course, I became particularly passionate about it. Not only did I enjoy history, but I also found it appealing that, compared to other social studies subjects, I could prepare for it primarily through memorization. Therefore, to fully understand and memorize the vast content of the textbook without omission, I read it thoroughly and made every effort not to overlook any of the material presented. As a result, I consistently earned a Grade 1 on my school grades or maintained a level where I would get only one or two questions wrong. However, I didn’t score as high on mock exams as I did on my school grades, and I even received a grade 3 on occasion, which was frustrating.
When I analyzed the cause of this discrepancy, the reason became clear. For my school grades, I could earn a high grade simply by thoroughly understanding the textbook relative to my peers at the same school, but mock exams often included questions that delved into much finer details than the textbook covered. I mainly made mistakes on the 3-point sub-questions and often got confused about the year of an event, its specific context, or its chronological order. So, rather than simply memorizing dates, I consulted encyclopedias and various other resources to grasp the background of events and their precise chronological sequence. When necessary, I even borrowed Korean history textbooks from other schools at the library to compare and study them.
In fact, even when covering the same events, there were differences in the depth and approach of the explanations across textbooks from different schools. While some textbooks provided only a general overview, others offered detailed explanations accompanied by learning activities. I organized my concepts primarily using the textbooks with more detailed explanations and supplemented any parts I didn’t understand by consulting dictionaries to create my own study materials. As a result, my mock exam scores improved significantly, and my ability to handle detailed questions increased.
Major School Activities and Reflections
I joined the library club in my freshman year of high school. I loved the library so much that, even back in middle school, I had resolved to join the library club as soon as I entered high school. The availability of the books I wanted and the quiet atmosphere felt like a kind of utopia to me, and driven by that passion, I was able to continue my involvement in the library club throughout high school. In middle school, I mainly handled cataloging and lending duties, but in high school, I was able to take on more autonomous roles.
Through my work in the library club, I truly realized how much autonomy is emphasized for high school students. The librarian outlined the tasks students needed to complete and organized meetings so we could divide our roles among ourselves. We would often sit around a table with friends we’d just met to hold meetings and assign duties. Initially, we planned to elect a club president, but since there were no volunteers, we decided that everyone would act as president and fulfill their respective responsibilities. Through meetings, we divided up tasks such as lending, cataloging, information management, labeling, and photocopying; I volunteered to take on the information management duties.
Information management involved working alongside the student in charge of lending. The person handling lending would scan the barcodes on the books students brought in and enter the information into the program, while I used the computer to input and organize the book catalogs and related information. Although it may have seemed like simple, repetitive work at first glance, since I was directly assisting the librarian, there were many small tasks involved. For example, when new books arrived, I had to print out a label list for the friend in charge of labeling; I assigned label numbers and codes to the new books, entered them into the program, and printed out the list.
Since this wasn’t just a matter of assigning labels and codes arbitrarily but rather preparing them in a format compatible with the computer system, I received guidance from the librarian. I had to determine the codes and numbers based on the bookshelves where the books were stored, as well as genre, author, and publication year, and meticulous attention to detail was required because even a single character error would cause errors throughout the entire catalog. Whenever I assigned a number to a book, I would review the entire list to which that item belonged to ensure there were no errors. By maintaining this attitude throughout my over one year of service on the library committee, I managed to avoid any issues with information management. Thanks to these efforts, I received praise from the librarian and my peers, and I felt a great sense of responsibility and pride in knowing that documents and information were being managed efficiently.
Examples of Consideration, Sharing, and Cooperation, and My Reflections
Although our school was divided into humanities and science tracks, humanities students were also required to complete at least one science inquiry course. I chose Earth Science, but I felt the pressure of having to compete with science track students to get good grades. Humanities students tended to focus on social studies while preparing for science inquiry courses by rote memorization, which could put them at a disadvantage in relative grading. Since a lower grade in Earth Science would affect my overall grade, I had to put effort into studying science inquiry as well.
So, I chose to study together with a close friend from the science track. That friend needed help with history, so I lent him the Korean history notes I had compiled on my own. In return, my friend shared his Earth Science summary notes and study handouts with me, and we exchanged information on the parts we needed, compensating for each other’s weaknesses. This experience of helping each other and becoming study partners led to a tangible improvement in our grades.
I even received requests from other liberal arts friends to borrow the handouts my friend had given me. Although I was hesitant at first, I decided that “what goes around comes around,” so I didn’t hesitate to ask for permission and lend the materials to others. Once I started sharing my study materials, my classmates reciprocated by helping me in kind; I received practical support, such as information during difficult performance assessments or reminders when I’d forgotten to complete assignments. Ultimately, our class was able to grow together through friendly competition in an atmosphere of sharing and mutual consideration.
Efforts and Preparation Related to Motivation for Application and Career Plans
Driven by my interest in history and literature, I read many related books starting in high school. It became a hobby of mine to seek out and read reference books mentioned in my textbooks and to spend time reading at the library whenever I had a chance. As I loved the library environment, I naturally joined the library club, where I took on responsible roles such as organizing the collection, managing information, and entering call numbers. This experience served as the catalyst for my goal of becoming a school librarian.
With this concrete goal in mind, I considered majoring in Library and Information Science and researched the Department of Library and Information Science at Sangmyung University, even visiting the campus in advance. Upon confirming that many graduates go on to become school librarians or public librarians, I became convinced that this major aligns well with my goals. Once I enter college, I intend to diligently complete my major courses to acquire the skills needed to be immediately ready for the workforce.
I believe Library and Information Science is a field where practical knowledge and computer skills—which are not taught in high school—are essential. Therefore, over the next four years, I plan to acquire not only theoretical knowledge in my major but also proficiency in using information management software, so that by the time I graduate, I will be fully prepared to begin working as a school librarian. In the long term, I aim to build a professional career as a school librarian and obtain certifications, such as that of a reading instructor, to develop the skills needed to plan and manage library activities, thereby ensuring my continued growth.
