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West Point rising senior cadet Hojin Han.
West Point rising senior cadet Hojin Han.
When Hojin Han was contemplating his education beyond Pine Creek High School, he considered applying to the Air Force Academy. But instead, after some thought, he chose to attend a service academy nearly 2,000 miles from Colorado Springs.
“I was really attracted to (the U.S. Military Academy),” Han said. “Since I’d lived in Colorado for the majority of my life, I wanted to explore the country a little bit, and I thought that West Point would be a good place to start.”
A longtime history buff, Han also liked the idea of attending the oldest service academy in the U.S. West Point was founded in 1802. The Air Force Academy, established in 1954, is the newest of the five U.S. service academies.
“Because of the long legacy West Point has, and the influential leaders that it has commissioned, I thought it would be the place where I could become part of that line and contribute to something greater,” he said.
Han, who just completed his junior year, was one of three West Point cadets awarded the prestigious Barry Goldwater Scholarship, officials said. Established in 1989, the scholarship provides financial support to college sophomores and juniors who intend to pursue careers in scientific research.
Because Han attends a service academy, he is already a scholarship student. He applied for the scholarship primarily for non-financial reasons, he said.
“West Point already provides financial support for my education,” he said. “I wanted to apply for the prestige and the recognition. I wanted to prove to myself that I could pursue research in that manner.”
As president of the West Point Pre-Medical Society and forensics team lead on the academy’s cyber team, Han has established himself as one of the school’s STEM leaders. His long-term plan is to become “kind of a physician-scientist” in the Army’s Medical Corps, using his research skills to make pharmaceutical development safer and more cost effective, he said.
“I’m hoping to eventually work in military labs to contribute to medical advancements that benefit both the military and civilian populations,” he said.
“I look forward to continuing my research with the opportunities provided by the Barry Goldwater Scholarship, and to applying these experiences in my future career as an Army officer.”
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