Comments, please?

**I have to submit a statement of purpose for my exchange application... self-promotion is difficult man! Please let me know what you think!! I've already edited this a little bit after some constructive comments (Thanks Gu & Daeshy)**

Statement of Purpose for Honours Study Abroad

Valisa Anniina Sipila (Fon)

19294999

I’ve grown up as what I like to call “globally unsettled dust”, otherwise known as a “third culture kid” in the literature. Before I landed in Melbourne to pursue a degree in Arts, I spent my years as a resident in countries such as Ethiopia, Zambia, Kazakhstan, Vietnam, Spain, among others. Educated solely in International Schools, the concept of multiculturalism or multilingualism has never struck me as being anything other than the norm.

What is multiculturalism? Multilingualism? How do people communicate and compromise through vast differences in background? ‘International’, the current buzzword at Monash University, as well as National University of Singapore, resonates strongly – yet I haven’t until recently given these questions serious thought.

Not only was my upbringing a mosaic of worlds, but my home life, too, was spent negotiating cultural barriers and boundaries. Having one parent from Thailand and the other from Finland meant that even the concept of a ‘homeland’ and ‘mother-tongue’ became amorphous. What is my native tongue when I speak three languages natively and can switch with ease from one to another in the context of one conversation?

What had seemed a simple and natural part of my upbringing was given special significance in the context of a philosophy and linguistics double major. These questions about multiculturalism are gaining importance in many disciplines and fields, and linguistics is no exception. Scholars are asking questions such as: “Why do bilinguals code-switch?”; “How does the language use and psyche of a multilingual differ from that of a monolingual?” and “How do we apply this knowledge of the multilingual user to education? To society and identity? To policy?”

My interest lies in researching the rules and situations that guide multilinguals in their switch from one language to another, looking especially at emotive and strategic factors. Although Monash University is a multi-cultural setting, it forms only a micro cosmos. Singapore is a model of a successfully multi-ethnic and multi-lingual society. Starting my honours research at the National University of Singapore will be inspirational boost to my thesis, as well as further enhance the prospect of being a truly international citizen!

It is easy to see why I chose NUS. “Towards a Global Knowledge Enterprise” is an attractive slogan. To me, it shows that the university is reflecting on the deeper implications of a country with multilingualism already built into everyday norms. It goes beyond recognising a multi-ethnic community to encouraging students to think globally with the assets provided by their surroundings and upbringing. As a person striving to find ways to utilise my own background affectively, NUS seems to be a logical avenue in which to further this goal.