College Admissions Essay: My Advice To The College Bound

Everyone has to make choices in their life. Some are everyday choices, like what to eat or drink. Others are more critical, like choosing a job. Important decisions take time to comprehend. Like with me, the decision to go to college was the most critical choice in my life and for my future, and I will never regret it. Going to college is important because it helps me find a job, it expands my knowledge, and it is a wonderful experience.

Former baseball player Tommy Lasorda once said, “The difference between the impossible and the possible lies in a person’s determination.” The journey of our life is full of winding paths and concrete obstacles whose sole goal is to slow us down, and to attempt to block us from reaching our ultimate goal in life, whatever that may be. These barriers are there for several different reasons, whether it be mental or physical. Sometimes these obstacles are motivated by fear, other times they exist simply because we have to make a decision, and that decision can be life changing. But through our determination, and through our perseverance, we can achieve what these barriers told us was impossible, and can pursue the path in our life that leads us to our ultimate self. Throughout my life, I have had thousands of barriers stand in my path. And the only way I was able to defeat them was through conquering my fears, and breaking my limits in order to achieve excellence.

This forced me analyze my life thus far, to recognize my fears and what I hold dear. It’s only been sixteen (one month till seventeen) years in this carcass, but I already feel like an entire life has flown by. It was like a prerequisite of actually watching my life flash before my eyes. This project was nice to sit back and look at what a social mess I am (one of my most favorite pastimes). But also, only being sixteen, I don’t hold what many would believe to be true values, dreams, fears, and identity. Nevertheless, this is what I have so far.

Imagine me -- a hotshot 14 year old, destined for the Ivy leagues, captain of the JV wrestling squad (weighing in at an impressive 5'3", 115 pounds), and an overall smart alec strolling into high school as if it owed me something. Failure was not a part of my claimed impressive and nothing could stop me from being top of my class (spoiler if you haven't looked at the rest of my application: I'm not).

Being the product of immigrant parents, I’ve never taken education for granted. When my father was younger, he grew up in the countryside of Fuzhou. It was separate from the rest of China in that laws, such as those limiting the number of children a family could have, and an a proper education system didn’t apply. Where he was from, they grew what they ate and ate what they grew, living day to day. When he came to America, he didn’t speak a lick of English and struggled to receive the education needed for many careers. So, he started as a restaurant worker, and saved up the money to be a co-owner, and then a manager. My parents worked tireless nights for over twenty years, from 10 am to 11 pm, never taking a day off. They sent me to school

As I prepare to enter my college years, I’m excited by all the options I have, whether it’s possible majors, clubs, and career options. I have to admit, though, that all of this is extremely overwhelming. As the first person in my family to attend college, it’s been hard for me to get advice on what to do. I’d love to be apart of LUCES because I will benefit from the sisterhood and guidance that it can provide for me during my time at Loyola. In my family, I’m expected to set an example by being the first to go to college, and I would love to do so with sisters who relate to my experience. On top of this, I want to be a mentee apart of LUCES because the program fosters a community of diverse minds and ideas that’ll give me a well rounded experience at Loyola.

Probably the most important turning point in my life happened in 1992.  At this time, I was eight years old and living in Williamsport Pennsylvania.  My dad had a well-paying job at Anchor Darling Valve Company, I was attending a parochial school and I thought life was just great.  At the time we lived in a large four-story house with a separate three-story garage and an acre of forest for a backyard.  I had a ten-speed bicycle and I would often go bicycling with my friends at the nearby cemetery.  No-one ever objected to this, in fact people would often have picnics at the top of this hill at the cemetery.  I guess the only things I ever complained about were the constant music

I started to live by a quote by Jean Houston saying, “Never let your emotions overpower your intelligence.” I say that is completely true. Emotions are only temporary and intelligence is permanent. Making decisions based upon a temporary feeling can result into a regret or a problem to solve. Only time will tell.

Imagine yourself stuck in a nutshell, jammed in between the two biggest decisions of your life. That was me. Wedged between the two most important decisions of my tenth grade year, for my eleventh grade year… to tryout for the school dance team or to not try out.

Ever since I was a little girl my main long-term goal was to find a career that I loved. I knew that I wanted to put my own level of happiness over income. I also knew that I wanted a job that makes a difference. After numerous family members, teachers and friends asking what I wanted to do after school I began to look within myself to decide what I was passionate about that I could turn into a career. After some self-reflection I determined that I was passionate about loving my family, helping others, school, and softball. Soon it became clear to me that I wanted to become a high school math teacher which would also allow me to coach.

When I was 21, my son was born and I left college; as a result, I spent the next nine years working in dead-end jobs and making excuses as to why I could not return to school. I spent the next seven years earning three English degrees. Along the way, I had many excellent professors who reignited my love of learning and my desire to teach. I secured a job teaching English at a vocational school, and discovered that there was nothing better than seeing the spark in students’ eyes when they learned a concept or skill that had never before made sense. Unfortunately, the school closed less than a year after I was hired. With such little experience, I was unable to find a full-time position at the college level. However, the dean of the Liberal Arts

In second grade I started reading anything I could get my hands on. The power of knowledge allowed me to

As I first came across this essay prompt, I was discouraged at the thought of trying to make myself stand out from the thousands of other students applying and competing to make themselves appear ____ in 750 words or less. I panicked, feeling as if I had nothing to offer in regard to unique interests or life experiences. An ordinary, white, high school female with happily-married parents and minimal hardship, my story is not one that easily gains the attention of ____. Sitting in my desk at Northwest Christian School, thinking about how I could make my ordinary self stand out, it hit me that the normal experiences I encounter each day are actually quite far from normal. My life as a private school student, though NORMAL in my eyes, sets me

Everyone at some point in their lives start a journey, whether it’s towards success, love, fame, money, etc. We all had start it somewhere, mines started quite early, maybe around the beginning of the second grade in elementary. I was seven at the time. I still remember the majority of my classmates and my teacher, Mrs. Edwards. Which up to this day, I still think about, her kind manners and those vivid, somewhat aggravating, memories with my class.

As I hear laughing and gossip vibrate through the wind, I look down and analyze all the things that are wrong with me. The first thought that enters my mind concerns my appearance. I think about the decisions I made this morning about my outfit, hair, and makeup. My face becomes bright red and my heart fills with anxiety. I assume that every overheard conversation is about me. I see watching me with judgemental eyes as I hide my face behind my hair looking and pretend to occupy myself with the blank screen of my phone. In those moments of anxiety and fear, I lose my train of thought and get lost in all the insecurities I have built up inside of me. These emotions have existed within me for nine years. I have since developed the security and