My aspiration for a better education dates back to when I started school in Russia. From the brief educational experience I had in Russia, I remember that almost everyone wanted to be the student with the highest grades (or the "5" with the Russian grade). This, combined with the constant pressure from my family, helped me become passionate about school and made me want to learn. My education in Russia, however, was interrupted when we moved to the United States. In the United States, education is a little different than in Russia. I immediately noticed that I had no difficulty in mathematics. In first grade in Russia, schoolchildren learned multiplication, while in the United States, first graders still did addition. Of course I wasn't interested in some aspects of school, but learning English kept me very busy. Our family moved around quite a bit after that, finally settling here in Cleveland. Along the way, before Cleveland, I had the opportunity to attend three different school districts. Each offered a unique experience, combined with different opportunities. Since I was ahead of my peers in math and science, my parents continued to accelerate my math and science education by forcing me to read Russian textbooks. I hated it at the time, but looking back it was very helpful. After first grade, our family moved, and by the second half of second grade, I had mostly recovered my English skills. In addition to all the math I learned at home, I was introduced to the gifted services program during the latter part of second grade. Our family later moved back to Cleveland. Here in Cleveland I attended two different school districts. In the fourth grade, I was given an excellent opportunity to (half the homework, summer semesters) and ride to both school and college in any weather. All of this came together when I graduated high school with a diploma and a bachelor's degree. My quest for higher education has not been easy at all. Even now, at CSU, I had to defer my acceptance for an internship at the Cleveland Clinic for a semester to earn money to pay for my tuition. However, all of my opportunities and challenges have had some type of positive impact on my education. I hope to continue my education here at CSU and earn a Master's degree in Computer and Information Science. I am applying to the Honors Program here to both challenge myself with more work and provide me with an opportunity in the form of scholarships. If my past has taught me anything, it's that challenges and opportunities combined provide a great environment for learning and improvement.