Personal Narrative: My First Generation College Student

My plan for academic success is to pass all my classes with a C average. Another plan for academic success that I have is to choose classes that best fit my understandings and personality. Also I would like to get my license as a senior and have a job. Another academic plan for success is to have friends, friends are important to success because if I have no friends I’ll have no one to talk to while I’m working on school work. As well as the fact that I’m horrible at all my english classes, it might be a good idea to get those improved.

High school has impacted my life in so many ways. High School taught me so many things, from personal relationships to creating a relationship with my education. As a freshman, I made a huge amount of mistakes and I regret doing foolish things, but I’ve realized, I was only maturing into the young adult I am today. Freshman year, I was out of focus and I was only trying to find myself. I would also prioritize other things and ignore my parent’s advice, where they would tell me to focus in school and give it my full attention.

Now don’t get me wrong, I did have a good high school experience; however this isn’t about the good times I had. I want to tell you a story about something else. A real life lesson that I learned in school, something truly beneficial to my future. My senior year of high school taught me many things, however nothing compared to what I learned when I hit rock bottom that year. My second semester of school I decided that because I already knew where I was going to college I didn’t have to try as hard in school and work as hard for my grades as I had before.

Over a long period of time, I didn’t realize how serious high school meant before heading to college. My older brother didn’t do well in high school and he was the only person to look up to at the time. While attending elementary learning the basics came to me gradually and as each year passed by I was more interested in why my older brother attended a different school at a certain age/grade. My first year in middle school as an experience as a whole wasn’t what my older brother described and I expected the same for high school. My older brother did graduate high school but didn’t take the measures to attend a university or community college.

Going to college as a first-generation student does worry me about fitting in and succeeding at college. Since I am the first to attend college I am carrying a lot of weight on my shoulders right now. Not only am I doing this for myself, but making my family proud plays a big major in my life because I will be the first person to start a new life for my generation. I am worried because I am scared of not being able to fit in with my classmates due to the different backgrounds or lifestyles. Being part of the minority group can also affect me since usually people view us differently.

As a college freshmen, there is no doubt that I still have a long ways to go in order to achieve my academic goals. And through this journey, I know that I will encounter highs and lows just as I experienced in the past, most notability in high school. I keenly remember instances around this time where I doubted my abilities when subjects like math was proving to be difficult, even when I was trying to put in effort to stay on track. I was struggling in math because I did not try to identify my weaknesses, and never tried to come up with solutions to fix my problems. Rather, I chose to give up on math and settle with a grade barely passing.

Every parent wants their son or daughter to get good grades but my parents wanted me to have perfect grades since then, I have had an issue perfectionism. In high school, I had done well in classes. But now that I am in the second semester of college, I am shattering apart even though in the prior semester I was on the Dean’s list. I have so much pressure in college classes, not to

I try to be as realistic as possible in most situations, I know college is not going to be easy especially with the major that chose me. But after my visits to Lindenwood I understand all the ways that help is accessible to me. And since my failure in Algebra 2 the year prior I’ve gained new ways to make it fool proof that I remember to do my work. With the help of calendars, alarms on my phone, and writing and recording notes as the professor speaks I feel that I am prepared to succeed at college. With these tools I fully plan on surpassing others in my pursuit of higher education.

After a few years in the workforce, I realized that I must not spend any more of my youth on entry-level jobs that hold little to no meaning to me. Now is the time to advance myself and to explore endless possibilities with the right education. Therefore, I enrolled myself in Sinclair Community College. Every day, Sinclair astounds me with their commitment to prepare students for a bright future. Choosing a major is stressful but I must have a clear path to the finish line.

I am the first in my family to go to college and with that being said, I have always felt the pressure to be the best role model and example for my younger sisters. Growing up, my parents have always been really strict on me, more than they have been with my younger sisters. I never really understood why, until now two months after my fathers’ death. My fathers’ dream was always to see his three daughters graduate with a college degree. Both of my parents, especially my father always expressed to me the importance my education, for my future.

My recommendations to the UNIV program would only be one; to always keep it as a mandatory requirement to all freshams. Without this class I wouldn’t have learned the correct way to email my profesors as well as how to deal with my issues physically and mentally. Overall, my first year in college was a success and I only plan to overcome any challenges life has in store for me. I can’t wait for next semester to meet new professors and classmates. College is amazing and I’m so glad I made the decision to attend and persue my dream career.

Every 6 weeks the department has a built in training day which makes up for the hours he missed on the weeks he would only work 3 days. It’s difficult for him to coordinate things such as social events, medical appointments or attend his children’s ballet classes or basket games because his work schedule requires him to have an unusual sleep schedule since the rest

Growing up, my parents pushed me to do my best in school; I didn’t question it much, although looking back, I recognize that schooling is a vital component to be successful in life. I will be attending UNR this fall, the first in my family to do so. Being a first generation college student, my parents cannot provide any information regarding college classes, scholarships, or tutoring. I’ve worked diligently throughout high school but I cannot venture into college blind; TRiO would be a highly beneficial program enabling me to reach my potential in college. TRiO offers helpful opportunities that will be the cornerstone to my education, such as tutoring, study skills, and advice on class schedules.

The academic success I’ve had during my final two years at college has only made me hungrier for more success. I have already set aside the blueprint for my study schedule in anticipation for law school. Villanova Law School still remains one of my top institutions to attend in Fall 2016. My experiences balancing sports, school, and work gives me an upper hand on prospective students that only had to worry about academics during their time in undergrad. Athletes, overall, have a strong desire to strive for perfection, and although it will be the toughest challenge of my life thus far, I am ready to put in the work in order to achieve law school excellence at Villanova

My involvement with faculty and students has helped shape me back into the focused and driven student I was when I went into college. I take full responsibility for the grades that I earned early on. I simply was not mature enough and I failed to realize the effort it would take to be successful in college. The knowledge I have gained from my involvement with the school has been beneficial in my academic and personal maturity. I have learned from my immaturity, and I know I am ready to be successful as a