“I just spent the best $400 of my life.” In May of 2016, I, as just a high school student, became a college student, with just the click of a button. Pressing that small button online to accept my offer to attend Purdue lifted the burden that was pressing down on me. In life there are big decisions and small decisions. Choosing what shoes to wear, whether to take the bus or just walk, and what to get to eat are small choices; they matter in the present, but usually have no long-lasting impacts on one’s life. Big decisions have a lasting impact on life and must be given substantial time in deciding the outcome. During senior year of high school, after spending a few years planning, visiting, and applying to universities, I was entasked in choosing where I would spend the next four years of my life. This choice would not only affect me for the next four years, it would affect me for the entirety of my life.
Fall 2015 Starting in the fall of my senior year of high school, between the mounds of calculus homework, pages of english readings, and hours studying for physics exams, I began to receive responses from colleges I had applied to. The feelings of excitement and angst mixed as I received the letters which started with either a “Congratulations!” or an “Unfortunately”. I was hesitant to open them; the fear or rejection took over. What would I do if I was rejected? Would I still go to college? I might have to go to my local junior college. Don’t get me wrong, it’s a
Four or Five years ago if you were to tell me that I would be confidently applying to the University of Miami I would have laughed. Through high school I did not give much effort and like most of my peers, thought that furthering my education was my only option. Nearing the end of my senior year I started realizing that no noteworthy university would even consider accepting someone like me. As the days ticked away, I applied to a nearby college with an incredibly high acceptance rate and found myself opening an acceptance letter a few weeks later.
Applying to colleges at the beginning of my senior year of high school seemed like a walk in the park. That was before I realized how much work it took to apply. With the common application and all the essays, I never thought I would get them all done. In the end, I applied to seven different schools including: Michigan State University, University of Michigan, Hillsdale College, Oakland University, Grand Valley State University, Kalamazoo College, and Hope College. Oddly enough, Hope College was the last school I applied too but the first school I got accepted too. I never thought I would attend a small, Christian school until I walked onto Hope`s campus.
Life is about making choices, but some of them can even change our life. Two years ago I decided to come to America for my higher studies in Western Kentucky University. Although I knew it was really a challenge to me, this significant decision that I’ve made was going to change everything about my life and me. There are many things in life that can change the course of a person’s life. It can either make a positive impact or a negative impact on a person’s life. It’s always best to have the positive impact though. For me I have had a positive experience that has changed my life forever and that is coming to a different land and culture.
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.
Also, when college letters come and the student is declined from the college they were certain that they would be accepted, then devastation and regret will eat the student for the rest of his/her life. The student will not be emotional prepared to be rejected and will wish they fought harder. Certainty can create a sense of security, but it results in regret, disappointment, and blinds one of the other potentials that could occur. As many would say: “Anything can happen.”
Once my senior year started, it seemed as if all I heard was “College this, college that”, because of all of this discussion I was second guessing even going to college as a whole. From taking SATs, ACTs, and planning prom, college for me was the least of my worries. Fast forwarding to November where college applications are due, I still have no clue on what college I am going to attend. All of the California State Universities applications closed November thirty-first, while the out-of-state schools did not close until the top of the following
We have the free will and capacity to make good and bad choices in life. Sometimes making a decision is difficult, but we must remember to always be ready to face the outcome of our choices. Just like college, we must be ready to face the results whether they may be good or bad. As the saying goes, if there’s a will there’s a way. Choosing a four-year college to earn a bachelor’s degree will give us an edge over those who pursue an associate’s degree from a community college, online school, or those who immediately enter the work force.
Today, our society thrives on the wealth and support of the upper-class aristocrats to guide our dollar sign endeavors in the right direction. They are proof, in the flesh, that college offers a life above average, a life that is comfortable and well-lived. College offers experience for the long run, a chance at higher paying jobs, and a chance to make a positive contribution to the our endlessly evolving world. Nonetheless, it is the decision every high school student faces at the end of their four-year run; is it worth the hassle or is it an unnecessary element in their daily lives.
The choices that we make today will impact our tomorrow. Whether we realize it or not, every single time we do something, we are making a choice. Many of these choices are subliminal, such as the direction we walk or the way we carry ourselves, but some choices impact the way people look at us. More importantly, some choices impact how successful we are in various things. I chose to write about choices because choices are single handedly the most important thing in the world. Everything we do on a daily basis is a choice, and choices are important to me as a person because they are something I am trying to get better at. The choices made in preparation for assorted events are undoubtedly the most important choices that can be made in our
When I first starting thinking about colleges, I figured that I had plenty of time to find a suitable one and apply. However, to my dismay, I soon realized that not only was the application process long and confusing, but it also cost a lot back then. Because of my busy schedule, when I discovered how time-consuming and expensive college was, I almost gave up looking entirely. I was just about ready to throw in the towel and find a suitable part time job and work my way up from there. Just when I felt I was getting overwhelmed, I took a break from college admissions for a while, and later picked them back up again. Little did I know that later in 2017, I would be accepted into ASU and successfully earn a bachelor’s degree in
My life choices right now are going to affect me later on in life. What I mean is that when I grow up I want to become a medical scientist, so the life choices I making right now will affect me later on. For example, if I choose not to study right now, not to do my homework, or not to do the easy things, imagine me later on in college. I would not complete my homework assignments because I got that habit from where I am right now. But if I do everything on time, if I do my homework, if I do my projects, when I’m in college I will be prepared, and after that I can show that I made it in what I wanted to do and
Making decisions is no easy feat, especially when it comes to choices that have the ability to change the direction of one's life. Decisions like choosing what college to go to and what career path to head down are often encouraged to be deliberated as far as years in advance, solidifying the common belief that the more educated the decision, the better it is. English Canadian author Malcolm Gladwell challenges this notion by arguing that snap decisions made by the adaptive unconsciousness have the ability to be controlled and utilized to to become equally as powerful as conscious choices can be. Gladwell executes this message through a well written introduction split up into three parts; the first providing an extended example, the second
A real world example is my decision on going to Napa Valley College and possibly transferring to a university. This decision was made upon thinking about my future,
Choices in life have been made in light of my desires. In eighth grade, I chose to join a debate team and learned about argumentation, presenting an argument, looking at an issue from multiple perspectives, and researching. Along with these skills, I also learned how to speak in public, think quickly, and present myself in a professional way. In high school, I realized that I had to make a choice with how I wanted to spend my time. Although I enjoyed volleyball, this sport took too much of my time and prevented me from focusing on academics and debate. This choice was difficult to make, but I learned that it is best to prioritize the aspects of high school that will help me as an adult and help me fulfill my
There are various academic decisions that are made throughout every post-secondary student’s careers: which institution to attend, which courses to take, whether or not to join any clubs. Many decisions could greatly affect someone’s future as it could have a potential of snowballing into another decision that has inevitable consequences. Take for example, enrolling in courses in university; this decision could have three main outcomes: a positive experience, a neutral experience, or a negative experience. This decision could result in a positive experience, in which the individual genuinely enjoys the course enough to consider taking more courses within that particular faculty or even change their majors due to their new found interest in a topic. Their decision could result in a neutral experience, in which an individual takes