The Fruits of Labor by Samuel

The Fruits of Labor by Samuel - August 2024 Scholarship Essay

Throughout my life, I have been in constant disarray regarding my educational future and how it may all end because of financial inability. After high school, I elected to go to community college after having the GPA to go to most universities in California. Money has always been a sensitive topic to my family, built on the idea that you work for what you get and don't let anybody give you anything you did not work for. After two years of community college, I received two associate degrees in economics and sociology while completing my general education. I'm now "worthy" of moving on. The excitement of leaving community college for a university is so joy-inducing when you realize how many people have not reached this pinnacle.
Community college, although affordable, is often a money pit where people need to complete what they intended. According to US News, Riverside City College has a 34% graduation rate and an 11% transfer-out rate. These two statistics are the context required to understand how I am at peace knowing that I have reached the mountaintop and am ready to move on. I am ultimately grateful to have completed both and will receive a gap and gown for my efforts. The next stage of my educational journey is going to the big house, big campus, and ample opportunities, where it will be valued with a bachelor's degree. I have been pushing paper for unimportant or valuable work in high school and most community colleges. Being able to transfer to nearly any college in California makes all my hard work, breakdowns, and late nights recognized.
People speak about community college only for its economically feasible nature. Still, they never express how challenging to balance when you have to simultaneously struggle with the costs of living. The process of being a full-time worker and student to achieve this position was exhausting and grueling. After reaching my standing, I effectively beat the statistics and can rest by letting go of the pressures of community college. Whenever it was difficult or impossible, I told myself, "don't be a satistic," because I know I have the brain to compete with any student from any school. School is a luxury that most people do not have the time or effort to complete, but I'm fueled by knowing I can provide the world with value. The university I choose will ultimately depend on what is financially feasible. Still, I know that whichever I choose, I will drain it from its last resource to come out as the best student. Being a child of immigrant parents makes me feel obligated to create a life that would not be attainable in Mexico or Costa Rica.
The fear of missing out on the joys and resources of college will always haunt me. Wasted potential is an aching pain that can haunt you for the rest of you, and knowing that I could do more fuels me to do more. Out of high school, people feel rewarded by college acceptance, knowing their 12 years of schooling did not go to waste. Still, as a community college transfer, it is freeing. My life has always been filled with responsibility; I played sports until my senior year, worked since I was 14, and studied since kindergarten. I have not rested in many years, but now that it is the end of my time at community college, I have a reason to celebrate and relax. Going to a university is a dream I have held since being a child on the principal's honor roll, and I genuinely cannot wait to experience the joys that have avoided me. Everything I have done has been building up to this moment, which is why I feel so passionate about it. I want to overchedule, and as a double major, I will do twice as much in 3 years than most people do in 4. Writing essays, reading, studying, and submitting to countless scholarships are my joy, and most people avoid them. Whether my educational future comes from a California State University or the University of California, I always appreciate the Community College that allowed me to work towards my dream. The joy of stepping on a university campus can not be understated, but I will never wear their colors. Instead, I will wear the orange and black that gave me a home for two years. Going to a community college will be gone but never forgotten.
Sacrifice is only meaningful if it is for the benefit of something, and I have worked too hard for my at Riverside City College to go to waste. I refuse to attend class and waste the professors who most likely sacrificed a job at a university to help those less fortunate. I am here not for my talent but for the early mornings and late nights and my motivation to achieve my dream and let nothing, not money, not time, not pressure, or lack of motivation, stand in my way of achieving what I set out to do. My dream is not complete, but a weight has been lifted from my shoulders, knowing that community college has helped me complete so much so I can one day wield a degree for a fine California institution.