My Personal Experience by sharon

My Personal Experience by sharon - February 2024 Scholarship Essay

I have always been highly interested in technology. As a little girl, I watched my mother code and immediately knew what I wanted to do. I practiced Python and JavaScript for hours. When I learned about cybersecurity analysis, I knew I could do what I was passionate about and help others along the way. However, others didn’t think the same of me.
“Are you supposed to be here? You look like you're in the regular classes.” Those were the words I heard as I walked to my seat. I faced the person who made that remark and stood in disbelief, not knowing how to respond. “You look too pretty to be in this class,” they jeered.
“You don’t look smart.”
“You? Have a 4.1 GPA…?”
“No way!”
This was all I would ever hear. I quickly realized why: I fit perfectly into the "preppy girl" stereotype. Girls like me were not supposed to care about school, only our superficial looks and Instagram likes. This false perception of me hurt deeply and made me feel like an outsider.
I could not control these negative experiences; however, I can take action to prevent others from having similar unpleasant incidents online. I want to be a humanitarian in cybersecurity and help others in any way possible. I was unable to defend myself then, so I want to defend others now.