Hey, this is my first draft of my admissions essay for UCF. I would totally appreciate criticism and advice on how to better my essay so let me know! Of course since this is only my first draft I would like your opinions on it to make it the best it can be. Thanks!
The dictionary describes the word forever as eternal or for all future time. The way I was raised, that's how love should be. Forever. Despite what I was told about infinite love as a child, almost everyone in my life has gone through the heartbreak of divorce and the sad part about it is...Divorce doesn't just affect the people in the marriage; it affects their loved ones as well.
The only thing I remember about being a toddler was my dad and I being attached at the hip. I never questioned why I lived with my dad rather than my mom. I never asked why my mom and dad split up. I never realized that the reason my mother was never around was because she was too busy living a "young, wild, and free" life style. I also never knew until the most recent years that when my dad filed for divorce it was because my mom was too caught up in dating and drinking to care about her own child. My parents not being together didn't affect me though, as I was accustomed to it. That was all I knew growing up and was as normal as normal gets for me. Shortly after the divorce of my parents, my father remarried. I still have memories of this beautiful Spanish girl straight out of Colombia moving into our tiny Midwest apartment knowing hardly any English. Back then I would have never thought that she would be as special and important to me as she is today.
This "girls" name is Katherine or as I like to call her "mother". I admire her because I can only imagine how difficult it was stepping into a new country, having a brand new husband, and 3 year old that's not even yours to take care of. Crazy as it was she stepped right up to all the challenges life dealt her. She was and still is the mother figure I never would have had if she didn't come along. If I were to thank her for all the things she has done for me it would be a never ending list. She made me the person I am today and I can't thank her enough for that. Besides teaching me the basics of being a young woman she also showed me what true love is, and I always thought that when I get married I want to have a relationship like hers with my dad. My life was on a record high till it came crashing straight down just before starting middle school.
After 10 years of marriage Katherine filed for divorce from my father. Unlike the first divorce I went through this was very painful for me and lead into a deep depression. Without the reinforcement of my motherly figure to push me academically I suffered as well as emotionally. I began to not care about school and starting failing classes I knew I could do better in. I dug myself deeper and deeper into a hole I didn't think I was going to be able to get out of till a close friend gave me some words I revolve my life around today. "This too shall pass", meaning whatever is happening will soon be over. Life will go on.
The beginning of this year, 2011 I finally realized I was ruining my life by dwelling on something that was not in my power to change and took the steps to better myself. In February I enrolled in an alternative high school in order to get my academic life back on track and found it was the best decision I have ever made. The fact that I go to an alternative school does not mean I am incapable of learning in a regular classroom setting, I am nowhere near that. But, sometimes when you're stuck in a rut for too long you need a change of pace and that's what I found at North University High School. After researching whether I would even be qualified to get into a great school like UCF I decided I have nothing to lose. I want something that can never be taken away from me, something that is my choice and only my choice. I'm searching for my "forever" and I'm quite certain that attending the University of Central Florida would fulfill that wish of something I have forever. I would be honored to become a UCF Knight and continue to better myself at your school.
The dictionary describes the word forever as eternal or for all future time. The way I was raised, that's how love should be. Forever. Despite what I was told about infinite love as a child, almost everyone in my life has gone through the heartbreak of divorce and the sad part about it is...Divorce doesn't just affect the people in the marriage; it affects their loved ones as well.
The only thing I remember about being a toddler was my dad and I being attached at the hip. I never questioned why I lived with my dad rather than my mom. I never asked why my mom and dad split up. I never realized that the reason my mother was never around was because she was too busy living a "young, wild, and free" life style. I also never knew until the most recent years that when my dad filed for divorce it was because my mom was too caught up in dating and drinking to care about her own child. My parents not being together didn't affect me though, as I was accustomed to it. That was all I knew growing up and was as normal as normal gets for me. Shortly after the divorce of my parents, my father remarried. I still have memories of this beautiful Spanish girl straight out of Colombia moving into our tiny Midwest apartment knowing hardly any English. Back then I would have never thought that she would be as special and important to me as she is today.
This "girls" name is Katherine or as I like to call her "mother". I admire her because I can only imagine how difficult it was stepping into a new country, having a brand new husband, and 3 year old that's not even yours to take care of. Crazy as it was she stepped right up to all the challenges life dealt her. She was and still is the mother figure I never would have had if she didn't come along. If I were to thank her for all the things she has done for me it would be a never ending list. She made me the person I am today and I can't thank her enough for that. Besides teaching me the basics of being a young woman she also showed me what true love is, and I always thought that when I get married I want to have a relationship like hers with my dad. My life was on a record high till it came crashing straight down just before starting middle school.
After 10 years of marriage Katherine filed for divorce from my father. Unlike the first divorce I went through this was very painful for me and lead into a deep depression. Without the reinforcement of my motherly figure to push me academically I suffered as well as emotionally. I began to not care about school and starting failing classes I knew I could do better in. I dug myself deeper and deeper into a hole I didn't think I was going to be able to get out of till a close friend gave me some words I revolve my life around today. "This too shall pass", meaning whatever is happening will soon be over. Life will go on.
The beginning of this year, 2011 I finally realized I was ruining my life by dwelling on something that was not in my power to change and took the steps to better myself. In February I enrolled in an alternative high school in order to get my academic life back on track and found it was the best decision I have ever made. The fact that I go to an alternative school does not mean I am incapable of learning in a regular classroom setting, I am nowhere near that. But, sometimes when you're stuck in a rut for too long you need a change of pace and that's what I found at North University High School. After researching whether I would even be qualified to get into a great school like UCF I decided I have nothing to lose. I want something that can never be taken away from me, something that is my choice and only my choice. I'm searching for my "forever" and I'm quite certain that attending the University of Central Florida would fulfill that wish of something I have forever. I would be honored to become a UCF Knight and continue to better myself at your school.
