Being a first-generation university student, I built a path without a map or instructions. As the daughter of teenage parents whose careers began at sixteen in retail, I grew up without a model for navigating higher education or imagining what an academic career would look like. Pursuring the violin, and eventually musicology, was, in many ways, unfamiliar territory for my family and myself. Yet, that unfamiliarity became an invitation to discover what I would be capable of. My love for music began through violin performance, but it soon grew into a fascination with the histories behind it. In high school, I chose "Music During the Great Depression" for my first ever research project. I began my presentation with a 1930s band, and watching my classmates become inspired by these musicians' persistance showed me the power of connecting music with the historical and social circumstances that shape it. That project intoduced me to musicology and gave me a glimpse of the scholar I wanted to become. My commitment to that dream was tested a few years later during my very first semester of undergrad, when I became unexpectedly immeresed in my parents' high-conflict divorce. The turmoil brought significant health challenges and reshaped and overshadowed my entire undergraduate experience. I had to be come independent in ways I had never anticipated, often while carrying circumstances that made continuing forward extremely difficult on my mental health. Still, I poured myself into musicology and violin performance. I learned that perseverance is not always dramatic; sometimes it is chossing to keep studying, practicing, researching, and believing in a future that feels so out-of-reach. Being a first generation has taught me to create opportunities where I cannot always visualize a precedent. It has also given me a deep appreciation for education, not only as a personal achievement, but something I hope to make more accessible and meaningful to others. My aspiration is to become a university musicologist and educator. This scholarship would profoundly aide that goal. Since graduating from undergrad in 2026 as the valedictorian, I have gone fully independent and separate from my family for my physical and mental well-being and it has made a tremendously positive difference in my health and has allowed me to approach graduate study with greater stability, focus, and hope--something I never had in undergrad. Although I am grateful for some assistance from the University of Michigan's Rackham graduate School, pursuing graduate education while estbalishing an independent life presents major financial challenges. This scholarship would alleviate those pressures and award me with greater freedom to devote myself to the work that motivates me: researching music (visit www.alyssamusicology.com for my work!), developing my pedagogical skills, and contributing to the field of academia. For me, this scholarship would represent more than financial assistance. It would support the independence I have worked tirelessly to build and help me continue transforming circumstances I did not choose into a future I am choosing for myself. I sincerely appreciate the consideration for this scholarship. Thank you.