My Great Outdoors by Nolan

My Great Outdoors by Nolan - March 2025 Scholarship Essay

I am someone who has always been happiest outdoors. I was the kid that was always outside, fishing, inventing games to play, riding a bike or hiking in the woods, taking in all of the nature that I could. I also am someone who has been plagued by severe anxiety from a young age, suffering panic attacks as young as three years old. It is being outside and having nature around me that has always brought me the most calm and happiness.
In ten years, I see myself working somewhere in the field of natural resources. It is for this reason that I chose to focus on the Natural Resources Management pathway in high school. I loved the classes and was appointed the Pathway Ambassador by my teachers. As part of the curriculum, we took regular field trips to the pond near our high school for fishing and observing nature. These were some of the best times I ever had in school. Additionally, for my Senior Capstone Project, I sampled, measured and compared the quality of various water sources in different ecosystems. As part of my project, I was lucky to have an opportunity to spend five days shadowing a wetlands ecologist in Seattle. I gained on-the-job outdoor experience in the field, measuring the quality of many different natural water sources. It was an invaluable experience that solidified my plan to focus my future career on marine science, conservation and natural resources management.
Currently, I am majoring in Marine Science and minoring in Wildlife Ecology and Conservation at the University of Delaware. I am also a member of UD’s Sailing Team. More recently, I was asked to interview for another internship opportunity in Seattle. This summer internship offers unique tasks in the field such as tallying the number of bears and owls living in the Pacific Northwest. I am extremely excited to potentially be selected for another unique adventure in the field of wildlife conservation. I also plan to apply to a marine science related research internship next summer. I am very interested in one study in particular involving the preservation of sea turtles.
In terms of my future goals, I am not yet exactly sure what my main focus will be but I would probably most like to focus on the conservation of endangered marine species. I hope to someday advocate for the health of their ecosystems. This includes helping to ensure that the installation of wind turbines is done safely and without negatively impacting the various ecosystems of marine life, flying or land animals.
I would also like to work to help greatly reduce water pollution to benefit both marine life and humans. I feel strongly that we can do so much more to lessen the effects of waste pollution. Sadly, marine animals are often found wrapped in netting or plastic. Discarded waste harms and kills birds, and their stomachs are sometimes found full of ingested plastic. The impact of contaminated water on humans is also extremely critical and should not be forgotten. It cannot be emphasized enough that the availability of safe drinking water is of the utmost importance for every community, whether locally, nationally or globally.
I do believe that my education will give me a great framework to meet all of my future goals. My plan is to dedicate my future work toward all of these causes that are extremely important to me and also so crucial for all of the people and creatures of the world, as well as for our planet. Most importantly, I believe that dedicating myself to these causes, while working outside in nature, is exactly what I have always been meant to do.