Why do you want to go to college? by Nicholas

Why do you want to go to college? by Nicholas - November 2023 Scholarship Essay

I want to go to college for many reasons. The first reason is that I would be the first generation in my family to obtain a degree. Secondly, I want to learn all I can, because knowledge is power. Lastly, I want to give myself every opportunity possible in this world to make a difference in the lives of others.

I've been through some very difficult times, but I have never allowed my circumstances to bring me down. When I was 2 years old, my baby sister was born with Melanoma, skin cancer. This shook my family to the core. My father couldn't handle the stress of it all, and he walked out on our family. I watched my mom carry on with such dedication and love for me and my sister. Then when I was 9 years old, my mom had to sit us down and share with us that my father was in an accident on his way to visit us and did not survive. For all that my family had endured over the years, this should have broke us, but it didn't.

In high school, I missed my entire freshman year of school because of the shutdowns from COVID. I didn't let this discourage me from every opportunity my school had to offer. I was in leadership all 4 years of high school. My sophomore year, I was elected Homecoming King and was the school mascot. Go Hawks! My junior year, I was once again elected Homecoming King and started my own club. My senior year, I was elected Senior Class Vice President and Yearbook Liaison. I have taken 8 dual enrollment college classes throughout my time in high school achieving A's in all of them. I feel like this has given me a solid foundation to pursue my dreams of going to college and being the first in my family to graduate.