Welcome to Your New Life by Evelin

Welcome to Your New Life by Evelin - April 2016 Scholarship Essay

“Success is simple. Do what’s right, the right way, at the right time.” - Arnold H. Glasow
My freshman year in the middle of a work overload breakdown I came across the quote stated above. It seems so easy, right? Just do everything right, at the right time, in the right way and you will be successful. Except for the fact that we are humans so mistakes will occur. The only thing we can control is how we handle the situation at hand, and how we handle ourselves. This was something that took me so long to apply into my life. After I learned to accept my mistakes I took a closer look at my high school career and figured out a way to improve my studies in order to facilitate my journey to college. I realized that I began high school thinking that it would be the same as middle school, which is where I went wrong. The most important thing that you have to do to prepare yourself for a successful high school career is being able to understand the difference between the last three years of your life and now. Besides understanding the educational differences between middle and high school, you also have to understand the difference in responsibilities, and the difference in social expectations.
First off, your high school teachers will not be as lenient as your middle school teachers were. Don’t let this alarm you ,but instead look at it as beneficial to you. The reason why your middle school teachers had room for leniency was because the grades you received in their classes will not follow you into high school. Once in High school every grade you get on your report card will definitely count for your GPA, and follow you all the way into college. Your GPA or grade point average is not something you want to mess around with. Every single application I have filled in, whether a College admittance application, or a scholarship application I have been asked what my GPA is. You do not want to limit your self from great opportunities because your GPA did not meet the minimum GPA requirements, trust me. On the same subject as grades, your teacher did not give you a grade, you earned the grade and they recorded it onto a grade book. Blaming your failures or success on someone else will not help you reach your full potential.
Along with adjusting to the high school curriculum, you will also have to adjust to all of your new responsibilities. You are growing as a student, but you are also growing as a teen to a young adult. Some may take on more responsibilities than others, but everyone will take them on. This honestly just depends on your ability to manage time. You have to understand that just because you have a lot of non school related responsibilities does not mean that your teachers will understand and lessen the amount of work they give you. Yes, you will be expected to get everything done, which is why making priorities and setting out specific schedules for your day should be something you get used too. I had to learn how to manage dual credit courses as well as my high school courses, two jobs, and swim practices. I had days when I was exhausted beyond belief, but I knew that if i let myself begin to slack it would become a habit. During these days I would used my friends as an escape, don’t be scared to have fun with your friends and still get your stuff done
Of course with your friends come social expectations. There will no longer be those pressure filled social expectations that there was in middle school. Don’t worry your first day of school won't be like the movies. There's no mean bullies pushing you into lockers, there's no jocks throwing down your books, and there's no one waiting to steal your lunch. Some of the social expectations in high school include having a social group, going out with friends, making it to college, being involved in extracurricular activities, and volunteering. Keep in mind that these are only expectations and you should not feel like less than others if you do not meet them.
In conclusion, in order to have a successful high school career it is important that you have prepared yourself by being able to understand the difference between the last three years of your life and now. More specifically, understanding the educational differences between middle and high school, the difference in responsibilities, and the difference in social expectations. It might take a while to understand and apply all of these new traits to your life , because it’s new, keep pushing, but most importantly “Don’t be discouraged. It’s often the last key in the bunch that opens the lock.” - Ralph Waldo Emerson