Education is the Foundation by Emily

Education is the Foundation by Emily - June 2023 Scholarship Essay

The reality of my life one decade from now is hard to fathom when I have only lived for two so far. Every year seems to bring immense change to my life and to others’. In the last five years, we have seen demand for change in the structures of society. We have protested for social equality and climate change. We have been witnesses to, and victims of, a global pandemic that halted life as we knew it. New career-changing technology is being launched on a daily basis.
While the world around me develops and changes, as do I. Nobody knows what the future holds, but I do have two constants that continue to push me down the path I was intended for. These constants are my passion for learning and my love of writing.
Three years ago, I was a sophomore in college. The pandemic had just begun, and I was stripped of the ability of to experience college in person. During this time, I started to distract myself from the chaos of the world around me through my coursework. I delved into the analytics of the legal field and the synchronicities of words in English class. These two subjects have always been of interest to me, and that seemed to be the only aspect that the “new me” kept.
In my pink swivel chair, I found solace. I started to revive through the same academic rigor most would feel drained from. I accredited this to the validation I would receive through numerical analysis of my comprehension, but it became clear to me after a while that the fruits of my labor were a reflection of my subconscious. Obsession and distraction were not at the heart of my labor, but passion.
My coursework had served as an outlet and as an advisor. Confusion and grief found a way to manifest into beautiful stories and well-written legal documents. I had been pouring my heart into the stories I was writing in English class to facilitate the emotions I could not face. I found understanding of the situation through my legal studies classes by introspecting others’ difficulties and simultaneously accepting mine. I found the power within knowledge, or rather, knowledge helped me find the power I already had within.
One month ago, I graduated undergraduate schooling with a Bachelor of Science Degree in Legal Studies and a minor in English. In two months, I will begin my first year as a law student. None of this would have been possible without the privilege of education. Education has been the foundation for my personal growth and will continue to guide me in my professional life.
In ten years from now, I will be an attorney, a published author, and a professor. The fundamental resting behind all three of these careers is education. As an attorney, I will use my education to improve the lives of others. As an author and a professor, I will share the knowledge I have gained to encourage and shape scholars. I will be an advocate for social equality in the classroom, in libraries, and in the court room.