Being a teenager, specifically a High School Senior in 2024 is stressful, and it has been extremely college focused for me, ever since my junior year. Everything that I have been doing since March 2024 has revolved around college.

 I have gone on six college visits, submitted applications, and anxiously waited for the admission decisions. Luckily, I got accepted into all the colleges I applied to. The hardest part of being accepted to all of the schools is trying to choose the school that I am actually going to go to. I had to weigh the pros and the cons of each of the schools and ultimately decided on the University of Minnesota-Twin Cities. 

At first, I convinced myself that I didn’t like the school too much because I didn’t want to be disappointed if I didn’t get in, but when I saw that letter I knew that’s where I was going to go. Even though I was told I would get in, I was still worried about it. They were the pickiest school that I had applied to and although they said I had the GPA and the academic record for it, my major was still more academically competitive than most, meaning it’s harder to get into. 

With having such a good education and great opportunities there, I knew I would have to accept it. Not too long ago, my best friend told me that she also wanted to go to the University of Minnesota-Twin Cities and now I am more excited than ever because we will get to live the college experience together.

 Now, the only issue was trying to figure out how to pay. My grandparents had enough money in my college fund to pay for the first year or two, but that still leaves at least about $60,000 owed for just the following two years.

 Unfortunately, with my family’s financial position, we have a household income that is too low to pay for college but too high to get financial aid or be eligible for many scholarships, but those scholarships and financial aid do deserve to go to those who need it more, and I fully understand that. 

A few days ago, I was notified that I had received a $25,000 scholarship and I am so grateful for my parents for pushing me to always be better and for setting me up for such great opportunities.