Scholarship Essays for College Admissions

As time drags on during the never-ending New England winter of my sophomore year, I secretly hope for a new excitement to pop in my life. As I sit in History class, listening to the same lectures on Franz Ferninand for what seems like the billionth time, the words “.this was the start of World War II.” are drowned out by the random thoughts of the upcoming summer. I arrive home that afternoon after a grueling track practice and look in the mail pile on my oak dining room table. Inside the bundles of stark white envelopes, there is a simple blue envelope addressed to me. This letter catches my attention because it is from the National Youth Leadership Forum on Medicine. I have plans to go into medicine when I’m older, but seeing the words ‘leadership’ and ‘forum’ in the same sentence send shivers down my spine. Without putting much thought to the letter, I carelessly toss the letter in the trash. A couple of days later, a bigger and more attractive letter arrives in my mailbox again. I turn the package around and the same return address from NYLF is clearly visible. Curiously, I read the letter, and the more I read it, the more I want to attend the forum. Though I will have to face my bigger fears of public speaking and meeting new people, I decide that it will be a great learning experience that will prep me for my college years and beyond.

As the big day draws in, I begin to doubt my decision about the forum. Negative thoughts float in my head as I drive down to Boston. When I enter the campus, I see my reflection in my fellow campers. My dad and I swiftly unload my belongings while I keep my head down and remain unsociable to the other campers. After my dad leaves, reality hits. I’m left standing alone in the small, plain dorm room. I take a last breath as Tina ‘the shy girl’ and step outside into the warm atmosphere. Instead of my usual poise, I hold my head up and flash a gigantic smile. With this newfound charge of my life, I quickly meet new people, who are inseparable from my side throughout the whole forum experience.

The medical forum is living up to my expectations and better. With a clean slate to work on, people are unaware of the old Tina and are drawn into the more sociable and outgoing Tina. With my new friends by my side, I am conquering one of my fears of meeting new people outside of the wall that I have been building during the last fifteen years. Now, I have to tackle my other fears, public speaking and leadership skills. My anxiety level quickly skyrockets when I learn I have to participate in a debate in front of the camp, consisting of 300+ people. I quickly push my fears away as I try my best for the team. There is no time to waste as time begins to dwindle down. I grab the leadership role by assigning arguments to my teammates to research. I meticulously review my own arguments and practice learning them over and over every night by the mirror. Judgment day finally arrives as I nervously pace up and down the classroom door. The faculty advisor quietly waves us down into the room, and I am now facing my fellow campers. We wait for the team to deliver first, while I am frantically trying to remember my lines. I hear my chest pounding as I deliver my argument. After the debate, I am proud of myself for speaking in front of an audience.

Before NYLF, shyness was the barrier between the world and myself. I held back on my opinions because I feared other people’s judgements. NYLF has forced me to break down the barrier and to step outside of my comfort zone. Without that needed push from NYLF, I would have stayed in my shell longer than I would have liked. Nowadays, I am more willing to volunteer in class, to participate in class discussions, and to not dread the moment when called upon in class. In addition, I am less hesitant to voice my opinions for I know now that many people will have different ideas than me. The experiences during NYLF have given me newfound confidence to take risks and to live for the moment.