The main reason why I am interested in pursuing graduate school, particularly in the field of social work, is because this has been my desire since I started post-secondary education. As an undergraduate student, I always wanted to make a difference in the lives of less fortunate members of my community. And for that reason, I feel compel to reach out to the people who are in greater need in the society. I understand the challenges of the vulnerable people better because I had been there myself when I was under the care others as a refugee.

During my early years in university, I was exposed to various academic courses that helped broadened my understanding of serious societal issues such as poverty, racism, discrimination, and inequality that affect many people. Every day, when encountering those individuals that are intentionally disadvantaged or marginalized in the society my, I feel compassionate to do something that can positively impact. And with that awareness my dreams are to pursue higher level of learning in grade school and be equipped enough to go out and face the world with dignity and compassion to serve others. For example, I want to reach out and be an advocate to the vulnerable members of our society such as homeless population and people with cognitive and physical disability. I know the difficulties that our vulnerable members of community face are many, but I believe that we can make life better for them if we do our part individually as well as collectively.

What influenced you to choose the field

What has motivated me in pursuing the MSW program was my initial encounter with people who have been impacted by major addiction, disability as well as homelessness. When I was working as a security guard in downtown Calgary, often I encountered some homeless people wondering around the train stations at night even in the sever winter conditions. They had nowhere to go and with little to keep them warm. For example, in one winter night my colleague, and I found a homeless person who was on a wheelchair stacked on fence of Bow Tower. But our role is to guide the property, and no one is allowed in the private property. The instruction was given that guards are not permitted to leave the premise. As result, we were instructed by the authority to push the individual on his wheelchair off the property.

When we were faced with choices of either losing our jobs to save the homeless, disabled person's life or keep our jobs by leaving him on the sidewalk in snowy night, we decided to risk our employments by taking the person all the way to warm place on train station. I have had been touched with those experiences that I plan to go back to school and to get a degree Social Work that will allow me to become source of hope for those people who see no end to physical and emotional hardships. The other area of motivation that influenced my choice entirely was my refugee life experiences in the camp in Ethiopia. We all know that a refugee is a person who seeks protectionin a foreign country or power to escape danger or persecution. Forced by civil a war to leave my birthplace, I spent years as stateless in a foreign land with no hope for better future

But thanks to UN and international community that kept me a life during my long hopeless refugee life. And I also have gratitude toward the Canadian government and people for their kindness to grant me resettlement in Canada where I have privileges that I had never got in what is now South Sudan.

Why are you interested in the program and specialization to which you are applying

And with that spirit of generosity of global community and Canadian people in particular, I believe that pursuing a degree in Social Work program will equip me with knowledge and skills that I need to give back to this society. As I was once a vulnerable person but survived because some one had stepped in to protect and gave me a second chance as well as opportunity to see life in different perspective. I am particularly interested in becoming disability advocate and addiction counsellor to serve those living with all kind of additions and disability.

Academic experience

During my years of undergraduate studies, I was exposure to various courses in Sociology and Psychology.In my sociology of social problems course, I was able to do research on homelessness in relation to addiction issues and focused on the cause that make people end up on streets and emergency shelters,

With that research, I was not surprised to find out that homelessness and addiction have many root causes. I discovered that some people become homeless because of the family break down, personal circumstances, traumatic events, lack of affordable housing as well as unemployment. This research provided me with understanding why addiction was high among the homeless population because most of them get into drug and alcohol as way to escape from real threat that they face in life.

Work, other experience

During my years working for financial institution I have come to know people from all work of life, some are business people, doctors as well as ordinary individuals. I have learned through daily banking transactions that the realty of financial struggles impact life in many ways. As most people I know live pay cheque to pay cheque and their ability to free debt free is minimal. This implies that as society, we have more to do to bring equality to the surface. I have seen seniors, low income families and individuals living with disability have no choice but forced to rely on loaning companies so they can pay their bills before their next pay cheques arrive. Those loan companies charge their clients with very high interests which take so much out of their pay cheques. Also my volunteering with non-profit organization Komkan where I serve as vice president led me to see the barriers that exist in the community. I have opportunity to visit families and hand out food hampers to the less fortunate people in the society. I have noticed more people cannot afford to busy basic necessities and this is prevalent with individuals with disabilities who try to live with their families. As individual or community, we need to be concerned about welfare of others and not just only ourselves. This is true in my family as well as the community I was brought up from. I was born in small farming community in central part of South Sudan and we were taught my parents that our family is a team that consisted of all of us and that needs our contribution in order for it to thrive. I have brought that mine set in my role as client care specialist. For numbers years clients would come to my managers and talk to them about how I care for them as people and their business and also my team members including my managers are always grateful for my contribution our team success. To day I am pursuing grad school in Walden because it has a philosophy or mission for positive social change in which I believe to be the core for a better world. and also I believe that education in Walden University will equip me to go out and impact lives of people around me and if the admission committee wants someonewho can contribute positively in world for the good of all, I believe they can consider my application because I have been there lived life of vulnerable people in the world as a refugee. But survived because of other people caring and compassionate hearts to help save lives. I do not want to be just a taker but also a giver because at the time of need someone was there for me and now I want to be a source of hope someone else in the world . I look forward to discuss my dreams and goals