My name is Eshaan Govil. I am currently a High School Student at United World College of South East Asia East Campus (UWCSEA East).

There are many different aspects in my life that make up who I am. These include: cricket, mathematics, computer science, service and the piano. The following contains some more detail on each of these strands:

Cricket – Until I moved to Singapore I had not known about or had any exposure to the sport. My dad had always been a fan. In the US, I loved to play soccer. My parents watched cricket a lot and the world cup was ongoing at the time in 2011. India was doing well and other kids my age started playing outside the condo. This sparked my passion for cricket and it hasn’t stopped since. I have gone on to represent the Singapore U16 team in various tournaments. More detail can be found in the activities section of my portfolio.

Mathematics – Math has always been my strongest subject and one of my favourites. However, I would say that my passion for maths has really developed and grown over the past couple of years. This is primarily due to the passion that my math teacher has for the subject. His love for mathematics rubbed off on me and made it more than just a class to attend. I was so interested in how he dived deep into the history of the concepts he was teaching and the real life applications as well.

Computer Science – Technology has always been a big part of my life. Growing up, there has always been a gadget or two lying around close to me. Using these devices felt very natural to me and didn’t take me very long to learn. My interest in these technologies as well as passion for math led me to try coding. Starting off using Scratch and other basic programming teaching tools made me realize how logical coding. Learning about how my favourite devices worked has been very fascinating. I want to pursue further studies in the field as well as look for opportunities to do service in the community using tools that I learn. This includes learning new languages as well.

Service:

• Coding for Good – Coding has recently become a great interest of mine, and doing service through that interest has taught me many things throughout. My goal is to help people through whatever actions I take. Coding for Good helps and provides other service organizations at my school digital tools and platforms for their use. This could be a website or an app or a way to organize meetings. A project that I have led recently has given me the opportunity to help others through computer science. I personally remember graduating from middle school and trying to decide which subjects to select for the next 2 school years. It was very difficult as there were so many options and combinations that could be taken. With guidance from the principal and vice-principals of high school, one of my peers and I developed a transitions website for students to have one place to go to to clear any doubts about subject selection, information and combinations. The main attraction of this website has been the spidergram. Using ‘Vue’ a senior and I coded this tool to give students a way to see which subjects match their personality and skill set. Vue is an upcoming coding language which involves components of HTML, CSS and Javascript.
• Try 4 Cambodia – I love sports and to be able to help others through that has been a remarkable experience. As a member and Finance/Enterprise officer for Try 4 Cambodia I work towards using sports, namely touch rugby, as a pathway to get young kids in Cambodia interested in education through sport. When children are having fun playing sports and being well fed, the jump from the field to the classroom doesn’t seem that big. However, for kids who could otherwise be helping their families on farms working, that jump can be a massive one.
• Cricket for COVID – COVID-19 has taken the whole world by storm. Thankfully, apart from lockdowns and online schooling, the coronavirus has not greatly impacted me negatively. However, there are people in the community who are suffering such as migrant workers and those in poverty. With my skills and experience, I can’t do much to help these people directly, so I decided to start a cricket camp for young children and beginners. My plan was to donate all the money to charities, and to do anything I could to give back. Additionally, I hoped to be a catalyst for children trying out the sport for the first time and developing a passion for, similar to how I had done many years ago. The camp allowed kids to try cricket for the first time and learn the basics of the game, such as rules and roles. With the help of my dad’s company’s charity matching policy, the $410 I raised was converted into a total of $1230 donated money. This went to various charities such as the ‘UN Foundation’, ‘Direct Relief’ and ‘Feeding America’. I am continuing this camp in the summer and aim to donate even more towards COVID-19 as well as the ‘Black Lives Matter’ movement.

Piano – Music has been a great passion of mine from a very young age. Listening to songs has been a form of meditation and relaxation for me. This led to my interest in learning music as well. Through my Music course in IGCSE, I composed several pieces. This included music from around the world such as African music, as well as from different time periods such as classical and romantic. Learning to play an instrument has also been a big part of my love for music. I have been learning to play the piano since 2012, and while I can’t say it’s been my biggest passion, it has certainly contributed towards my overall love for music.