Opportunities Await by Tracey

Opportunities Await by Tracey - April 2020 Scholarship Essay

College is full of opportunities. Meeting new people, learning life skills, trying new things, and discovering yourself. College is an opportunity to earn a higher education degree while enhancing your life in many ways.

It starts with meeting new people. Arguably one of the most important opportunities college can offer. Although this opportunity can seem daunting, taking advantage while also remembering all your peers are in the same boat can propel your college experience into the age old saying, “the best years of your life.” Whether you live on campus or at home, each day is an opportunity to meet new people. Throughout the four years of undergrad, you will take classes with new people which affords you the chance to work with others on group projects, to study, or do assignments collaboratively. Through these experiences, you begin to create friendships which extend beyond the classroom. Whether you go to the dining hall, a sporting event, a performance, or simply hangout in the dorms, your time spent together leads to the creation of fond memories and life-long friendships.

Beyond the nervousness and excitement of meeting new people, you also gain many personal responsibilities which you have to learn to balance once in college. Time management is one of the biggest responsibilities and has proven to be one of the hardest for new college students. With newly found freedom and friendships, it is simple to push aside assignments, classes or studying. However, when Sunday hits, reality sets in that everything that was pushed aside to do later is an overwhelming rush to do now. This will certainly bring on a surge of stress. Sunday seems to be the day of catch up where people cram in all of their assignments, do their laundry, clean up their room, and various other things they put off throughout the week. While Sundays can be good for those things, if students better managed their time, stress would remain low and allow a better chance of success. Learning this skill early on in a student’s college career is imperative not only to educational success but to future career success as well. In addition to time management, college students have to take on a lot of personal responsibility. This includes, but is not limited to, doing their own laundry, studying and doing all of their work, while maintaining healthy habits without their parents or guardians there to ensure they are doing so.

Being in a new place without direct supervision can encourage students to get out of their comfort zone and try new things. Typically, a graduating high school senior has known their classmates since the early years of elementary school. They have participated in the same activities, club or sports, have been a part of the same social circle and have shown interest in the same subjects year after year. College can offer a fresh start and new perspective. Students are encouraged to try something they haven’t in the past. This could be a new club or group activity. Maybe something they never had a chance to try before. Maybe something they thought was cool but were afraid to try due to the pressures of high school. Having the opportunity to make choices that truly make you happy can be impactful and empowering. These new experiences help to mold and shape students into the people they will become.

All of these experiences in college lead young adults to learn more about themselves. Being introduced to new people and new experiences provides for new opportunities in their lives. These opportunities can lead to an advancement in their educational career or an advancement in their personal life. The combination of both is why college is regarded as important to so many, including me.