My biggest inspiration for becoming a nurse is my mother. She is a strong woman who does a lot for our family. As a nurse, she works a twelve-hour shift and rarely complains, occasionally even returning home with a smile. Despite sometimes finding her annoying due to my teenage/young adult nature, she makes me extremely happy and I’m sure her graciousness carries over to work where she helps her patients feel comfortable and as cheerful as they can be during their time in the hospital—usually a dreary place. Like most mothers are to their children, my mother is my greatest role model and source of encouragement. I strive to follow in her footsteps in becoming a nurse and helping my community remain happy and healthy. An event that facilitated my decision to go to nursing school was Covid-19. Although a cliché topic in our post-pandemic society, Covid-19 was an important situation, not only for me but the entire world, and gave a good view into what a difficult yet rewarding job nurses have. Many nurses shared shockingly disturbing stories of their accounts during the beginning of the pandemic. These atrocious stories made me doubt becoming a nurse was right for me. But later, others shared stories of positivity, despite going through arguably the toughest event we have faced in our contemporary world. My mother had these kinds of stories for me as well: encouraging and grateful cards from children, donations of delicious food from local restaurants, and offerings of homemade PPE from hundreds of people all for her hospital, Brigham and Women’s Hospital in Boston. These stories of community members coming together to celebrate and thank nurses largely supported me in my decision to become a nurse. After hearing them I know, in spite of where I end up or how I’m feeling, I’m going to be appreciated by many. An aspect of nursing I find attractive to me is working in close contact with the sciences. I have grown to love the sciences—especially biology and chemistry—which (I would say) are the most important sciences for healthcare and medical fields since a large part of them include understanding the human body and administering drugs to help it. The material related to the sciences I’m expecting to learn in nursing school is what I’m passionate about in high school and I think this will be the most exciting and fun part for me in nursing school. What I find least appealing about nursing and what I think will be difficult for me are making human connections. A large part of being a nurse includes direct communication with patients and coworkers and other social interactions such as the ones with superiors and patients’ family members. I am not that fond of interacting with new people and I’m anticipating this part of the nursing job to be the most difficult for me. I have been working on combating this challenge, among others, throughout my high school career in order to prepare myself better for becoming a nurse. I have tried hard to expose myself to hundreds of new people: I attended a two-week sleepaway summer camp twice, both times with no one I knew; I traveled to Florida and Belize with the same program, again meeting new people; I have participated in volleyball all four years of high school to work on my teamwork skills and inspire others in my own community; and I immersed myself in a club volleyball program an hour away from my house to expose me to a new community and again improve my teamwork skills.

I have always been quite an adventurous eater, always wanting to try new types of cuisine, or more simply a new dessert. This is partly because of my dad. He has been in the restaurant business since I was a little girl and has always encouraged us trying new places and foods to eat. Of course, my mom encouraged it too, just not as prevalently as my father. This has proven to be very important in keeping me healthy. The excitement from eating something "advanced for my age" helped keep me away from developing bad food habits (for example: fast food, eating just to eat, overeating, etc.) which has, in turn, kept me fairly in shape. Although, as I've gotten older, I've started having to fend for myself, scouring the fridge for scraps of food and cabinets for snacks. This has led to some less-healthy eating habits and a less-happy body. Most obviously, devouring 'unhealthy' food doesn't feel or look great physically. Sometimes my stomach hurts and bloats, or on bad days, completely disagrees with what I ate. This causes all sorts of mental anguish. Failing to break such poor practices isn't very encouraging and lowers the trust I have placed within myself. Looking in the mirror and thinking I look "fatter" than normal certainly is an unpleasant 'side-effect' of making bad meal decisions too. And above all else having intense stomach pain isn't fun. Undeniably, sometimes eating healthy goes wrong too. Mostly for me, this is with spicy food, however, when I think of eating so healthy it becomes unhealthy, I think of my best friend. She is a vegetarian, an extremely picky eater and, on top of that, despises trying new things. She is not big on snacking, which is a good trait to have. But all of these combined have caused her an abundance of health problems. She used to eat mainly bagels, Kraft mac-and-cheese, pasta with butter, mozzarella sticks, caesar salads, and lettuce and cheese subs and in recent years she has ventured more out into the realm of adult food. The discovery that she likes avocado toast was great for getting real nutrients in her, as was the liking of *some* plant-based burgers. I am aiming to fix my eating style to be more healthy, somewhere between where I am currently and where my best friend is today. When I eat healthier foods, I certainly am happier and my organs tell me they're grateful by functioning at their best. Not only is it important for me to be conscious when choosing my next meal, but others should become more conscious of theirs. Of course, it is always nice to indulge in some ice cream or greasy fried chicken, but boundaries are important and your body will thank you.

