Pawan Dhakal AJ Wild Institute of Advanced Studies

1. What factors have led you to consider Macalester College? Why do you believe it may be a good match, and what do you believe you can add to the Mac community, academically and personally? "Your work is to discover your world and then with all your heart give yourself to it."- Buddha

Although I plan to pursue a Physics degree, I believe that I need to explore all areas of knowledge to discover my world and lead a satisfactory life. A liberal arts education, study abroad options, opportunities for civic engagement, an international setting, and a diverse student-faculty body- these were what I was looking for when I began my search for colleges. Sitting at a computer in a separate study room provided by the EducationUSA center (USEF-Nepal/The Fulbright Commission) for the 16 participants of the Opportunity Funding Program 2012 (www.usefnepal.org/opportunity), I googled for hours with my parameters and found Mac. It was an attraction at first sight. So, after reading the college profile on College Boards website, I perused college guide book reviews on Macs webpage and the USEF library, and student reviews on Cappex and College Prowler websites. Thus began what has become a steadily evolving relationship. Mac is an intellectual incubator; where academically, politically and socially aware students explore, learn, discover, and translate knowledge into action for the public good; where professors and students are not just academics; where a sense of belonging and ownership helps build life-long friendships; where students get the environment for life-altering enlightenment and life-changing experiences. Mac helps students discover their world and re-invent themselves. I fit the general category of students who choose to study at Mac. And, with the diversity that I bring as a student from a country sandwiched between the two emerging giants: India and China, along with the experience as a leader and as a contributor to the betterment of a developing world, and the motivation for a rigorous study on a range of disciplines, I believe I will be a valuable addition to the Mac community. Macs Physics program is truly a dream for an aspiring Physicist. All courses are taught by Professors who are involved in exciting research. Students get the opportunity with work with them in their research and/or do independent research. I intend to make my independent research the capstone of my Physics undergraduate degree; with Macs resources, I will be able to fulfill my dream. This is an academic contribution that I intend to make at Mac. Also, I plan to be involved in a number of student clubs including MacMUN and initiate a Cricket Club, Physics Club, and a South Asian Association. Physics, I believe, is a great tool to solve pressing issues of the world. Thus, the Physics club will focus on translating knowledge into action by working on overcoming fundamental problems in the world. I hope to be able to collaborate with initiatives like Engineers without Borders to volunteer in different parts of the world. And, I wish to unite fellow cricket lovers at Mac and other colleges to spread the joy of cricket as a sport and recreation by organizing intercollegiate events as well as intramurals. Also, to spread the love for soccer, my biggest passion, and help the soccer boom in the U.S., I plan to organize weekly events such as live match shows of the English Premier League and other major soccer leagues including the MLS. Hopefully, more students will be interested in soccer which will be beneficial to the Mac Soccer teams as well. And, of course, I want to try out for the Mens Soccer team (I have no formal training.), participate in all intramurals, and cheer my guts out for the Mac athletics teams. With its international setting and diverse student-faculty body, academic rigor, commitment to teaching-learning process and engaging in activities for the public good, and a wide array of opportunities, Mac can be my tool to discovering my world. And, with my energy and motivation, I can be the means for Mac to discover more about itself.
2. Describe a situation where you had to work or closely associate with someone from a culture very different from your own. What challenges did you face and how did you resolve them?

