The Complete College Experience by Lacey

The Complete College Experience by Lacey - November 2017 Scholarship Essay

College is often referred to as the “college experience.” An experience is, by definition, knowledge or practical wisdom gained from what one has observed, encountered, or undergone. The purpose of college is ultimately to gain an education and prepare yourself for the workforce outside of schooling. Although, college is also important to grow and expand emotionally and take full advantage of the opportunities presented to each individual student. The opportunities for growth through world travel are endless, and are truly unique to studying abroad. Experiencing new people, a different culture, possibly a different language and even an altered curriculum at the university abroad presents the individual with brand new thoughts and ideas. If experiences are supposed to provide us “knowledge or practical wisdom through encounters” then I don’t believe that the college experience is truly complete without studying abroad.

Coming from a small Midwest town of about 20,000 people, everyone knows everyone, the inhabitants are set in their ways and rarely look at things open mindedly. My experiences are very limited by my location and the people in my environment. I am attending a college in a town with about half of the population of my hometown. Being a college town there is a wider collection of thoughts, opinions, and lifestyles but the small town aspect still plays a role in the experiences made available to me. Studying abroad would only positively impact, not only my college education, but me daily for the rest of my life. Being able to see the world from a completely different view, literally and physically, would be eye opening in multiple ways. Being submerged in a culture unlike your own and navigating through the differences and the contrast of the language would only strengthen your feeling of independence, and self reliance. Attending college is an entire stage of your life centered around being an individual and figuring things out for your own success.

Life provides only a certain amount of experiences for you to obtain, so at a point in your life it becomes your responsibility to take control of your own experiences and expand your possibilities. The phrase, “life is what you make of it,” is cliché, but also extremely factual. It is up to each individual to provide a better life, with better life experiences for themselves. Attending college is a great starting point for this perspective, choosing to attend college in a different country has endless possibilities for experiences, and experiences are the way we grow as people. Challenging ourselves is vital to our growth and success as individuals and I believe studying abroad would only positively impact my life, and my perceptions of it, for the entirety of my life.