How Education Has Shaped Who I Am by Samantha

How Education Has Shaped Who I Am by Samantha - December 2014 Scholarship Essay

What comes to mind when you hear the word “education?” It’s probably a school: a building attended by individuals to obtain a well paying job in their future. It seems so simple, yet in reality, it’s much more complicated than that. Education is not a requirement in life. It is a choice. Everyday we choose whether or not we should attend, whether or not we will pay attention, and whether we will hear or will listen. I’ve chosen to attend, to focus, to listen, and to grow. It began at the start of my learning, and it is everlasting. This is my story:

While growing up, as young girls do, I became more immune to listening. I constantly argued with my parents: it was my way or the highway, and I would be punished if I didn’t stop while I was ahead. My parents thought I could become a lawyer. They ran the idea by me; of course I thought it was a perfect fit. I also loved to watch mysteries. I was drawn to the suspense and captivation of the films. I pondered, “Maybe I’d like to do this one day - solve mysteries and help people. “Being a lawyer would help me do that.

As I grew older I began to be unclear as to what my future entail. I didn’t have an interest in anything besides possibly being a lawyer, but it wasn’t set in stone. I attended school solely because that is what I was supposed to do. I continued my routine - my so-called duty as a child - through the 8th grade, earning high marks for doing all that was required.

My interests rose above the surface when attending high school. I noticed during my freshman year that I was really good at math; it was something I didn’t mind doing. The idea of an accountant entered my mind.

At the start of the following year it was time to take classes that were more rigor. As an art credit, I took a drafting class, consisting of mechanical and architectural drafting. It was amazing, and I was really good at it. I enjoyed the work I was doing, and using my math skills could aid in the succession of an architect. I was starting to picture it. Finally I discovered an interest. I went from one career option to two: lawyer or architect. It was looking pretty good for me.

The following year I replaced my history course for Law in American Society due to my loathing emotion for history. It was time to test my skills of debate. My law class entered a citywide mock trial competition in Chicago during the spring of 2013. We dominated schools from around the city and took 1st place. Chicago attorneys mentored us and I had the opportunity to ask them about the job. Turns out there’s a lot more paperwork, research, and sitting behind a computer than actual trials and courtroom time. I didn’t want to spend my whole career behind a desk… that’s not me, so being a lawyer was out of the question.

I had one more year of high school to go. I could take a ton of electives that I could breeze through before I graduate. There were two classes in particular that stood out to me. The first course was anatomy. Learning about the human body was very fascinating. I had a lot of questions about why our bodies do certain things. I won’t lie… the class was a breeze, however, not because the class was easy, but because I was so overwhelmed with curiosity my ability to retain the information was not difficult. We even went on a trip to a cadaver lab at the National University of Health Sciences (2014). Again, I found it fascinating: looking inside the human body, holding real organs in my hands, witnessing something most students cannot. Nevertheless, anatomy wasn’t my only interest.

The other was forensic science. We watched CSI episodes, analyzed mock crime scenes, sketched how the scene and evidence were constructed, profiled potential suspects, and the whole nine yards. How is that not interesting? The suspense and captivation I felt as a child came rushing back. That’s when I knew I was done with all the guessing. I want to be a forensic biologist. I want to work in the field and in the lab. I want to find out how people cease to be and unearth what or who is responsible for it.

I guess I knew from the very beginning that I wanted to work in law enforcement, but my education lead me down the right path to rule out the fields I didn’t want to pursue. Over time education has lead me and is continuing to lead me to where I am supposed to be. My education is the reason I see a future for myself. It has shaped who I am. It will shape who I am meant to be.