A Good Education Changes You. by Katherine

A Good Education Changes You. by Katherine - December 2014 Scholarship Essay

The education I have received though my life has affected me differently

depending on my age. I can remember going through phases where I loved to learn, then

phases that I despised attending school, and back to throwing all my heart and soul into

succeeding in school. Now that I am older I can see the benefits to obtaining a higher

level of education. There is more to it than being able to say that I was able to receive a

degree; there is pride, a better future, and the potential for a better life, just to name a few

areas that education can change things.

When I was fairly young I loved to go to school. There was a strong sense of

desire to learn anything and everything that I could soak up. I looked forward to school

each day and tried my hardest to make good grades. My parents were a large influence on

my positive feelings toward school. They encouraged me, and pushed me to do my best.

These early years taught me a lot about setting goals and achieving them. At this age I

was not looking toward when I would be an adult and what I needed to do to be

productive, I was reaching just past that next assignment, the next test, the next project,

so I could succeed right then.

As I got older I lost interest, became board, and struggled in some areas in school.

I, like so many other young adults, just knew that I had the entire world figured out. I lost

my desire to do well in school, I felt like I was never going to grasp what I was not

understanding and dropped out. Although I made the decision partly due to needing to

help out with an ill family member, ultimately I made the decision to leave high school

because I felt it was not doing anything to benefit me. It was not until a few years later

that I really realized the true downfall to the choice I had made. I was able to fully see the

direct effects of what the lack of education can do to harm or hold someone’s life back.

The good foundation of goal setting that I had developed as a young child came

back. I studied and took my GED test. The day I passed I sent in my first college

application. I am now at a point that my education is allowing me to set goals for the

future. It is allowing me to achieve my dreams and succeed. My education has taught me

not only math, English, science and history, but, what is more important is that is has

taught me that I can achieve anything that I want. It has helped me to realize that I can

understand things that are difficult even if I need to study a little longer. It has taught me

to apply myself fully to what I am doing, and not to sit back and blend in but to stand up

for what I want.

So how has education shaped me? It has shaped my confidence. It has changed

my ability to handle stress. My education has impacted me in more ways than I can even

imagine. My education, and my outlook on education, has had some amount of influence

on shaping everything about who I am today.