My family has been living in Bhurungkhel, a densely populated region of Kathmandu Valley, for 17 years. Although Newars are the original inhabitants of Kathmandu, only about 42 percent of the total population of Kathmandu is Newar. However, Bhurunghkhel and its surrounding areas have the densest Newari population. I studied till the 10th grade in a school two minutes from my rented home. Being in a Newar community, the schools student body is almost entirely Newars. Each year, my class had only an

Pawan Dhakal AJ Wild Institute of Advanced Studies

average of 5 non-Newars including me. Until the eighth grade, I did not have problems adjusting as I was literally raised by Newars in my community. However, as I grew older and started to learn about my own culture aided by the more aware visits to my relatives and my village in Syangja, I sensed incongruity. I began to understand and realize the differences between me and my peers at school. Although everyone was friendly and I had a couple of Newar guys as best friends, I felt disconnected. Everyone seemed to be forming groups; I did not belong to one. I was the guy who was everybodys friend. Ironically, this was heartbreaking as I craved for a sense of belonging. I was still the Class Captain; I had been nominated captain for six straight years. Also, I was the Class Topper; I had been since I joined the school. These achievements made it harder for me to feel at home as I feared being looked as someone who did not belong. Thus, when I was appointed to lead my class (9th grade) in the fund raising campaign for the heart surgery of a student, a dramatic event was imminent. One of the events that we organized for the campaign was a Garage Sale. I had brought the idea of the sale inspired by an episode from Recess, my one time favorite cartoon series. We collected used items from students, parents and people in the surrounding communities. I and a couple of friends repaired damaged electric items like emergency lights and radios; we gave other items such as watches for repair to electrical repair shops. We also decided to draw paintings and build wooden stick handicrafts for the garage sale. Our Principal also helped us by inviting a former student to display and sell items like carpets and pen stands made of plastic wrappers of food items. Apart from repairing electric items and coordinating other events-- a kite flying competition and an interview with the ill students father, I was also handling finances. I made decisions on distributing money to groups of my friends who were involved in different events. The fear of my friends not cooperating with me was taking a toll on my decisions; I was facing difficulty satisfying everyones demands of the required funds as the budget I was given by the school to work on was limited. However, the greatest difficulty I faced was when the friend who worked with me in repairing electrical items, stressed by the amount of work we were doing, pointed out my limited involvement in the actual work. He was especially worried that as I was not fully concentrating on repairing, the garage sale would be a failure. I tried to inform him about the different works I was doing. But, his frustration of working alone for long hours a day meant that he was not sympathetic. We began quarrelling when he said that being a Brahmin I was trying to be a leader in everything and expected everyone to follow my directions. I reciprocated by saying that a Newar would not understand. Brahmins are the so-called higher castes and are infamous as being too clever and manipulating. Most of the political leaders in Nepal are Brahmins, so seeing corruption and the political stalemate in the country, almost everyone else blamed them. It was understandable as most of the rich people in Nepal are Brahmins. But, I come from a financially disadvantaged society. And, although my family is Brahmin, our social condition had much to do with the manipulation and trickery of Brahmins and other higher-castes. However, when my friend accused me of focusing too much on leading the team and not concentrating on the fund raising campaign all because I came from a Brahmin family, I was devastated. We left home that day without saying a word to each other. This event cemented my desire to transfer to a school where I would not be the odd man out. That day, I talked to my mother about transferring to a new school. Your Nepali has improved immensely, my mother said. You used to have a Newari accent. As I was complaining about the lack of similar-minded friends at school and arguing for a shift to a more inclusive school, her statement came as a shock. She continued stating facts about me being practically raised by Newars in my community. I was left reminiscing some wonderful moments with my Newari home owners who lived in a building next to ours. I am not a Brahmin or a Newar. I am a mix of both, I concluded. The next day, when I met my friend, he apologized for being rude. And, I reciprocated, blaming our fear of failing the ill student who needed a successful fund-raising campaign to survive. The quarrel brought everyone in my class together and we helped each other out in all activities. I got more involved in the actual work rather than administration. Everything went well and we held a successful campaign. My sense of incongruity disappeared. Thus, in the 10th grade, even though I was the only non-Newar in the class, I felt part of a home. In the course of the campaign, I realized my weakness of trying to do everything my way and the benefits of a team who led itself. When I enrolled in my A-Level school, I was part of a more diverse group of students. My experience of being the odd man out helped me adjust well into my final two years of high school.