College Admissions Essay: The World I Grow Up

As a child, I never realized the obstacles my family went through and why they wanted me to be the best student at the school. My parents tried their best in sheltering me from the truth but I always knew we were struggling financially. Growing up, I witnessed my parents struggle to find jobs and a stable house

I remember waking up that day and that feeling in my stomach, knowing what was about to happen. Growing up I knew about my father's sickness. My family, I recall, was always supportive. No one ever thinks about how one day, everyone you’re around for years, can just vanish. I cherished my friends as I was growing up. I lived there for a majority of my life, up until fourth grade. I remember sitting at a neighbor's house and having the mother come into the room and inform me that I need to be home swiftly. As I ran home, my head was crowded with thoughts to the point where I could not even think about why I was supposed to be home quickly. That day marked the transition of what would be the biggest change in my life. As by dad became sicker,

Being a first generation student requires more will power than I ever thought I owned. In middle school I was denied by my parents the chance to shadow a pharmacist because they saw this as an unattainable dream. It wasn’t until I began working with disabled children and tried to pursue a nursing degree, that I found the courage and determination to pursue all of my dreams in spite of my upbringing.

When I think about the next five years of my life, I like to think that I will be getting on my feet and succeeding in life. It has taken me a while to figure out what I want to do with my life and what I would like to do for my career. Over the next five years, I am going to have to do a lot in school and outside of school to prepare for my future career .

Growing up, my mother always encouraged me to be involved in any activity I should interest in, whether that be soccer, softball, theater, or chess club. While my mom did not always have the extra money or time, she never told me I could not pursue a new activity. Through my mother’s actions, I have learned to never settle and to continue to fight and work for better, for myself and others. My mother’s selfless attitude and positive attitude inspire me to have the same attitude with the my future family and the people around me.

Ask my teachers, friends, coaches, and family, they’ll all tell you that I’m mature. The way I hold myself responsible for my life, my studies, and my activities through the good and bad is a unique quality about me that they admire, but also know little to nothing about.

So far, the college experience has made me a changed person. College changed me into a better person on many occasions. I have learned to be more responsible, when it comes down to getting work done. In college you must be responsible. I have also changed my attitude. Moving from high school to college is a big step; if you don’t change your ways for the better then you might not be successful in college. When you reach college then is the time that you become an adult.

My childhood was split over two different and unique cultures. This special upbringing presented me with challenges that lead me to continually reflect on my life and identity throughout my childhood. I had to adapt to different educational systems as my family moved back and forth between Syria and the United States. However, that only motivated me to work harder and seize the opportunities that surrounded me at every point of my life. I learned to treat obstacles and hardships as chances for growth and development.

When people tell you that high school would be the best time of your life, you don’t really understand the magnitude of what they’re saying until your time is coming to an end. A lot of people say that you “find yourself” in college. I, however, had the advantage of finding myself in high school. These past six years have been awesome, and I really mean it. I know it might not seem believable for a high school student to enjoy school, but I’m not lying about this stuff. I felt this way even before there was a scholarship to apply for. My mom taught me from a young age to enjoy going to school, and as much stress as it might have caused me over the years, I still loved every second of it. It’s easy to focus on the undesirable parts like sleep

From the time I was born until the age of twelve, my family struggled with the basic necessities of life. My father worked endless hours in a factory, and yet somehow came home with a smile on his face. As a young kid, I never knew we were struggling. The thought had never occurred to me. As I got older I started to realize that my single father was working his life away to care and provide for his two little girls. He completely put aside his well-being because as long as his girls were cared for, nothing else mattered. Life was never easy, but as a young adult today, I have come to accept that my background has been a prerequisite for greatness, for it is our backgrounds that define who we are. The way we are raised, the way we are taught to believe, and the way we are taught to act, make us who we are today.

In my early childhood years I grew up very poor; eating mostly beans, cornbread, and ramen. I grew up seeing how a lower education can affect your life and your children, that why from a young age I knew I wanted a stable future where I knew my children would be able to have a happy life. And with that goal I knew I would either have to get a higher education, somehow land a well paying job early on, or serve in the military. With the beginning of high school I lost sight of my goal not really thinking

Ever since I was a kid, my parents always talk about the hardship they went through to get here. From a house with ten siblings, no electricity, and barely any food, my dad manage to escape poverty and support his family by pursuing his passion in electronics. With his passion, he went to high school without an elementary education and barley passed. Afterwards he went directly into the workforce and continue to educate himself until how he is today.

My parents always encouraged my siblings and I that we were capable of doing anything that we set our minds to. It didn’t matter where or what we wanted to do; all that mattered was if we had the passion to do it and succeed. From that, I was always set on becoming a doctor. It didn’t matter what kind; I just knew I wanted to help people. From a young age, I knew that my parents worked hard so that my siblings and I might have a better life than my parents. Both of my parents came from Vietnam with little to nothing. They both got jobs at Excel before they were twenty, and, after ten years, they met each other and got married. They and bought a motel and restaurant, and managed that for another ten years. They were

Growing up, reading and writing were always a pleasurable experience for me. As a little girl, my mother and grandmother would both tell me stories that they had once been told when they were children in their native country of Cuba. Although the stories they told me weren’t being narrated directly from a book, they motivated me to read some stories on my own. So I began requesting books and taking trips to the library. Those stories inspired me to begin writing and so by the age of 8, I picked up a pencil and embarked on my composing journey. I had countless journals throughout the years and even began writing short stories and poems. My father was the one that encouraged me most when it came to my writing as he genuinely believed I was talented.

College is a great opportunity that I am blessed to be going through today. I see it as an opportunity to grow as a person and set myself up for the future I want. The success I have in the future will be greatly affected by how I do in college.