Student Leadership / Jonathan Amarilla's Story Jonathan Amarilla: From a student volunteer to a medical career Paraguay Jonathan Amarilla, Student Volunteer  http://www.operationsmile.org/student-stories/jonathan- amarillas-story

Jonathan Amarilla: From a student volunteer to a medical career Paraguay Jonathan Amarilla, Student Volunteer  My journey with Operation Smile began when I was 15 years old. At that age, I didn’t have much motivation or direction in my life until a friend invited me to an after-school Operation Smile student club meeting. I didn’t understand then what I was getting into, but the more I showed up and learned about the plight of the children here in my own country of Paraguay who needed help, the more I fell in love with the the work of Operation Smile. Later that year, I was honored to be a student volunteer on my first medical mission in Paraguay -- an experience that would forever impact my career path. On the first day of that medical mission, I was shocked to see all these kids and adults suffering from cleft lip and cleft palate. Many covered their faces with their hands or scarves. It was painful to watch them hiding, as if they were ashamed. It saddened me to see these kids who have never smiled, who have been shunned from their communities and bullied. But at the same time, I was hopeful because they were here at the medical mission and hopeful because they would get the help they needed from Operation Smile. My job as a student volunteer was to play with the children, make them feel comfortable about surgery and, hopefully, bring them some joy during a foreign experience. As the medical mission went on, I learned the different roles the medical volunteers play. Everyone comes together from different parts of the world to do one thing, to give a child a chance at a new beginning and a chance to live life fully. I witnessed how a group of people with so much good in their hearts can take kids who have never smiled and give them a new life they deserve. I was only 15, only a student volunteer. I wasn’t a doctor, but I still felt so happy, so useful. That day changed my entire perception on life. It was stunning to see how great a change the medical volunteers can make in these patient’s lives in just under an hour. As the days of that medical mission went on, I realized just how big of an impact a simple act can make in not just one person’s life, but a whole community. Since that year I have never missed an opportunity to volunteer on a medical mission. I’ve been on 13 missions now, and from each one of them, I have so many stories to tell, so much learned. It is thanks to these experiences that I made the most important decision of my life -- I decided to become a doctor, a plastic surgeon. My dream is to one day volunteer as a surgeon and help those kids get a new start, a new life, the chance to start over.

Students choose to attend certain colleges or universities for many different reasons, for example, career preparation, increased knowledge etc. What are some factors that motivate students to choose specific colleges or universities? Use your own ideas, knowledge and experience. Support your arguments with examples and with relevant evidence. Nowadays, more and more students are choosing colleges with excellent “study abroad and entrepreneurship” opportunities. The new trend is that students are becoming more and more interested in technology entrepreneurship, and are combining it with their current interests and major. In today's world, many young people dream of becoming entrepreneurs. Self-employment is an interesting and challenging lifestyle. First of all, self-employment offers many benefits. The main advantage is that one can choose the type of work according to their interests. A self employed person can manage his working hours on his own and can work at his own pace. Therefore, students of all majors have become interested in this field and carefully select Colleges that encourage entrepreneurship. For instance, the New York University (NYU) Entrepreneurial Institute, fosters a University-wide startup ecosystem that encourages multi-disciplinary collaboration, accelerates innovation, and cultivates the next generation of startup leaders. Consequently, students from around the world choose to go to NYU based on the support they receive from successful entrepreneurs at NYU. Second of all, many students choose colleges based on the diverse study abroad programs available to them. For example, while a business student at Harvard University School of Business, Heather Hasson volunteered in Africa and met children who were unable to attend school because they lacked a school uniform. After graduation, Heather decided to start her own clothing company “FIGS USA”. For every necktie FIGS sells, a child in Tanzania or Kenya gets a free school uniform. The key point here is that Heather chose Harvard because it offers students a wide range of volunteer opportunities around the world. Hence, volunteering gave her the business idea, but Harvard gave her the opportunity. In conclusion, I personally believe that most students now choose colleges carefully on modern trends like technology, entrepreneurship and study abroad opportunities. Due to globalization, the more modern resources a University provides students, the more attractive it will be to potential applicants. 4

