Monday, May 22, 2006

7pence and the story that followed

A few days ago I realised that I had £20.07 in my account. I instantly withdrew the remaining £20 in case some direct debit went out and left me high and dry.

A few days later with 7pence to my name I began to update and rewrite my CV in prospect of having to look for a job. In doing so I unearthed my old CV on my old computer and also found my personal statement which I used to apply for Uni.

So almost at the end of my first acadaemic year and about 2 years after I wrote it, or rather fabricated it here it is. I can't be sure this is the final version, but if not its fairly close:

"The way the world works has always interested me, leading me to take A level subjects that I believed would allow me to view the world from more than one perspective. English has helped me understand people through examples in literature and given me the ability to communicate;
Design Technology has allowed me to see how things work and increased my ability to solve practical problems. Most importantly Economics has been my framework, showing the reality and structure of the world we live in.

A cursory reading of Chris Brown's 'Understanding International Relations' coupled with my interest in Economics encouraged me to read widely in and around the subject from mainstream Keynesian orthodoxy such as J. K. Galbraith to well known texts by Marx, Engels and Rousseau. I found globalisation to be an interesting topic, reading Naomi Klein's 'No Logo' and Joseph Stiglitz's 'Globalisation and its Discontents' and finding the latter more readable.

Finding out about politics and the actions of political figures such as Ho Chi Min, Nicolae Ceausescu, Henry Kissinger and Donald Rumsfeld has expanded my knowledge of current affairs, reinforcing my understanding of the reasons behind the current political climate. I acquire my day-to-day information in current affairs from the 'Financial Times', 'The Economist' and I use the Internet to probe deeper into certain topics.

College life has been very rewarding for me: The Combined Cadet Force has provided me with a wide variety of experiences and the opportunity to speak with many participants of recent conflicts on my visits to military bases. Working my way from the lowest rank to Warrant Officer, the highest rank in the CCF, has given me good team skills both as a member and leader as well as improving my organisational and time-management skills, I have attended a variety of courses including a potential officer course at RNAS Culdrose. It has given me the confidence to be true to what I believe in leading to my participation in the Stop the War marches and Anti-Bush demonstrations, although I do not always agree with the arguments of the more radical 'intellectuals' of the left and bear Schumpeter's warning of such people in mind. I by no means follow any group blindly and I find it interesting to debate issues with the people I meet and have found some very articulate and incisive people.

As a member of the Union Committee I work on a team helping students to achieve the most out of running and attending extra-curricula activities; I am the chairman of the Croquet Society. I took the opportunity to trek around Guyana for a month in the summer holidays with World Challenge. This enabled me to see and experience different ways of life: from then peaceful tribal societies, where I helped teach in a village school, to the ruthless capital city, Georgetown.

Finally, I intend to become fluent in a modern language to increase my ability to communicate and enable me to fulfil my potential in future careers.
I want to promote my level of understanding of International Relations above that provided by current affairs media, bringing with me my understanding of relevant economic ideas."

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