I didn’t enter graphic design with a grand vision—just a love for making things on the computer while avoiding social interaction after growing complacent in solitude during Covid. I never saw myself as an artist, never mastered traditional mediums. But I’ve realized design isn’t just art—it’s problem-solving, structure, and communication, revealing patterns I’d never noticed, and reshaping how I see the world, and myself. On my first day, I was sure I didn’t belong.

Hearing Professor Chang Sik Kim outline his expectations, I thought I had fumbled my way in by mistake, and nearly dropped the program on the spot. But he convinced me to give it a try, and I’m so glad I did. I’ve grown—as a designer drawn to systems, information, audio and motion, but even more as a person. My classmates’ support gave me the confidence to embrace my voice, and while I still have a lot of growing to do, I’m content in knowing that I'm headed where I need to be.