not afraid of doing business with anyone no matter what their position is. I realized that all those people are exactly that – people, and that there was nothing I should be afraid of.
In the summer of 2013, right after I completed my first year of studies at the University of Economics, I gave it another try to apply for a visitor visa for the third time. Because of the good grades at the University and my community service, this time I got my visa and a chance to spend time with my cousins in the U.S. After some time spent in New York, being aware of my family’s financial situation, my cousin unselfishly offered me to try enroll me in a college in the U.S. I was stunned. Not only that studying in the world’s financial capital was something I could only dream of, but it could also eventually be my family’s way out of the poverty. We agreed on that her husband and she would cover all of my living costs but I would have to try get a scholarship to cover my tuition. In return, I would have to take care of my nephew whenever I wasn’t in school. Next few months I’ve spent studying for SAT and TOEFL exams which I successfully passed and got enrolled at LaGuardia Community College. Meanwhile, I volunteered with New York Cares whenever I had free time on projects such as library renovation or food serving to homeless. It took a year to find the college which fits me the best, apply for it, submit required paperwork, and pass all the tests which is what made me a non-traditional
This is the story of an Indian immigrant, who wants to accomplish his American dream someday. I was raised in India which is economically not as well off as the United States of America. I completed most of my high school in India and immigrated to the United States at the age of 18. I graduated high school from Mount Hebron High School in Ellicott City, Maryland. Due to financial difficulties, I did not apply to any university and joined Howard Community College, which was truly a remarkable experience for me, showing me what it means to have an American college experience. I was not inclined towards engineering or medicine unlike my friends in India who had chosen to pursue those careers. I chose to explore the various options available in the United States. It was at Howard Community College that I was
I am a first generation Haitian-American college student. I recently left you my place of employment to return to college. Both of my parents have a high school graduate level education, and some trade experience. Also, my parents both work two jobs and it's still extremely difficult to make ends meet and have the finances left over to pay for tuition and books. Without the aid of financial aid and scholarships, I am not sure if I could afford to continue my education. I have worked diligently to get the funds to pay for classes, and got my grade point average high enough so that I could be considered for such awards. I am confident that my hard work will pay off in the
Have you ever thought you could be great in a career… if only you had the funds? As a seventeen year-old DACA student, I have faced many financial obstacles in my college application process. As a non-citizen, I am unqualified for financial aid from things such as the FAFSA.This means that I have to depend on my family for support on paying for college. I have always tried my hardest in school to keep my grades as high as possible and learn as much as I could, knowing that one day I would need this education for a better life and career. I am currently in the process of applying to college. However, as a member of a low-income family, it has become apparent that the biggest obstacle between me and professional future is my financial necessity.As
I am an immigrant born in the state of Puebla, Mexico. I arrived in the United States at the age of three; I started kindergarten without knowing anything but the words, "Hello, how are you?" in English. I honestly cannot say I was able to fully understand English until third grade, but from then on I was able to thrive in school. As soon as I was able to manage the English language, I achieved high honors in school, and my love for reading and writing came to be. My parents had always stressed the importance of college and how I was an example for my brother and younger cousins. Even before senior year I knew I was going straight to college, a gap year was not in my
HELLO GUYS!!! I have something veryyyyyyyy important to tell you! After all of my stressing about FAFSA ( Free Application Federal Student Aid) , Colleges, and Transportation, I decided to further my education at Rowan University. It took me a long time to make this decision because this wasn’t my first choice! My first choice/ dream school was LIU Brooklyn ( Long Island University) in Brooklyn, New York. I was recently accepted there and planned on attending there, but their out-of-state tuition was extremely high! Their tuition was $33,000 a year and poor black man like myself, cannot afford it. I really loved LIU because it's a great school, beautiful campus, and most of all, it's in New York. I had my whole planned before it even started,
Recently, my appeal for more financial aid has been rejected. While this is a disappointment, I would like to further explain my situation as to why I am asking for more financial help. While I first started the college process, I was engaged and eager to finally step out of my comfort zone. After researching Ithaca for the past years and visiting during accepted students day, I knew that Ithaca College was the best fit for me. The idea of living there on my own for the next four years seemed like a great opportunity to develop my independence and to gain new experiences. Unfortunately, the opportunity of attending Ithaca isn’t as simple as I want it to be. As a first generation student, I am the first out of my family to attend college. Throughout
During my senior year in 2012, I decided to applied to universities however; my parents were not able to help me out financially. Since the Dream Act was not available until January 2013, I decided to attend a community college. I decided to enroll at Santa Monica College and then transfer to a university as a Physical Anthropology major. I took enough classes to be a full time student and still be able to help my parents around the house. My plan was to stay at Santa Monica College for 3 years and then apply for transfer; however, two of my most dear and closest family members became ill. My uncle, who has always believed that I could achieve great things in life, who gives the best advises in the world, and who taught me how to play the clarinet
I faced academic adversity when I moved to the United States in July 2010. I failed to enroll at the University of Colorado in the fall of 2010 because of lack of sufficient funds. I tried to process loans but could not process any loans because I didn’t have a Permanent Resident status at that time. I had no family or close friends that I could borrow money from since I had just moved to the United States. My desire to accomplish my goal led me to start looking for ways to pay for college. I had the drive, determination, patience and a positive attitude so; I started collecting enough funds by working several jobs. A year later, I enrolled into the university and could only afford to register for a three credit hour class. I was persistent
My parents brought me to the United States when I was a baby hoping for a better future for me. Not having U.S citizenship has closed many doors for me. I have become ineligible to receive federal aid and several scholarships. This is a problem since my parents income could never pay a college tuition. Fortunately the Dream Act now exist making it possible for me to pay in state tuition in california and to receive some type of aid.
