College Admissions Essay: Living Up To The American Dream

My American Dream has always been driven by success. Employment/ career, Family and community success to be more specific. The advancement of myself ,my family, and my community has always been a priority. Being that I am a Black American born in the United States my struggle to obtain the American Dream differs from most people. There are many obstacles to overcome such as racism, stereotypes and just being motivated to reach the next level in life. Personal and family success can be obtained by getting a good education and securing a good job or career. Community success takes a little longer, especially if the community has been on an economic roller coaster ride since the 1950s and 1960s.

The American Dream has been misinterpreted for many years. Many people believe it is dead and it can’t be achieved by anyone. But is the American Dream really unobtainable? Many people associate the American Dream with making a ton of money, a stable and enjoyable job, having a nice house, car, family, etc. But many people believe the American Dream is no longer obtainable. Is this true? Or is the people’s definition of the American Dream all wrong? Achieving the American Dream is still possible because it is achievable by anyone who pursues it, people have given it a different and untrue definition which other people believed, and it is attractive enough for immigrants to want to come here.

Some say the American Dream can be defined as being better off than your parent’s generation. Others may see it as the promise of riches and opportunity. But most agree that it is what immigrants come to America for. Personally, I believe it is meant to give everyone, no matter who they are, an equal opportunity to achieve success however they define it; to do so it embraces and upholds certain ideals and works to unite us a nation.

Ever since I was little, my mom stressed me to be a leader. By this she meant don’t be like everyone else and look up to a person, but be the one who everyone looks up to. Being a leader isn’t an easy thing to be because you must be a role model 24/7. In my opinion I’m a leader academically and physically. Excelling when it comes to grades and on the football field. When it comes to grades I display leadership by giving help to those who are struggling in an area I’m eminent in. Also, being the only boy in my grade level to be inducted into the National Jr Honor Society should mean something as well. But in football, this is the area where I display the most leadership. One example, would be last season in the championship game. My team

Growing up, my parents couldn 't always afford what I wanted, but I always had food and shelter. My dad’s family brought him to California chasing the American dream. He had to dropout of high school in order to help provide for his family due to economic problems. He was only sixteen having to work in the fields. My dad is currently working as a forklift driver for Driscoll’s where he has been working for over twenty-five years. My mom worked in the fields picking strawberries for about twenty years. Me and my sister were about three and four years old and my dad didn’t want my mom to work in order for her to be there for us and take care of us. With my mom being unemployed, money became limited. My parents couldn’t afford cable neither internet. As much as me and my sister wanted to watch Nickelodeon and Disney Channel, cable couldn’t be provided for us. Until now, cable is still out of our budget. When me and my sister had homework or projects that required internet we used to go to my aunt’s house where she would let us use her computer. Not too long ago, my freshman year, we were able to get affordable internet for low income.

Many people are raised up by the idea that the society they live in always needs more adjustment, and other people around them are not always friendly. I am also one of those people. Since I was little, I was taught by my father not to trust anyone around, and not to pay too much effort into any kind of relationship. Even though I might not necessarily agree with him, I still followed his advice for years. However, I always ended up feeling lonely and depressed.

If asked to define the American Dream each individual person may define the meaning in

The American Dream is being able to achieve whatever a citizen wants as long as they are willing to work hard for it; being financially stable is a key factor to being successful. This is the main reason many immigrants come to America. They want to start a life that allows them to build a family in a successful environment. The American Dream started in the early 1800s saying that anyone was able to achieve what they want as long as they worked hard and never gave up. America is one of the best countries to achieve the idea of “being successful.” Although there are many obstacles in life, the American Dream is pretty realistic.

promit- the foundation believes every person has the capability to achieve their American Dream and contribute to the common good through education and opportunity. Describe your American Dream. What role will College play in the fulfillment of your American Dream ? ( word count up to 500 words). My American Dream is for American to be more helpful with granting immigrant United States citizenship.College will help me fulfil my dream by granting me the The opportunities to learn the very complex political relationship and ideas dealing with immigration in United States. Since, I will be learning from the best professors in political science and they will make me make connections further down my political career. I Will make many friends that believe in my cause and will

When I was seven, I asked my mom why she had come to America from Ethiopia. She told me that she had come so that I could have things that she didn’t, get the education she couldn’t, and see and do things she wouldn’t. I told her that I was going to make her proud and even though I was seven, I was stubborn, and set my goals high and worked hard. I will forever remember my mother crying as I got my college acceptance letters. Now, as a junior at Old Dominion College as an international affairs major, I’m setting to make her proud again.

Several years ago, I found myself riding in the passenger seat of my family’s car, riding west towards Canton, Mississippi. At around four o-clock that morning, my mom had received a phone call from the hospital regarding her father, who had been admitted that morning after accidentally overdosing on his numerous medications. A few minutes later, we were on the road to Mississippi. When we finally arrived in Mississippi, there were several cars in my grandad’s parking lot. My mom got out, and told me to stay in the car. After what seemed like an eternity, my mom finally walks out of the car and gets back in the car. That which sets my heart on fire, although not in a positive, passionate way, is the way my mom broke into tears that day.

Discrimination. Society. Low funds. All of these things have one thing in common: they all require a certain state of mind to overcome. The biggest obstacle in reaching the American Dream is mentality. All things are possible with the right tools and our tool in this case is your state of mind. In the book, we are told that Alicia was genuinely trying to get out by working and studying like her life depended on it because in some ways, it did. Then, we are shown how Sally tried to escape. She attempted to take the easy way out and marry into her freedom. Her plan backfired and she was stuck inside, unable to live her life freely. Though we are never told Alicia gets away from Mango Street, she actually tried to get away by working hard and

I could hear my mom on the phone arguing with someone. I heard her saying “We can’t wait that long for an appointment, if yall don’t help us now, he will die.” My dad was driving so fast, some people might’ve thought he was drag racing. We were racing in a way, only we were racing against time. When we finally arrived, we rushed him to the doctor. He told us that Dallas had suffered a stroke and that his brain was failing. He said that Dallas wasn’t going to be able to survive much longer, as for he has already lost his vision. We each began to say our goodbyes to Dallas. For a moment, he stopped crying and was silent, as if he was listening to us. That was the first time I had ever seen my dad

Cohen, M. (2014, April 26). The American Dream is now just that for its middle classes – a dream. The Guardian, p. 00.

Determination. I had to put this word first in this essay because its the only word that has a big meaning to me and has my whole life. Being determined has done a lot for me in the long run. It had kept my motivations up and going, also has led my life to where it is now. Determination wasn't just planted into my mindset one day. No, obstacles in my life that had the opportunity to make me or break me had helped me get a good grip on the motive. I knew that I wanted better and needed more in my life. I can say that I do have determination for a better future and a better me, dedication for both is what is leading me to pursue a college career.