Learning Myself by Hannah

Learning Myself by Hannah - June 2013 Scholarship Essay

     When I was a fifth grader, the thought of attending a school for four extra years after high school was something I thought I would absolutely dread. Why on earth would I want to put myself through four more years of writing, reading, studying, and learning material that I did not care about? Of course, I had a drastically different idea of college when I was younger. In fifth grade, it meant nothing more than another school, another pile of books, and another ensemble of unforgiving teachers. But this outlook of college has shifted into a greater and more positive perspective than what I once had.
     Attending Messiah College is growing to be a highly significant experience in my life. Not only has it expanded my knowledge and insight of important subject matters in the world, but it has also expanded my knowledge of myself. To me, attending college means learning about myself and finding who I am.  Who I am is defined by several aspects in my life, but I have discovered that finding my purpose in life is the greatest contributor to finding me.  I have also found that the best way to discover my purpose is to get a feel for what I am passionate about. College gives me the opportunity to explore. It allows me to look at an endless list of possibilities and investigate each one until I have found what I truly enjoy doing.  Before I attended college, I knew that I wanted to be a Biology teacher, but only after a year at Messiah College have I started pin pointing exactly what I want to get out of my future career. I do not want to just get a degree so that I can get a job. I want to take full advantage of my college education and learn simply because I love learning.  I want to learn more about myself and how I can express myself through my major.
     College is still a place of arduous work. In fact, right now I consider it to be my job. Attending college involves putting forth my absolute best effort in order to learn the skills and knowledge that I need to succeed in what I am passionate about.  I am passionate about learning biology, and I strive to share my passion with others through teaching. My hope is that, through teaching, I can inspire students to begin to think about their own purpose in life and help them seek out the learning that they are passionate about.