Freedom by Jonathan

Freedom by Jonathan - January 2018 Scholarship Essay

Freedom- the ability of oneself to become an independent being in society. The rite of passage known as “attending college” provides adolescents with the liberty of discovering themselves in a self-determining manner. No more reliance on adults to make your decisions. No more dependence on your parent’s money supply. No more restrictions on your actions. These aspects represent the freedom that I would gain from attending college.

From a young age, we develop a necessity to gain approval on every minuscule decision that must be made. Just last week, I asked my parents if I should have a shrimp basket or some shrimp tacos. What kind of adult would call up their 80-year old parents and ask if they should eat a slice a pizza or a hot dog for lunch? College provides many of its attendees with the first test of independence, as students must make their own decisions as they no longer have their parents standing next to them helping them decide whether to choose option A or option B. In the absence of other adult’s opinions, I would be able to strengthen my confidence in making decisions and gain the freedom to express myself through decisions that I solely would be responsible for.

The most important part of freedom is the absence of outside influences on your journey through life. On a college campus, the walls of restriction come down. The college experience allows students to express themselves as full-fledged adults. All of the time, college students raise awareness of key social issues through their speech, through a protest, and most importantly through their intrinsic responsibility to stand up for what is right. For example, the 1960’s saw the growth of the “Students for a Democratic Society” movement which allowed for students to speak their mind. To this date, students use their First Amendment rights to express their opinions. In college, I would like to advocate the freedoms of expression and support the sharing of perspectives without influence or silencing from other members of society.

On another note, college allows students to gain financial freedom or independence. Many adolescents have relied on their parent’s money to pay for all of their necessities and expenses. Pre-college teens do not have to worry about what they are going to eat, where they are going to sleep, how they are going to travel, or to what extent all of their combined expenses would cost. Attending college and living on my own after college would take away some of these luxuries and give me the opportunity to provide for myself. Financial freedom would allow me to fully grasp the concept of earning my own money to provide for myself. Having a college education will prepare me for entry into the workforce at a higher income level and move myself from financial dependency to financial independency.

On the whole, the aspect of freedom in the college experience is the primary reason for my yearning to attend college in the fall of 2018. College is the bridge that allows dependent adolescents to drive themselves to the independent adult world.