大野 清美 夢をあきらめない
中学の頃から留学することが夢でした。
家庭の事情で若い頃には留学などとてもできませんでした。
でも、夢をあきらめたくなかった。いつか訪れるはずの日を信じて英語の勉強を続け、英語にかかわる仕事を探し、いつしか通訳、翻訳で多少お金が稼げるようになりました。
チャンスは訪れた
子供が3人でき、末っ子が幼稚園に入る頃、夫が転勤でニューヨークに3年滞在することになりました。
やっと巡ってきたチャンス、もう、37歳になっていましたが、逃しませんでした。ニューヨーク1年目を準備時間に充てました。大学院に入るための願書をアルク社の留学支援サービス（当時、そういうサービスがありました）を受けながら書き、送りました。
合格
今はオンライン登録だと思いますが、当時は郵送。履歴書、推薦状、いろいろ揃えて提出しました。
ニューヨーク大学とコロンビア大学（どちらも大学院）に願書は提出しました。
ニューヨーク大学が正規に合格、コロンビア大学は補欠合格し、繰り上げで合格したので、コロンビア大学を選びました（通学に近かったからです）。
1995年入学ですから21年前。エッセイは当時の社会情勢を反映しています。
拙い文章、青臭い内容ですが、これから留学を目指す人に「どんな内容をどんなレベルで書けばいいのか」の参考にしていただけるか、と公開します。
合格エッセイ 500words
I am applying to your graduate program to help better prepare for my ultimate career objective, to participate in project design and management for humanitarian aid at international institutions like UNHCR or UNICEF. I am certain that a broad knowledge of international law and international human rights will be a tremendous asset in attaining my objective.
My experience as a translator for the CBS News Program at Tokyo Broadcasting System in Japan from December 1987 to April 1988, studying very hard and reviewing world situations to translate the news correctly and precisely, widened my eyes to the world affairs and sparked my interest in my career goal. While I was working there, the Palestinian uprising in Israeli-occupied Gaza spread to the West Bank. Television pictures showed not only men, but also women, and children hurling rocks and bottles at troops. In return, the troops killed 300 by 1988’s end, and slaughtered 6,000 people in detention camps. Most heartbreaking of all was that the civilians, especially unarmed women and children lost their families or were killed not on the battle field but in the cities where they lived or in detention camps. I thought that both parties concerned had so much hatred toward each other and were so emotional that the parties themselves could not solve dispute, that only a completely natural third party such as the United Nations could solve it and that only international agencies sponsored by a large body of international organizations could provide humanitarian aid for the vast numbers of suffering civilians.
Having seen such desperate people devastated by such conflicts, I decided to so whatever I could. Then, a newspaper ad inspired me to participate in Foster Plan in 1990. I sponsored a boy in a developing country, the Dominical Republic. I thought the Plan itself was very fruitful and promising in the long term, but I found the areas supported by the Plan were limited to relatively stable countries or areas. These days, however, especially since the beginning of 1990s, I see many more conflicts, or civil wars, and more helpless children, people and refugees in urgent need around the world, like in Bosnia and Herzegovina, Cambodia, and African nations such as Somalia, Ethiopia, Sudan, Rwanda, Liberia, Nigeria or Mozambique. Those areas especially require conflict solutions and human rights protection by a strong international organization like the United Nations.
Last year (1993) was the Year of International Human Rights and media publications related to the Year reinforced my desire to study human rights issues. I suppose the enforcement and observance of universal human rights standards under international law could theoretically protect the agonized people from any form of violation and rationalize humanitarian aid by the United Nations. To realize the ideal, a wholistic understanding of human rights including the study of human rights tradition, human rights systems in the world, obstacles of societies bearing on human rights advocacy, and the knowledge of activities at the United Nations are essential to me. Also, to pursue my career goal as a project designer and manager of humanitarian aid, I need to study economic and analytical methods.
My reason for applying to the School of International and Public Affairs at Columbia University is that you have a deep concern for human rights issues and your Center for the Study of Human Rights is an ideal place for me to study. With the wide range of curricular and extracurricular programs and information resources and services you offer, I will be able to fulfill my purpose to study human rights issues systematically. Also, you have the most diverse student body of any comparable program in the United States. Discussion with students from all over the world will enable me to better understand the varied situations of the world and provide a broad perspective to develop possible solutions to problems incorporating multiple points of view.
In doing research or discussion with other students, I will be able to make full use of my writing skills and experience as a journalist and translator having dealt with a wide range of news and translations including social affairs, medicine, nutrition, business and economics. I am certain that my knowledge and experience will enable me to contribute positively to your program.
Kiyomi Ohno
エッセイの流れとまとめ
お恥ずかしい限りの拙さですが、言いたいことは伝わっていると思います。構成は、以下のようになっています。
- 第1段落 入学したい目的を明確にする。
- 第2段落 入学を希望するに至った経緯、自分の背景。
- 第3段落 その経緯に対し、自分がどのように思い、どのようなリサーチをしたか。
- 第4段落 自分が大学に入ったらどのようなメリットがあるか。
- 第5段落 自分が今後、どのような貢献ができるか。
幸い、国連本部でインターンをする、といったさらに素晴らしい夢が実現したのも大学に入ってから。卒業後は実際に国連などで働くということはできませんでしたが（日本に帰ってきた…)、自分を信じて努力を続けることの大切さを実感しました。
育児をしながらの留学生活はそれこそ大変の一言でしたが、実際に実現するまで、一瞬たりともその夢をあきらめたことはありませんでした。小さな日常の積み重ねが「その日」に向かっていたと、今も信じています。