Saving Lives: A Class Effort by Ashley

Saving Lives: A Class Effort by Ashley - December 2016 Scholarship Essay

When we're young, we like to claim we can do anything or be anyone all on our own. I can sail the ocean blue or learn to fly. I can become an astronaut or a scientist or even a movie star. We believe everything we do is some great accomplishment, or I did, at least. As I've grown older, I've come to the realization that most of my childhood 'accomplishments' were really just results of my parent's hard work. One of the first achievements that I could say I truly earned was being accepted to be a part of the Emergency Medical Technician Certification course at my high school.

The EMT course is a Practicum course in which high schoolers are able to learn the information, take the test, and complete the clinical hours to become a certified EMT. In order to be accepted into the program at my school, I first had to go through an application process during which I was evaluated for my professionalism, initiative, and leadership qualities. The EMT teacher based the acceptances partially on grades, but most of it was off of teacher recommendations, the written application, the interview, and performance in previous healthcare-based classes.

While waiting to hear if I had been accepted or not, I found myself more nervous than usual. It was because I had really put the effort into this. I had spent time on the applications and I had faced one of my biggest fears by going in for that interview. And this time, if I failed, it really would be my fault.

What I didn't realize was that if I succeeded, it would be my fault as well. When I found out that I had been accepted into the Practicum, I couldn't have been more proud of myself. The years of work and effort I'd put in and the chances I'd taken had become one of my greatest achievements. It proved to me, and to everyone else, that I had transitioned from the girl who falsely thought she could do anything, to a young adult who had actually accomplished her goal.