Once my brother graduated high school, my mother moved 500 miles away, to Connecticut. I decided to remain at home in West Virginia with my father. For various reasons, such as drugs and alcohol, living with him was no longer in my best interest. At this time, I was half way through high school. For a few months, I spent time living with friends. Before long, my grandmother, who I'm not particularly close to, graciously allowed me to live with her. She lives below the poverty line. In order to live in her house, I was driven to support myself. I work between 20-30 hours a week, which allows me to pay for bills, my vehicle, food, and etc. As soon as I graduate, I will be living on my own, and paying for my college tuition, by myself. It is difficult now to make ends meet, and in the coming college year the financial difficulty will greatly increase. I am endeavoring through these hard times, and I will only continue to do that by keeping my grades up as well as having the endless
I came to the United States when I was 15 years old to live with my mom and my two siblings. My mom is a single mother and head of the house who worked 40 or more weekly to give what my siblings and I need. She works in a pipe company cleaning and installing screws to pipes approximately around 25 pounds. She decided to work in a man job so she could get some extra dollars to fulfill our needs. However is not enough to pay for my books and tuition. I decided to work as well so I can pay some of my tuition and some of my other necessities. But what I earn is not enough to continue with my dreams. My dream is to be the first member of my family to earn a college degree. I want to encourage those people who are immigrants and had to get use to
I would go to the orientations and I would write essays to submit for their scholarships. The most I was going to be awarded was three thousand, this was nothing compared to what tuition cost for a private college. Recruiters would come to my high school and set up their booths and whenever they were alone I would go and explain to them that I was undocumented they would tell me yeah I could apply to their scholarships and they would give me their cards. I began to feel hopeful because I felt like I could finally be honest with someone and they were willing to help me. I would call them to ask what additional information they needed for me and when I would explain that I had daca they would say they at the time they didn’t know what daca was, it was new, or that they did more research and found I was ineligible. I still didn’t give up, I signed up on a website with private scholarships. I would spend countless hours looking through them, but was disappointing for me when I read they were only for U.S citizens or legal residents. I knew I could go to community college get a part time job and my parents were supportive and said they would help me financially know how hard they work to give us what we need. I would see how difficult it was on my family when my dad would get laid off for the season because there was no more harvest . I didn’t want it to ask
I was given the offer to be a part of a program called the Robinson Scholar Program. The program is designed for first generation students who had low income in Eastern Kentucky. Five contestants from your school compete for a full paid ride to the University of Kentucky. My mom urged me to apply. I acted like it was no big deal because I didn’t believe I was smart enough for the program. Every day after school, the first thing I did was walk to the mailbox to see if I received a letter telling me if I was accepted or not.
Immigrating to the United States in 1993 from the former Soviet Union, my parents were forced to escape from their war-ridden countries with no money or knowledge of English. Neither of them pursued a higher education since they needed to monetarily support our family after I was born a year later. Consequently, being the firstborn to two immigrant parents became my most challenging obstacle growing up. The language barrier was difficult to overcome since no one taught me English; I spoke strictly Russian at home and began my education in a Jewish school learning Hebrew. When the time came to apply to middle and high school, I recognized that I would also not be able to rely on my parents for advice about colleges since neither of them completed
Like many undocumented families in the the United States, my family has had our share of financial struggles. My mother is unemployed and raising four kids. My father is the only one who is employed in my family; he works as a construction worker at an annual income of about $26,000 tight budget . Despite the financial challenges that my family and I face, we live comfortably. We may not live in the most luxurious or healthiest place in the world but it is this neighborhood that built my personality and my perspective of the world. The first thing that comes up to mind is,”How am I going to afford a higher education?” I will rely heavily on financial aid and may have to pick up a part time job to cover the rest of tuition cost. I am looking forward to college and will not allow my financial situation stop me in my pursuit of higher education.