Genocide Studies Personal Statement

Wiesel’s cautionary prose left a deep impression on my psyche at an early age, instilling a conscientious passion for human equality. It was not until my years as an undergrad at University of Kentucky, however, that I fully grasped the breadth of his meaning. Having taken a five year hiatus from university, I returned with a renewed passion for learning. I entered University of Kentucky with the intention of earning a degree in psychology. Less than a month into the semester, however, I switched my major to history, swayed by a history course on the Holocaust taught by Dr. Jeremy Popkin. This first glimpse into the world of genocide studies solidified my interest in the discipline, instilling a passion for the pursual of universal mechanisms to detect and prevent acts of genocide and mass violence. …show more content…
Most recently, I completed an independent study course with Dr. Stephen R. Davis on the history of ethnic identity and violence in sub-Saharan Africa. It is under his direction that my specific interests in Holocaust and genocide studies took shape. After completing an extensive research project that assessed the current literature on the Rwandan genocide, my interests in the field shifted from a general interest in the history of genocide to the specificities of individual human action and motivation in committing such atrocities. I assessed a myriad of scholarly literature on the Rwandan genocide, incorporating both the humanities and social sciences into my research. The project not only allowed me to become better acquainted with the intricacies of historical research, but also instilled in me the discipline necessary to conduct self-guided