Personal Narrative: When Reality Exceeds Expectations

As a high school senior, I spent all year searching for a compatible college that fits my requirements. I wanted a college that is affordable, so when I graduate I am not stuck with a massive debt. I wanted a campus that is has friendly people and feels like home. Finally, the college must provide me with the right skills to start my career. With those three standards in mind, I narrowed my choices to one perfect college.

My attention was to search about universities and the opportunities they provide for their students. I looked for college that makes me feel part of a something big and not about me graduating from the university. After researching on a couple of colleges, I chose Texas A&M as my top university to enroll in the coming fall semester. I have always had an interest in engineering majors, especially chemical engineering, because of laboratory experiments and learning about new chemicals. I have always been waiting for the day I could become a senior to be able to apply to the university I had always dreamed of enrolling. Chemical engineering brings out one's critical thinking and problem solving skills. Texas A&M University is the best university

Growing up with a father in the military, you move around a lot more than you would like to. I was born just east of St. Louis in a city called Shiloh in Illinois. When I was two years old my dad got the assignment to move to Hawaii. We spent seven great years in Hawaii, we had one of the greatest churches I have ever been to name New Hope. New Hope was a lot like Olivet's atmosphere, the people were always friendly and there always something to keep someone busy. I used to dance at church, I did hip-hop and interpretive dance, but you could never tell that from the way I look now.

It is inevitable that sacrifices will have to be made when choosing schooling, but for some, only nonessential sacrifices; the quality and content of the academic program cannot and should not be sacrificed for a change in location. However, financial needs are also important to consider and may unfortunately be an overriding factor. Taking into account all of the criteria previously described, many believe that the best school of the two is Clemson University. Although not as fulfilling in the extracurricular aspects, it has an extremely extensive and reputable engineering program whose costs will not be excessive. In addition, its proximity to mountains is convenient, and the nearby coastline is appealing as well. However, in light of the extremely selective process that each applicant undergoes before being accepted, it is realistic to say that there is a fair chance that most students who apply may not be accepted. In this case, another great choice would be the University of South Carolina. Although not exactly on par with the engineering program at Clemson, it is relatively strong. In addition, the full cost will most likely be alleviated with state scholarships. Although these colleges seem like the correct choice for now, it is inevitable that students preferences may change and with it their choices in colleges. However, with experience in researching and deciding

In today’s extremely competitive, job-scarce economy, having a college degree is now a steadfast requirement when applying to even entry-level professional jobs. Choosing a college has always been a challenging task for high school seniors, but it is now fraught with stress and anxiety for nearly every adult who seeks to further their education. Questions abound: what school offers the exact program I desire? What school is in the best location, or has the best campus? What school feels ‘right’?

One thing that everyone used to always tell me as I was growing up is, “You need to know where you are going to go and what you are doing to do for college.” They put a picture on my mind that if I don't do this I won’t be ready for college and mess up somehow. This led me to start planning for college early. One thing I didn’t consider is what college I’m going to go to. Although A&M and UT Arlington are both great universities for engineering, the differences between them far overweigh the similarities. Some of the factors that differentiate them is their college life, career choices, and total expenses.

Over my years of school, one big influence on me has always been sports. Ever since a young age, I have always enjoyed playing and watching sports. In my four years in high school, I have fell in love with the sport of lacrosse.

I woke up and took one bite out of my pop tart but that one bite was all I could eat. My legs were shaking, and my heart was pounding. My dad told me, “It is a true honor to even make it this far so go out there and have some fun.” Once I heard this statement, I knew I was ready to go. I arrived at school and boarded the bus. The car ride was an hour and fifteen minutes of hearing the squeaking of the wheel on the bus. My teammates were getting their heads ready for the big game.

Of course the norm for me is that of any citizen living in zone three.

I did not want to look through thirty-six-hundred colleges laid out one-by-one picking out a “perfect match” that internet search engines seemed to think they could find for me through the Plexiglas of my computer screen.

Throughout my college search I visited numerous different types of universities, from small private religious schools to schools in one of the biggest cities in the United States. After all of my visits I began to narrow down my top schools by what I value. It was clear what was extremely important to me, rigor.

We began with a lie. I told you one more lie, too, before you left. In all honesty, we’ve been living in a world of lies for far too long, so I wanted you to know at least one truth. I’m sorry; I’m going about this the wrong way. Let me start again.

Millions of people apply to college all over the united states every year to earn a college degree. College degrees provides more job opportunities and a higher income. As a high school senior, I spent all year searching for a compatible college that fits my standards. I wanted a college that is affordable, so when I graduate I am not stuck with a massive debt. Secondly, I wanted a campus and an environment that I can feel comfortable in and not stick out. Lastly, the college must provide me with the right skills to start my career. With those three standards, I narrowed my choices to one perfect college. My search began with all the colleges located in the United States since I wanted to stay in the same country. I then eliminated the colleges

After thirteen years of planning and learning about what college has to offer, the decision finally has to be made about what I want to do with future academic career and life after college. The number of colleges I have to choose from is endless. However; the bigger decision is whether to attend a local branch of Ohio University or Zane State or attend a college out of town.

Something that I value about myself is my strong work ethic. I strongly believe and think it is essential that people know that grades and test scores do not always define the student properly. This applies to me, because I work really hard in all of my classes, and my test grades do not reflect how much I knowledge and the effort I put forth as a student. Two huge times this was showcased was during my AP Biology class and all of my standardized tests.