By Hyochan Lee
College? Isn’t that an educational institution you can go to after high school? Yes, it is. As a matter of fact, there are actually many different types of college, such as: vocational institutes; two-year junior colleges; four-year colleges and universities; public versus private; and co-educational vs. single-gender.
Often times, freshmen and sophomores push away the idea of how they’ll have to go to college soon, and defend this attitude with the common cliché, “Oh, I am just a freshman (or sophomore), I have time.” But that is almost certainly not true! According to usanews.com, if you want to apply to law school (and this applies to every field or occupation), you should start from your freshmen year to maintain a good GPA, to select your major and coursework with specific skills in mind, to join appropriate extracurricular activities, to build relationships with mentors for future recommendations, and lastly–to plan for internships. For rising freshmen and sophomores, I recommend you start studying for your SAT’s, now! Also, apply to programs that offer you any form of help for both SAT’s and college preparation.
As a junior, I can empathize with other juniors who live in fear of not doing well in their academics, AP exams, and SAT’s. I also sympathize with the pessimistic visions they might have of themselves of not doing “well enough,” and then not getting the chance to pursue their chosen major and career. I understand how enervating student life right now may be, with your school work, extracurricular programs or clubs, and outside jobs (if you work, that is). The one and only thing I can tell you is to keep trying, and never forget to persevere, because you’re almost there, reaching your dreams!
For the SAT’s, you still have time so keep studying, and ganbare (“hang in there” in Japanese)! You might find people around you who excel in academics, or at taking SAT’s, and have many other achievements, but don’t compare yourself to those people. You are a different human being with a lot of traits and talents that you may have not discovered about yourself yet. So just ignore that particular group of people’s achievements, and respect your own value by walking straight and doing what you’ve got to do. If you haven’t joined any clubs yet, come to room 111 and try some exciting chess with your peers! Then no matter what, keep applying yourself to programs that are related to careers you may wish to pursue.
Students such as Cristianel Gil have expressed an interest in being Pre-Med in College, although he hasn’t yet decided which medical specialty to practice. He personally agrees with the recommendation that abcnews.com gave about starting to prep for college earlier, and wants to remind underclassmen that: “Everything counts!”
To my senior friends, who are waiting for their initial college acceptance results, if you get accepted by the schools where you most wanted to go, applaud yourself. The reason your acceptance rates much more than a simple: “Oh I got in, yay!,” is because it actually reflects a lot of very hard work, and is therefore a remarkable accomplishment. For those who may have not gotten accepted to the school of your dreams, don’t give up. You still have many chances, so keep striving! As someone once said, you might believe your life is doomed after you missed your “3rd chance,” however the reality is that you actually get 300 chances and more in life to achieve your goals and dreams. So don’t be upset and repeat the common cliché: “I’m going to quit college and live my own way.” Just cherish whatever college accepts you, wants you, and acknowledges you for who you are and start fresh. Besides, you know what? You still have another chance–called graduate school–to attend whatever your dream university may be! As for those who may not get accepted to any of the colleges they initially chose, just sign up for any school out there with course offerings in your main area of interest. I am pretty sure there’ll be at least 5 colleges that want you somewhere across the United States. Simply keep trying and applying!