The Little Room With Test Tubes by Emily

The Little Room With Test Tubes by Emily - February 2025 Scholarship Essay

The first day jitters took over me for most of the day. My first day of freshman year, and I barely knew anyone around me. As I walked into the classroom, the rubbing alcohol and sterilizing solutions filled my nose. I sat in my assigned seat, next to my new partner, and I began to listen to the unrecognizable face in front of me. From the DNA on the wall to the finches on the back poster, I knew there was something different there. As my teacher spoke words I had never heard before, I began to feel my passion build. I was hearing names of things I had never heard of before, but they were things that I was made of. That day in that classroom I had found my love for science. I had found my love for biology. I had found my love for cells and DNA. I went from wanting to be an accountant to wanting to be a scientist. My whole life's future had been turned around, but it was something I was excited for.
A few years later I now think of the little girl with a crooked smile. The overbite, crossed teeth, and chips were far from perfect. The numerous wires put in my mouth were enough to build some fear, but little me had always loved the dentist. I think back to my first time in that chair. My mom has pictures of me in my little skirt and butterfly shirt waiting to have my few teeth examined. I always loved the scraping against my teeth revealing the beauties underneath. I loved the goodie bag I would show to my dad when I would get home. Flash forward to brace face, the girl who would do anything for that smile. Flash forward to the girl who felt comfort and ease from all the dentists she saw. Flash forward to the girl who enjoyed getting her wisdom teeth out because of how amazing her experience was. I have chosen to study biology at UW Madison to have the opportunity to go to dentistry school. I want to be a dentist to provide the same amazing experience that I have had in my dental journey. I constantly hear “I hate the dentist” and I never understood the people that say that. I have realized that not everyone feels comfortable in that setting, but I want all my patients to look forward to coming to me. I want them to love the dentist just like that little girl did.
By staying focused on my goals, I will surely be the dentist that I once looked up to as a kid. I am studying biology because I fell in love with it my first day of freshman year. I knew a few kids in my class, and I barely knew the teacher, but I knew from that moment I loved the cells. By studying something I love, I am advancing my college experience and making it something I enjoy. That one semester class had shifted my whole life plans, but I am forever grateful for the little room filled with test tubes.