Sofia
When I was younger, I always used to check out the same book from the library. It was a book the size of my torso (at the time), filled with vibrant descriptions on how to do your very own science experiments at home, from making elephant's toothpaste to making the classic mini volcano from scratch. I remember I tried to make my own model boat once, which was supposed to give me a lesson on how steam engines worked, but the directions called for a candle and a piece of wire, which I wasn't allowed to use. So, I used my improvisation skills to make my own motor out of a rubber band, a couple of chopsticks, a piece of cardstock, and a lot of hot tape. The little monstrosity didn't last long, but it floated and powered its way forward for a couple of seconds, and that was enough to motivate me to continue trying.
To put it simple, college is quite the financial burden, no matter the person. Even if you take out the cost of the classes, the room and board, the books, and just the bare necessities needed to live would be very costly. When I started high school, I chose Biotechnology as my elective, excited to learn something new. Since then I have fallen in love with the subject; I have since then seen microscopic worlds I only ever heard of with my own eyes, and got to see how there is life everywhere, and the building blocks that make it possible. I saw planarians regrow their own heads, how salmonella bacteria really looks, and was the first to spot a tardigrade in all of the biotech classes. I once again felt like that 8-year-old kid, in awe of finding out how simple things function in a such complex way. I aspire to become a medical scientist in that field of study, and I plan to go to a great school that has that pathway, such as UC Berkeley or Harvard.
With this scholarship, I could help save up to help ease the load of taking future schooling. If we are not counting the far future, I could use the scholarship to attend college classes that my high school does not offer, to help learn more about the career pathway I aim to go on.
Since then, I have come a long way from that cardboard, rubber-band powered boat. I’d like to think that I deserve this scholarship because the schooling that I would need to go through would be a bit of a financial burden on my parents, who also have to put my three younger siblings through college. Figuring out how everything in our world functions, from a space shuttle to our own cells, has become a passion of mine, and I am lucky that my parents are so supportive of me. I try to approach all the challenges thrown my way with a positive mindset so I can fill my life list with achievements I am proud of. But with this pathway, I believe that I could help develop the next breakthrough vaccine with the help of the microscopic world around us, or help be that final push to discovering something incredible.