Undergraduate / UCF Application essay - "You're supposed to get good grades" [NEW]

2. How has your family history, culture or environment influenced who you are?
3. Why did you choose to apply to UCF?
both topics are to be incorporated into one essay
thanks for all your help guys!

"You're supposed to get good grades," my mother would always tell me; I always complained how I never got rewarded for my A's, my friends were simply showered. I come from a Hispanic background, El Salvador to be exact. For my family, who were immigrants, it was very hard for them to come to a new country not knowing the language, and relearning things the American way. But they all succeeded, my mother is now a RN, and her sister a lawyer. I, as a citizen born in this county I have it much easier. Because of this, my environment and the manner I was raised, I am always expected to do my best in everything I want to accomplish. This has influenced who I am today. I was raised to be a hard worker and to know what I want out of life, therefore I will do what I need in order to succeed. This has made me a strong young woman. Because of my environment, I strongly believe in the saying, "Shoot for the moon. Even if you miss, you'll land among the stars."

My goal in life is to become a doctor and help children and families in third world countries with my profession, I strive to accomplish my goal because of what my family went through, I want to help make living easier for others. I will achieve this goal with absolute academic integrity. I will also be a responsible, not only with my time but as a student and citizen. I have vowed to study hard in order to succeed, not only for me but for the families that need my education and skills, which I will proudly acquire at UCF.

I chose to apply to UCF because it has always been my first choice, it was my dream school. To this day I picture myself in Orlando, studying hard and declaring myself a Knight. When it was time to apply I had to have other universities in mind as a backup, and so I had specific requirements in mind. It had to be a place that not only provides me with the tools to succeed academically, but also a place where I can feel like I am part of a family. Nothing compared to UCF. I strongly believe that UCF exceeds these requirements and is superior to any other school. As a bonus, UCF was also founded as a non-segregated university which symbolizes its respect for unity. It also displays its desire to give each student an equal opportunity from the start, which will not only allow others to explore their options but allow me to learn new things from others while pursuing a degree in Pre-Med. The UCF campus simply tops it off, it is student friendly, and contains everything in a 15 minute walking distance from any spot on school grounds. UCF is for me.

Undergraduate / UF Essay - Visiting El Salvador; meaningful experience [3]

In the space provided, please write a concise narrative in which you describe a meaningful event, experience or accomplishment in your life and how it will affect your college experience or your contribution to the UF campus community. You may want to reflect on your ideas about student responsibility, academic integrity, campus citizenship or a call to service.

This is my essay for UF thanks for all the help!

Every summer my mother, younger sister and I visit a new country, usually around Central America. We are very close and enjoy doing much together, especially our family trips. We all share the passion of learning new things and about other cultures and exploring new places. While at these amazing and beautiful countries, we always seem to find one thing they all have in common, poverty. It wasn't until this summer until it really hit me.

This summer my family and I visited my mother's home country of El Salvador, located in Central America. While on our way to visit a small village called Juayúa, we passed by many children. One girl who looked no older than 6 was carrying what looked like a heavy basket on her head. It was filled with handmade objects to sell. They were walking barefoot over mud and rocks which cut their now hard feet. They also wore minimum clothes, you could tell that they werent the wealthiest, they also seemed to need some food and healthcare. I felt so terrible that I had the car stopped and handed the young girl and her younger brother a sandwich from the mini mart, their faces lit up as they thanked us in Spanish and ran off to share with their family.

This experience made me realize that I want to do something more with my life, I want to contribute back to my community and to others around the world to my full potential; with my career. It was then that my raging desire to become a doctor was at its greatest peak.

For me, this was life changing and inspiring. It will affect my college experience in the sense that I will put all that I have into studying in order to reach my life time goal, which is to bring my medical skills to the people of third world countries. I will achieve this goal with absolute academic integrity. I will also be a responsible, not only with my time but as a student and citizen. I have vowed to study hard in order to get where I need to be, not only for me but for the families that need my education and skills, which I will acquire at UF.

This experience has helped to push me to give back to my community for all that it has done for me and others. Therefore I will participate and contribute all that I can in activities and projects around the UF campus to help and support others and the community. I feel as if this is my call to service; I was born into this world to help others. And so, to have a good start, I plan to join the American Red Cross in time to truly share my skills with the ones that are in need and to fulfill my calling.