Assignment 1a: Descriptive Reflection

Subject: Introductory Letter

 

Dear Professor Blackstone,

 

My name is Robinchloe Lagrisola, and I am writing this letter to formally introduce myself as one of your current students. I graduated in May of this year from Ngee Ann Polytechnic with a diploma in mechanical engineering. When I was young, I played with my toys unconventionally by dismantling and assembling them again in the correct order using common hand tools. As I grew older, I was able to build computers, repair bicycles, or even troubleshoot the circuit breaker during a power trip at home. Hence, this started to fuel my interest in the study of engineering, which is why I am currently still studying mechanical engineering for my bachelor's degree here at SIT.

 

One of my communication strengths is that I have a solid foundation for writing reports, letters, and research papers. This is due to the experiences I have had during my time at polytechnic and my internship, where I have written reports on laboratory results and hypotheses, research on certain materials and manufacturing processes, and many more. However, there is always room for improvement, one of which is in my presentation skills. There are times when I would lose confidence or the ability to read clearly when presenting, which can affect my overall performance. One reason is that I am a quiet and reserved person, which makes me uncomfortable speaking in front of people. To combat this, I take deep breaths before speaking and concentrate more on delivering a good performance rather than the fear itself.

 

This fits nicely with my goal for this module, which is to be more confident in speaking publicly and presenting in front of an audience. Specifically, I want to get rid of the jittery feeling I get before my name gets called up in front. Another goal in mind is to widen my use of vocabulary and sentence structures to create more variety in my writing. This is to prevent repetitiveness when I am writing a few thousand words, like in research papers. Personally, I feel that these goals are examples of the fundamental skills needed to effectively communicate, not only in school but for our future careers as well.

 

What differentiates me is that as an international student, who climbed his way through Singapore’s education system, I believe that one’s fate can only be influenced through diligence and hard work. When I first started studying in Singapore, I struggled adapting to the changes in my environment at an early age, particularly the education system and language, where I am not used speaking in english especially with singlish accent. I faced many failures in exams, difficulty understanding my teachers and conversing with classmates. However, these experiences taught me a valuable lesson that I still carry on to this day. 

Now, I am ever more determined to give my best effort in this final chapter of my education. I look forward to attending your classes and learning more than pressing buttons on my calculator. Thank you.

 

Best Regards,

Robin