Why I Want to Join Aston Business School - Admission/Application Essay Example

Scholarship Essay In today’s modern society, we are now connected more than ever before. Globalization has given different people groups the opportunity to mix with other cultures. There are many benefits to this because learning how to interact with someone of another culture helps to improve one’s own view of their culture. As I am of Chinese origin, but have spent a large amount of time in the UK, I am fully aware of the advantages that can be gained from a diverse group of people. During my time at Nottingham Trent University, I have had the privilege to see both the good and bad aspects of intercultural learning.

The problem with most people is that they always believe that their culture is right and that other people should conform to their culture. No one culture is guilty of this because it is a natural human reaction to believe that your way of doing things is right. When I first came to study in the UK, according to Dr. Milton Bennett’s Developmental Model of Intercultural Sensitivity (DMIS), I was probably at the Defense stage. For me, Aston Business School is an opportunity for me to test myself at a higher level of education.

I am extremely focused and willing to listen to what others have to say. When dealing with a range of different cultures, this is the key to come to some sort of understanding. Some people believe that diversity is not a good thing because it only results in conflict. While there can be issues in dealing with other cultures, I actually think that it is a good thing because it allows everything to learn something off each other. If people can be willing to compromise, then diversity encourages greater thinking because a wider range of voices can be heard.

Now that I have been in the UK for awhile, I would consider myself to be at the Adaption stage on the DMIS. My ultimate objective is to reach the Integration stage, but this will not happen until I have lived in the UK for a very long time and have adapted 100% to British culture. Part of the reason why I have decided to apply to Aston Business School is that it promotes diversity among its student population. This is extremely important for me because I share the same values. If given the chance to attend, I will make sure that I promote diversity among the student population by helping different cultures to come together.

I feel that I can be an intermediary whenever conflict inevitably occurs between students of different ethnic backgrounds. Because I have already gone through some of the struggles of settling into a school with a variety of cultures, I understand what it is like to be in an environment where everything is so foreign. I will take forward all of my experiences with a number of different cultures and apply it during the rest of my working career.