Brodin Mikuta '15 Recruiting Profile

Hello.  I'm Brodin Mikuta.  Thanks for taking the time to read my personal statement and to learn a little about me.  I'm excited about the idea of going to college and continuing my education.  However, what I'm really eager about is getting a chance to swim on a college team.  Sometimes it's all I think about, and I believe it helps drive me.  So first I'd like to talk about my swimming career.

Something that sets me apart from many other swimmers in my age group is that I haven't been in the sport as long as others.  Actually, I used to be afraid of the water.  I don't know why it freaked me out, but I knew I didn't like the feeling.  So at 9 years old I began swim lessons during the summer.  Shortly after starting the lessons I began loving it.  I couldn't get enough.  After I graduated from the lessons, I joined a park district swim team when I was 11.  At first it was a little intimidating, but after my first swim competition I knew this is what I wanted to do.  After that first summer on the park district team I moved to a YMCA team near my house.  

Five years have gone by and I have made some significant accomplishments.  First, I began by making team records, which I thought was pretty cool.  Next thing I knew I was on a relay team which qualified for YMCA state.  The following year I made my first individual qualifying time, along with the relay team.  After that I began qualifying for state in multiple individual events.  At the same time I was qualifying for IL Swim Championships.  Until finally this year I qualified for YMCA Nationals in the 100 Breast.  It's definitely my favorite stroke, and I'm known to be a sprinter.  But I'm also working on knocking down my times in the 100 Fly, 100 Free and 200 IM.

Another hurdle I had to overcome was the fact my high school doesn't have a swim team.  So the last three years I've competed at high school sectionals as an individual representative of my school.  Without a high school team, or coach, behind me I thought I didn't stand a chance.  However, I missed qualifying for high school state by 3/10 of a second this year.  I'm going to high school state next year.

Next, I'd like to talk about my academics.  Now I'm not naturally gifted when it comes to the general courses like math, science, etc.  But I've strived to get exceptional grades in higher-level classes such as AP and honors courses.  I've made honor or high honor roll every semester.  It takes effort and hard work on my part, but I want to prove to myself that I can do it.  Some of my favorite classes are History, English and especially Art.  Some of my work has been entered in art contests by my teacher, and I won a few times.

Finally, this brings me to what I'm looking for in a college.  Obviously I want to go to where there's a swim team.  Being a swimmer representing a college is a dream of mine.  I'd like to not only be an asset to the team, but to get out of it that which being on a college team can provide.  As for college life, I want to take it all in and get out of it everything I can.  I'm not entirely sure yet what direction I want to go academically, but I am leaning towards Liberal Arts.  I feel my interests are definitely in that area. However, I'm looking for a solid program where I can learn, grow and find the right path for me.

Thank you for your time.