College Admissions Essay: My Life As A Young Minority Student

It was my family’s legacy of determination, dedication and perseverance that had fueled me to face and overcome the stereotypes that were imposed on me in high school. During my junior year, I enrolled in AP Calculus with the indefatigable support and encouragement of my parents. Initially, this class was a nightmare due to the academic expectations and amount of assignments. I often doubted in my own ability to succeed in the class. I found inspiration and internal motivation to continue the battle by observing my industrious and diligent parents.

As a first generation college student, I have the desire to not only make my parents proud of my academic achievements, but to be the first person in my family to receive a college degree. At a very young age, I was always expected to receive A’s and B’s in my school assignments, as well as my final grades. However, I was never rewarded or congratulated whenever I did receive those grades because it was already expected of me to achieve them. Hence, a time in which I have experienced failure but also felt like I let my family down was when I received a D in my Critical Thinking course I was already retaking for the second time.

My family has always been the center of my universe. They’ve taught me the importance of being united and taking care of one another—because in the end, all we truly have is each other. My parents have raised me to be a good daughter, sister, and citizen. They’ve shaped me to be respectful, responsible, and virtuous, knowing these values will last a lifetime. But above all, my parents have instilled in me an appreciation and eagerness for education.

My mother and father have always wanted the best for me, like all good parents do. One of the many things that they expect from me is to receive a college education, something that they never had the chance to do. My parents always advise me to not to make the same mistakes as they did, to go to college so I can get a good job and not have to struggle in my life.

My life and journey towards Cornell has been one characterized by struggle. Throughout my childhood, I was raised in two families which highly valued critical thinking and education. As such, I was always expected to ask “Why?” “Why?” was the question that could bring me an education. “Why?” could help me learn more about my surroundings and how I could improve them. I also asked that question when my mother and birth father divorced. I questioned why my father left and why my mom and I moved. What I realize now is that, without my parents divorcing, I could not have received the opportunities afforded to me.

Being Hispanic has taught me a whole world of things. It has taught me that the world is not what you expect it to be. Going to a public school and being th minority is completely different than going to a see my cousins where every thing is different. The way we talk, the food we eat. Its all different. To me, being hispanic is probably the biggest blessing I could ever get. I love being hispanic. Being able to know that my culture is completely different than those at school. It has brought so much knowledge that telling other people about makes them want to be hispanic. Although the majority of it is happy experience, I have had my share of negative experiences. From racism or being mistreated for being the minority. Although those things do impact how I feel, I

Chester County, Pennsylvania’s public education system afforded me the opportunity for an enriched academic experience, as well as an opportunity to connect socially with people of all different races. Coming from a family who pushed academics, I always found myself to be one, of three black students in my honors and AP classes. I believed I could not relate with the majority of black students socially and academically, which is why I separated myself from them. In the rise of my freshman year I joined the Black Student Union (BSU) hoping to learn more about black culture and acquire new relationships with my black peers. Fortunately, the mission of the BSU was to create awareness about black culture, in hopes to diminish prejudice not only in the school but also in the community. The mission of the BSU reminded me Of Dr. Cornel West, who has broken many Barriers from attending and graduating from both Harvard and Princeton University, to being a renowned philosopher today. He is not only admired because of his great leadership skills but also his ability to connect with people of all races.

Going to college has always been a dream of mine, I never knew what I wanted to major in or any clue of what career I wanted to go into. It all started with my love of finding out more about the world around me I thought is was just my curiosity like everyone else but it was something different. That’s when I found my love for science. At first I really didn’t see my love for until sophomore year of high school when we would get on a subject and wanted to learn more about the particular subject not just what was in the book.

When I came to this country, unlike others, my family had no experience with how things worked here. Which meant whatever I learned here, was just a new to them as it was to me. My education became more about encountering and trying new things than about succeeding. Because you can succeed if you don’t know how things worked around here. From the moment, I set foot in this country, I knew no one will ever give me anything on a silver platter. The Even basic information I must find so I can be ahead of the curve. Being ahead of the curve was the only way I could have secured my path to achieving a similar or higher lifestyle as everyone else here. But this meant that I would have to assimilate into a culture I was unknown to. The best part of

I am a leader, a whole hearted person that believes in the greater good, a selfless individual, an intellectual young adult, and a brave character, and it is on account of these qualities that I feel Montclair State University is the school for me. Being that I am an individual that has matured intellectually, emotionally, and now has the motivation needed to seek a positive trajectory and path in life, and I believe this school could only help further my growth as a person and strengthen my academic abilities. Writing has always been one of my strong suits and it is the best method I’ve learned as a way to express myself. Growing up, I had a rough childhood, and it was through reading and writing that I learned to better my perspective towards life.

The American experience is an experience like no other. This country provides the freedom to do what you want to a certain extend. You can believe in the religion of your choice. There is a right to carry a licensed weapon for protection. In America you have the power to create your own path and strive to be whatever you desire within reason. For example if your goal is to become a doctor, get married, and have a family there is no stopping you. It is just up to the individual to make it happen. Becoming a doctor takes hard work and dedication in the classroom and laboratory.

What causes success? To many people, success is cultivated through dedication and perseverance; the amount of effort put in directly correlates to the quality of the result. However, this statement does not fully represent the implications of success and how it is achieved. In Outliers, Malcolm Gladwell analyzes the basis of success, uncovering the astonishing effect that opportunity and legacy have on the creation of outliers. When applied to my life, these two factors play a significant role in my achievements and future potential.

As a student, I have faced so many incoming obstacles in my life, that it is natural for myself. One of the bigger challenges that I have recently faced was almost getting cut by the Junior Varsity Tennis Team. This happened to me last year and I can remember it like it was yesterday. I am pretty sure I had other significant challenges that I have faced before, but this one tested my ability to work hard and keep myself motivated.

Growing up school was never my forte, but I was always taught to be a student-athlete, not just an athlete. And it never made since to me until I got into my junior year in high school when I had to miss football games due to my grades. I always tell myself to live and abide by these quotes, which are: “Those to the left and right of you are who you will most likely to become, so surround yourself around those of the same goals and interest as yourself”. “Success is what you make it”. “You are not finished when you lose, you are only finished when you quit”. “The task ahead of you is never as great as the strength within you”. I live by these quotes each day which shapes up of who I am. If I start something I must always finish and give it my all, whether it’s on the field and off the field. To give one-hundred percent in a game and in the classroom, that winners never quit, and quitters never win. Whether I win or lose, as long as I gave it my all, then that’s all that matters. So who am I? I am a believer, that if you put your mind to it, you can achieve anything in life, as long as you put God first, and give it your

Growing up in a lower to middle-class environment, my educational experiences were very split from year to year. I attended Eagle Elementary in Medford, New York. Medford is very diverse in terms of economic and racial status so our classrooms were filled with different cultures and ideals. Attending a “high need” school district has provided me with opportunities and resources that Alejandro did not receive. My district offered inclusion classrooms throughout elementary and middle school, and received grants in order to better support our English Language Learners and their needs. The teachers throughout my schooling were very in touch with the ideal of concerted cultivation and stressed the importance of cultural capital in our lives. We were exposed to different cultures, languages and the arts at a young age in order to broaden our horizons. Our teachers took more of an interest in our backgrounds than the teachers at Sorrowful Mother had. I never had a teacher that looked at me simply as a passing or failing grade, and they always made sure to adapt to our needs as students. Being a “mainstream” student, I took the advanced track through high school being involved in several honors and AP courses. However, my school provided the resources for us to succeed. We had peer/professional tutoring, full