Forging My Own Path - A Solo Journey by Chimamaka

Forging My Own Path - A Solo Journey by Chimamaka - August 2024 Scholarship Essay

My next big educational goal, besides being accepted into a top university and putting myself through college, is to become the valedictorian of my graduating high school class. Coming into high school, I had many big dreams, goals, and plans that I wanted to accomplish during high school and after graduation. To achieve my goals, I had to focus on excelling in academics. I participated in various extracurricular activities. I constantly challenged myself to take on rigorous courses. And I set a standard for myself to only get straight A’s throughout high school. However, when setting these goals for myself in my last year of middle school, I didn’t set “becoming valedictorian of my graduating class” as one of my goals. Don’t get me wrong, I would have LOVED to be the valedictorian of my class. It would be the cherry on top of all my high school achievements. But I was looking at the bigger picture of my situation. I don’t have a strong support system in my life. I have figured out how I’m going to afford to go to college. I have to manage schoolwork, extracurricular activities, studying for standardized tests, and part-time work, all while dealing with family problems and pursuing my life goals. I have to pay for my transportation to events or walk if it’s close. I am very stressed and anxious about my future.

If I want something done, I must do it by myself. I operate as if my entire future depends on the choices and actions I take today. So, I can’t just get “good” grades, I have to get the “best” grades. I can’t just score within the 50th percentile on the SAT, I have to score within the 90th. I can’t just aim for the sky; I have to reach the moon. Mediocre actions lead to mediocre results. So, you might ask yourself, “Why not set out to be valedictorian then?” When making plans and goals, I have to reason with myself and ask, "Is this achievable?”. What steps do I have to take to achieve this goal? I am in the Science and Technology program at my school. For this program, I am required to take certain classes. Although the required classes I’m taking are weighted and boast my GPA, I’m limited in the number of Advanced Placement courses that I can take. And because becoming valedictorian depends on what courses other people are taking and what grades they get in those courses in comparison to my own, I decided to not stress myself out even further by focusing on something that won’t help me make a better life for myself. So that’s what I did. I made appointments with my counselor and program coordinator to place myself into the best courses that I was eligible for and did the best I could in those courses. I ended up becoming the 9th grader with the highest GPA, the 10th grader with the highest GPA, and I just ended my 11th grade year with the highest GPA in my graduating class. The vice principal for my class told me during the executive board meeting that I was in the running to become the valedictorian for my graduating class and that I should “keep it up”. So, as I’m going into my last year of high school, I am very much looking forward to putting a cherry on top of all my achievements.