Tropicana Resort

Short Answers:

1. When I was 13, I started playing tennis competitively. I practiced three days a week and played tournaments on the weekends once or twice a month. For my first two years I struggled to break into the top 50 in southern California. I was confused and frustrated because coaches always told me I had more than enough talent and potential to be top 20 if not higher. What I didn't understand was how much dedication and perseverance it took to get there. Until I was 15 I thought I always knew better than my coaches and didn't follow half of the advice they gave me. After talking to an accomplished Pro, however, things finally clicked. He explained how much hard work on and off the court it takes to get to the top, and I listened because he had real experience on the pro tour and knows first hand what it takes to get there. Because of my respect for his accomplishments, I overcame my stubbornness on and off the court and my ranking jumped from 63 to 15 in southern California over a year and a half.

2. My father is an attorney, my mother is in the management consultant business, my paternal grandfather is an insurance executive, and my maternal grandfather is a doctor. Of the four professions that I have been exposed to, I have been most interested in the business world. After researching schools across the country, I have come to learn that USC has a great liberal arts program and is the home of the Marshall school of business. The breadth of the liberal arts program and of the business school will help me to refine and define my scope of interests and potential career paths.

3. I want to be a part of the USC tradition for several reasons. In my short experience at UC Santa Barbara and the quarter system, I realized how I best learn a subject matter. The semester system allows me to drill down into a subject matter in more depth than I was able to in the quarter system. I am looking to pursue business at this time, and I feel like the Marshall school of business is a perfect place for me to do that. In the mean time, USC has an exciting liberal arts program from which I aim to expand my knowledge on knew areas of possible interests. Additionally, my passion outside of school is tennis, and it would be an honor to play under the excellent program Coach Peter Smith has developed.