College Admissions Essay: My Personal Philosophy Of Education

“I’ve learned that people will forget what you said, people will forget what you did, but people will never forget how you made them feel.” (Angelou, 2009) This is a truth that I have witnessed firsthand. As a child, at the tender age of seven years, I was blessed with an educator, Mrs. Cager, whose commitment to her students was so profound until I have never forgotten her. She made me feel like I was the most important person in her classroom. Her encouraging words instilled a level of confidence within me that I still cling to and apply more than 40 years later. Her commitment is directly responsible for my personal philosophy of education also being commitment.

Greetings everyone, I'm Nordia. I've lived in Florida all my life, but recently moved to Orlando for school. This is my second year at Valencia and I am studying Philosophy, Psychology, and Political Science. My interests include diplomacy, adventures, music, growth, and that electric sky! After the upcoming Campaigns I hope to join the U.S. military and enter the field of civil affairs.

Some parents might encourage you. While others will just watch you struggle in silence. A major obstacle that I have faced is the lack of motivation coming from my family and peers, who don’t want me to further my education. My parents do not expect me to further my education, considering none of my family members have furthered their education beyond a high school diploma. Aside from these obstacles I have improved myself academically by staying away from bad influences.

Being a first generation United States citizen in my family, I have experienced both sides of the spectrum where my mother’s mere presence symbolizes a near sacrifice of life for a better quality of mine and work is valued over education. Sounds pretty strange when you think about it because most first generation stories you hear include an overbearing parent that values education over everything else. While my mother does value education, I never posed a need for guidance in that aspect until my junior year of high school but by that time my mother had grown accustomed to me being so independent. My mother in a way had given up on me. She found my struggle with mental health too much of a culture shock for her and consequently treated it as a burden whenever I needed support. I would go weeks without going to school because my depression was too unbearable and I was at the point where suicidal ideations were the norm for me. However, this didn’t phase her in the slightest. Attendance wasn’t something I grew up accustomed to. I

Some might call it “nosey” or “annoying”, but I've always favored the term “curious”. From a young age, my thirst for knowledge has been unquencable and well-known to those around me. My parents, teachers, and any other adults within an earshot were plagued by my constant questions. By the age of six, I had become obsessed with finances. I felt like I needed to know every last detail of people's fiscal affairs. Unfortunately, my six-year-old self was too young to realize that this was considered distasteful. Often at night, while my dad sat at the dining room table to pay his bills and balance his checkbook, I would accompany him. My interrogation into his finances was unrelenting, and most of the time he would comply. Whether he wanted me

You’ve seen the courses I take, the grades I earn, and the test scores I’ve accomplished, and yes that’s all important, but I want you to know what kind of person I really am. I don’t aim for perfection on tests or assignments in the sense of a grade; I aim for perfection only as reaching my full potential and for what I can show. One night I was lucky enough to be in the company of my father’s college friends (he went to the University of Notre Dame). Inquisitive and curious as I am, I asked them for any kind of career advice that they could muster up for me, or anything that they would do differently in their own careers if they could change anything. After conversations of boring statistics I had heard all before, one of them gave me the best advice I had ever been given.

It seems as though my whole life has revolved around getting a proper education and making it into a good college. My whole family has been determined to give me many opportunities to pave my future the way I want, as long I went to college. Getting into a good college has seemingly been the center of my universe for as long as I can remember. Ever since my adolescence in elementary school, the idea of college education has been drilled into my head constantly. Regardless of the many obstacles my family has faced, my future has never ceased to be a vital part of my life.

When I was growing up all I had was an education, I had no friends, activities, or even family to look to for support, strength, or a role model. I only had myself, my soul, and my mind, a body to work, a soul to express, and a mind to what? I didn’t know and with no one around me to ask I began to realize, around fourth grade, during school mental capacity is meant to expand. A person’s mentality and intellect are traits not from my religious deity, but in turn from education and progression in studies from our school systems taught by qualified educators. This thought sparked me to start realizing what my mind can acquire in literature, so I began reading in my abundant time expanding my previous vocabulary exponentially. In fifth grade I

My education is my responsibility, no one can hand it to me, it cannot be bought, it can only be earned and worked for. You can pay for college, but that does not automatically mean that you are paying for an education. A person can attend class everyday and choose to not learn. It is a fact that I am going to need an education if I am going to have a comfortable lifestyle. Careers and jobs are becoming exceedingly competitive, leaving the best opportunities to those who have chosen to further their education. The great part about furthering my education is that I actually desire to do it! When I contemplate about not being able to further my education due to financial burdens, it completely breaks my heart considering I know what the value of an education is.

As a child and even into adulthood I lacked in caring for my studies. I was never a particularly strong student. Being a poor student was not due to the inability to learn. It stemmed from my lack of understanding the importance of an education. I coasted by, did the bare minimum to get through high school and unfortunately that carried over to college. I graduated from Stow-Munroe Falls High School with a 2.3 GPA. I was in the bottom 20% of my graduating class. I was; however, still accepted into the University of Akron. Unfortunately, I was not mentally mature enough to begin college.

During debates, I am often criticized for being too idealistic and childish. Although meant to be derogatory, being compared to the infinitely inquisitive, eager, and fearless minds of our world is not an insult. In fact, my most precious quality is my inner three-year-old. Not the runny nose, tantrum-ridden nightmare of grocery stores, but the curious, enthusiastic, open perspective of the young. The philosophy of seeing the world with clarity, wonder, and imagination, rather than being fogged by preconceived ideas, introduces endless possibilities. In the past two years of preserving my inner three-year-old, consistently presenting the question of why, anticipating where my curiosity takes me, and looking at the world with the objective perspective of a fresh judgment, I am now prosperous. Not physically, definitely not economically, but I am mentally.

"Many will travel to hear you speak". I saw this on a fortune cookie from Panda Express during a time when I was unsure on what I wanted to be and what my talents were. I always had a passion for public speaking, but this seemed out of reach — especially since most of my family members only favored medical related professions. However, I know that I have another path to follow.

My educational life has provided me with the infrastructure that your position requires. I developed myself at the point of research, self-motivation, entrepreneurship and different skills. I would like to point out that I am extremely selfless and enthusiastic about being effective and fast in my business life, and I want to be interested in the responsibility that the position requires and willing to take on my business. I am aware of that working attentively and carefully will definitely result in success. For this reason, I have no doubt that I can contribute to your abilities and work

From elementary to college, it took commitment and self-motivation not to take my past route. Difficult events in my adolescence made me respond to my frustrations through harmful activities, which I would eventually learn not to do. I lacked education as a young man, when I committed awful deeds through peer pressure. Nevertheless, the National Guard and higher education have improved my life. Many losses have happened in my life that were out of my control, which contributed to not knowing myself. However, certain better experiences taught me who I am and how to take control.

Ever since I was a little girl, I knew that in my future I wanted to become a teacher. I always looked up to my teachers, especially the ones I had in elementary school. I even played 'school' with my friends and pretended I had my own classroom. I loved being in charge. During a summer, I was given the opportunity to work as an Energy Express mentor and work with a group of eight children. This was one of the most wonderful experiences I have ever been through. I was a mentor to help guide the children, and by the end of the summer I felt as if I had really accomplished something. I am planning to pursue a career in elementary education. I love children, and just knowing that as a