Tell us about a challenge you have overcome that showcases your ambition and drive.

This June, I entered a competition, where I had to solve problems for local communities. I lived in a small town in Karnataka where the main occupation of people was to grow coffee. Their main source of irrigation was rainwater but due to a shortage of rainfall, irrigation had become expensive which increased their operational costs substantially. During my survey of 100 coffee planters, I identified that coffee plants were being over-irrigated leading to excessive water usage and increased costs. 

I decided to tackle the over-irrigation problem. The challenge was to come up with a creative, cost-effective solution to help small planters save water and reduce costs. I designed an Arduino-programmed sensor (priced at £10) which calculated the aridity of the soil with respect to the irrigation needs of a coffee plant. I then attached the sensor to the valve of the drip irrigation systems. The sensor would then shut the water flow when the crops were irrigated. My solution helped save 660 gallons of water per acre, which translated into £750, a 25% cheaper irrigation cost per acre. 

I was driven to overcome this challenge as I come from a similar background and saw firsthand how this affected the community’s livelihood. I was ambitious in reaching the final stage of the competition as this enabled me to implement my idea and make a real difference. My drive and ambition also helped me achieve the ‘top 10 community problem solvers’ title among 2500 participants. 

Our thoughts

Positives

• It’s very well written throughout.
• The applicant sets out the background to the challenge really clearly in paragraph 1, with the sentences nicely flowing together. This is key, as if the reader doesn’t understand the issues/hurdles in play, they probably won’t understand why the outcome involved overcoming a challenge.
• The structure is clear: paragraph 1 sets out the challenge, paragraph 2 covers how the applicant overcame that challenge, and paragraph 3 explains how this showcases their ambition and drive.
• The experience discussed is unique, which will have made the application stand out.
• Very clear “outcomes” are highlighted, backed by specific figures (660 gallons saved per acre, £750, 25% cheaper cost), which helps to demonstrate that the challenge was effectively overcome.
• I like that the words “driven” and “ambition” were used in paragraph 3, as these linked directly to the words used in the question.

Potential points for improvement

• The applicant could have explained the relevance of soil “aridity” and meaning of “drip irrigation systems”, just to ensure the answer caters to people with zero prior understanding of irrigation techniques/how coffee plantations work. This is a minor point though - it was a brilliant answer.