Michael
peng

My Story

An important lesson Michael had learned growing up was to pursue something that he had passion for, rather than doing something which other people told him without considering his own perspectives. When he was in grade nine, he chose to take coding over film in school, because he was told that coding was an important skill to learn, and it would open many career paths into the future. He had tried coding in the past, but he did not enjoy it significantly. He still decided to take the course, but he found that he lost interest, and he just did not find coding to align with his passions. The following year, he chose film, and he found it to be what he wanted to do in design at school. This was important to him because he discovered the lesson that being truthful to oneself is more important than doing something one does not enjoy. At the end of the day, time is an opportunity cost, and he has since learned to pursue different paths in life where he can find his belonging. As of today, he found medicine and global policy to be where he would like to make a long-term impact.

Michael is currently engaged in many different activities and engagements. He is taking the diploma program of the International Baccalaureate, and his choice of subjects are HL biology, chemistry, and global politics, and SL math AA, English lang and lit, and Chinese B. In his free time, he enjoys reading up about politics and global issues, as well as about medicine and biology. He is the club head at the human rights club and debate club at his school. He believes these clubs are an expression of his passions in life and he cares significantly about them. He is also involved in debate outside of school, going to many different tournaments. He also is highly interested in medicine, and is one of the things he spends most of his time pursuing. He shadows under a doctor at a clinic, and is participating in various chemistry and biology olympiads. 

Michael understands that health and medicine is a global concern, especially in areas that are still currently developing. He wishes to channel his passion and interests into an issue that affects everyone and can make a difference not only on a local but also global level. When he was invited to go to the WHO to meet with WHO experts, advisors and staff through the NGO, KIDsforSDGs, it was natural for him to go. Looking ahead, Michael looks to pursue higher education and employment in medicine so he can positively impact the health and well-being of his community, with a focus on supporting those in the marginalized communities.