Describe something that you are proud of. You should say: what you achieved when you achieved it what was difficult about achieving it and explain why you are proud of this achievement. One achievement that makes me really proud is the creation of my website, “EZFrench.com”, which is a free website that helps students around the world learn French. Quite frankly, I have always loved helping my classmates, especially with French language. I decided to utilize technology to reach a greater number of people and students around the world. Hence, EZFrench.com was created in my third year of high school. The idea of combining “online volunteering” and becoming a “virtual tutor”, was both interesting and rewarding. In the future, I hope to become an entrepreneur and open my own French Language Learning center, therefore, I am gaining valuable experience from such a project. To begin with, I plan on majoring in French when I go to College, Thus, it was my sincere goal to create a free website which could help people across the globe learn French easily. I tried to volunteer locally, but I could not find any volunteer opportunities in my neighborhood to teach French. Therefore, the internet was a fantastic opportunity to help people and “volunteer online” while helping to build my CV. Nevertheless, there were many challenges along the way, including acquiring necessary technical computer skills. Secondly, I did not realize how difficult it was to build a website. For example, maintenance of the site required an extraordinary amount of work. I vividly recall working on it several nights in a row learning HTML, and seeking the help of my friend who is a computer programmer. Finally, there was the constant need to update materials online. Whether it was creating powerpoint slides, or answering questions from students around the world, I found I no longer had any “free time”. However, my hard work and dedication paid off. As a result, EZFrench.com has now become an internationally successful e-learning website, which is used around the world. In addition, I have received a virtual “E-Award” by the French Language Society for this form of online volunteer work. Since I am currently applying to Universities, I consider my website as a form of “online educational volunteer work”, which I can proudly list on my CV. Overall, I am thrilled that students around the world appreciate my hard work and effort online. In the future, after I graduate from College, I hope to become an entrepreneur and open my own French Language School. Nevertheless, I plan on continuing to help students learn French online, and definitely encourage others to use any “free time” to help others whether online or offline.

NYU College Application cover letter Dear Professors________, Greetings, I am very sorry to disturb, my name is___. I am currently a High School student at _____________ with a strong interest in _______. In addition, I am taking College courses at the American University School of Continuing Education. While studying abroad recently in New York City, I became aware of your amazing University. The University atmosphere, outstanding facilities, including the magnificent Bobst Library, left such a positive impression on me that it is now my goal to become a member of such an international academic community. In the past, I was a volunteer at Operation Smile. Hence, it is my sincere hope to major in healthcare, as to continue future missions with Operation Smile. Kindly please find my application and credentials, including letters of recommendation from my Professors and Volunteer Program Directors. I hope to have my zeal and enthusiasm made known in person. Thank you so much for your time. Respectfully, 6 6

Volunteer/Internship sample email cover letter Dear Professor________, Greetings, I am very sorry to disturb, my name is___. I am currently a full-time undergraduate student at _____________ studying_______. In addition, I am studying at the American University School of Continuing Education. While at the American University, I recently became aware of your amazing organization. In the past, I was a volunteer/intern at _______ and am very interested in interning with your organization if possible please. In the future, I hope to study abroad, hence, I am currently preparing for the IELTS as well. I would be very grateful if you could please advise as to any current internship/volunteer vacancies in your organization? Kindly please find my CV/resume attached below. I also have letters of recommendation from my Professors/Volunteer Program Directors as well. Thank you so much for your time and help. I hope to have my zeal and enthusiasm made known in person. Thank you so much. Respectfully, 7 7

Describe a course you took in your High School or University and why it was helpful to you. The United Nations and Human Rights Law, was one of the most interesting courses I studied in my university. I thoroughly enjoyed this course. In fact, I learned many new concepts and theories from this course that it helped me significantly throughout the remaining semesters. First of all, as a law school applicant, I have always held international aspirations. Hence, such a class was perfect for my future goals and endeavors. For example, the course was designed to introduce participants to the history and structure of the UN, its place within the international system, its current challenges in the face of failed states and civil wars, climate change, continuing high levels of poverty and inequality, challenges to human rights, and calls for radical reform of the whole UN system. As a result, students were able to discuss current problems of global governance in the context of the UN, and present professional solutions for any issue in the form of a group presentation. Second of all, the additional benefit of this course was the amount of valuable information we learned in such a short period of time. The purpose of this course was to introduce students to international relations and human rights. Consequently, it was not possible to cover every conceivable area of human rights. Instead, our wise Professor gave us a survey of international law which helped us understand human rights law, and comprehend why it is the universal standard of international behavior. Overall, in the beginning I was bit dubious about this course as I did not know what it would include or how helpful it would be. Nevertheless, after I completed this course, I found myself very much interested in United Nations issues, that I now aspire to volunteer with the United Nations before applying to law school.