Although his intended major was initially physics, Frank realized that he was more passionate about the social sciences. His main areas of interest lay particularly in the fields of anthropology and international relations. His exploration of both these subjects was influenced by his interest in the social impact they had with respect to environment preservation and sustainability.

He had been ideating and working on projects to protect the environment since as early as middle school. An organization he founded in 7th grade, creating a market for indigenous products, had raised $90,000 to fund sustainability related projects. He had also previously made an anthropological documentary on an indigenous tribe in his country, to raise awareness about them. 

When he applied to QRI in the fall of his senior year, Frank wanted to explore the cause of environmental depletion from a more global perspective. Paired with an international relations PhD researcher at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, he worked on a paper that explored the role of international treaties in the achievement of climate change targets. While some students will use a research project as a way to demonstrate commitment to a particular academic field, others can use it to deepen their engagement with a social cause. In our research, we have come across passionate students who have done academic research on issues such as gender inequality in education, the rights of informal laborers and racial barriers in access to healthcare.

In his Common Application essay, Frank supplemented what he wrote about his organization with the research experience he had gained at Quad. He also attached, alongside letters from his school teachers, a letter of recommendation from his research mentor, who commended the tremendous effort and detail he had put into his research work. Through his research in international relations, Frank was able to take his work on environmental preservation and understand its global relevance. This not only magnified his passion for the environment, but also indicated an interest in developing an empirical understanding and factual solutions to these problems.