Undergraduate / Experiences shape who we are and mold the future we will have; extracurricular activity [3]

What lessons have you learned from participating in an extracurricular activity?

As Eleanor Roosevelt once said, "the purpose of life, after all, is to live it, to taste experiences to the utmost, to reach out eagerly and without fear of newer and richer experiences." Experiences shape who we are and mold the future we will have. Everything we go through, no matter how mundane, carries a potential for great impact. The time we go through the most life-changing experiences is during our young adulthood. During this time, many of us are in high school or college where we are exposed to a vast array of extracurricular activities to choose and learn from. There are many of these activities I could pick from to write about. For instance, I could write about how I was one of the co-founders of the Library Club in school with hopes of increasing the student body's interest in printed works. I could also write about when I volunteered to teach CPR and First Aid to a group of adults. The one experience that stands out from all the rest however, was the day I joined the United States Army. I have been a soldier for four years with three more left to go. The life lessons I have learned throughout my military career will stay with me past the day my contract expires. These lessons I learned in the army applies to my civilian and academic life. In the military, there is no way to avoid accountability. This forces one to take responsibility for everything done and said. It also teaches you to not only own up to the mistakes one is bound to make but to also fix them. When I wear my uniform, a sense of pride befalls me. I take great care to look professional. This has carried over into my civilian clothes. I have learned that appearances do matter and influence the way others see you. It is up to oneself to have self-respect and dress in a way that demands the respect from others. While an individual soldier has great potential for greatness, he/she cannot do everything on his/her own. It requires one to swallow their pride and recognize that it is ok to ask for help when needed. Many people do not know their true limits or capacities. It is not until one goes through a great challenge that one realizes the great potential they carry inside. The Army has taught me that I can always do better, do more, and push through my obstacles. It is this confidence that will show through my school work and career. If an experience challenges you, then a lesson can be derived from it. I am not done with life and thus expect many more challenges to come my way. As long as I keep an open mind and remind myself that I am only human that can make mistakes, then I will succeed. There are many more lessons for me to learn and I cannot wait to do so.

Scholarship / 'I am the first of my family...' Academic/career goals. Scholarship essay 400-600 words [3]

I am the first of my family to graduate from high school and attend college. For as long as I can remember, that was my one and only goal. My Hispanic heritage has been the leading driving force in my life. My mother was Dominican and my father was Puerto Rican. I had two nationalities counting on me to make them proud in the United States. I did not take this responsibility lightly. I was determined to break the stereotypes that surround the Hispanic heritage. After I graduated from high school, I made a small detour in my academic career to join the United States Army National Guard. Two months after high school, I was on my way to Basic Training in South Carolina. After becoming a soldier, I traveled to Texas and trained as a combat medic. All of the training took me almost two years. As soon as I had returned home, I set off to continue my schooling. I finished my first semester with a 4.0 GPA and made it onto the Dean's list. I am now on my second half of my sophomore year in my community college. I plan on finishing this year as strongly as I have done before. This upcoming fall, I will attend John Jay College of Criminal Justice in New York. I will pursue a bachelor's degree in Criminology. As an anonymous writer once said, "goals are as essential to success as air is to life." Without short term goals acting as a to-do list, one will never be able to accomplish the long term goals. It is because of this that I focus tremendously on my short term plans while still keeping my long term goal in mind. Throughout my schooling at John Jay, I will take courses concentrating on the psychology of criminal behavior while also learning about penology and its effectiveness on reducing crime recidivism. Long term, I wish to work in the criminal justice field for the federal government by using my knowledge to predict patterns and motives for criminal behavior and to assess the effectiveness of current penalties on crime rates. By achieving my bachelor's degree in Criminology from John Jay College combined with my involvement in the military and the foundation built during my studies, I will have the necessary tools to excel in my field of work and beyond. My Hispanic heritage only serves in growing my desire to better myself and thus better my family. Every Latino should push him/herself to change the nation's demographics and join the ever adapting workforce. I plan on doing my part and hope to influence the next generation to do so as well.