My PSEL Application Letter

I’m a third culture kid. Swedish by birth, but raised by my parents to be a third culture kid (raised in cultures outside my parents’ cultures). My four younger sisters and I grew up traveling the world and lived in different countries. We were encouraged to embrace each new culture with an openness and respect that taught us to learn from experiences and those around us. We were never told that something has to be a certain way, but we were shown a diverse world that has many different valid ways of being. We were given the opportunity to learn and grow in different environments, with solid parental guidance of love and support that led us to be ethical, caring individuals.

My multicultural upbringing made me realize that one should never assume a certain perspective is the only right one. I have learned that there is a strength and value in listening, understanding, respecting and learning from those around me, and this often leads me to find a good solution to any situation that develops. Having these insights helped me in my work as an educational consultant, which required me to occasionally take on the role of a leader. During one of my assignments I had to help a school with curriculum development. The participants of the committee had conflicting ideas of what the curriculum should include. They were not able to come to an agreement. I listened to what each person wanted. It became clear that the diverse cultural lenses that they were looking through made them see similar concerns in conflicting ways. I was able to effectively communicate the main concepts in a way that all parties could understand and agree to. As a result, a curriculum was developed that everyone was happy with and that ultimately benefited the school’s students.

Working with the curriculum committee was a rewarding experience because of the successful outcome and the realization that the result was accomplished to some degree due to my innate leadership abilities. It made me understand that having leadership skills is of importance because it makes one more effective in creating positive change. Understanding the value of having leadership abilities made me want to learn more and further develop my leadership qualities. Coming to that conclusion made me evaluate my current skills. My current leadership capabilities come from the openness to learn from those around me and being able to see things from different perspectives. Intercultural awareness and competency are, however, not the only skills that I possess. I also have strong communication skills that allows me to communicate effectively as a writer, presenter and in interpersonal interactions. So, these are some of the qualities that I would bring to the Penn State Emerging Leaders (PSEL) program.

Participating in the PSEL program would allow me to grow both personally and professionally. Developing leadership capabilities would increase my effectiveness in working with my students, make me a more productive team member of the advising unit and better contribute to the College of the Liberal Arts organizational priorities. Participating in the PSEL program would allow me to cultivate a clearer understanding of what makes an excellent leader and help me create my own personal leadership vision. Ideally the program would also allow me to develop negotiation, conflict resolution, problem solving, and project management skills because these are competences that I need to develop further. Having these capabilities would make me more productive in working with others to support students and achieve organizational priorities.
I have the support of my supervisors and sufficient free time to complete the 100 hours required to fulfill the requirements of the PSEL program. Furthermore, the blended learning approach that includes self-directed learning, on the job learning, classroom work, coaching and participation in an interactive environment that requires us to reflect and share is one that suits me well. The multi-faceted approach allows for a deeper understanding of what is being learned and the opportunity to implement the skills learned in practical ways.

My intercultural competency, communication skills, desire to develop leadership capabilities and sufficient time to participate in the PSEL program makes me an ideal candidate who will be able to contribute a different perspective. The skills gained will be put to good use in my future endeavors working with my students, my college and the university.