College is a big turning point in someone's life. Or so people say... As an incoming freshman, many emotions are floating around in my head. Move-in day is approaching seemingly faster than ever, TikToks and Instagram Reels with college advice are flooding my feed, tuition's due date is encroaching upon my mom's bank account, and my first-semester class schedule is a mess. Transitioning to college is a difficult event and it can sometimes be difficult to remain positive about everything. However, when I look at the electrifying new things offered at my institution, I can feel a buzz of anticipation and excitement flow through my entire body, almost like the feeling of slight shivers when someone gets goosebumps. Seeing new opportunities laid out in front of me, learning things I love and yearn to learn about, and feeling independent and in control of my own life are just a few of the things that excite me the most about attending university. This fall I am going to attend school in Amherst, Massachusetts at the University of Massachusetts and will be studying nursing. Even saying this alone gets me excited. I am so lucky to have been accepted into their extremely-competitive nursing program and having my campus located not-too-close but not-too-far-away from home was a dream of mine. I guess to put it simply, the newness of it all excites me the most. However, as I previously mentioned, it is also anxiety-inducing and scary and stressful and so many more negative emotions I can't even list them all. So here comes the part of the essay where I'm supposed to say I have a super great plan to keep my mental, physical, and spiritual wellness in check. And I won't glorify it for you. I don't have a concrete scheme for how I'm going to do this; I just have little ideas here and there (which I should probably start writing down somewhere). So far, I know I'm going to have to talk to my parents every day, both to make myself more comfortable in my new environment and to get the scoop on my beloved pets. Also, thankfully, I have a friend who is also attending UMass Amherst who wants to join a bunch of clubs with me and create a gym workout schedule together to avoid the freshman-fifteen. I've started organizing myself online better, creating nice templates and calendars so I can stay on track and up-to-date with both school and life. And that's about all I have planned and completed to stay healthy. I've thought of plenty of other wonderful things and seen many different ways to stay afloat online but I guess I have to rediscover them.

As a young girl, I used to dream of becoming an artist, a veterinarian, and a teacher, among many other things. These were quite brief aspirations I had, so I never took them seriously. However, when it came time to apply to college this past year, I didn’t know exactly what I wanted to do with my life, so I decided that I would work to better my community with my career. As a Girl Scout, I loved the feeling achieved after helping out the environment and groups of people from my town and I understood that if I wanted to be satisfied in my work, I would have to aid society in some way. Although many of the careers I was interested in would help my community, I debated between many different majors. I did some research and decided that nursing would be the best fit for me and my ambitions. Of course, my measly research wasn’t the only way I chose to be a nursing major, I also was inspired to become a nurse by some different sources. My biggest inspiration is my mother. She is a strong woman who does a lot for our family. As a nurse, she works a twelve-hour shift and rarely complains, occasionally even returning home with a smile. Despite sometimes finding her annoying due to my young adult nature, she makes me extremely happy and I’m sure her graciousness carries over to work where she helps her patients feel comfortable and as cheerful as they can be during their time in the hospital—usually a dreary place. Like most mothers are to their children, my mother is my greatest role model and source of encouragement. Apart from people, an event that facilitated my decision to go to nursing school was Covid-19. Although a cliché topic in our post-pandemic society, Covid-19 was an important situation, not only for me but the entire world, and gave a good view into what a difficult yet rewarding job nurses have. Many nurses shared shockingly disturbing stories of their accounts during the beginning of the pandemic. These atrocious stories made me doubt becoming a nurse was right for me. But later, others shared stories of positivity, despite going through arguably the toughest event we have faced in our contemporary world. My mother had these kinds of stories for me as well: encouraging and grateful cards from children, donations of delicious food from local restaurants, and offerings of homemade PPE from hundreds of people all for her hospital, nevermind the thousands of other hospitals in this country. These stories of community members coming together to celebrate and thank nurses largely supported me in my decision to become a nurse. After hearing them I know, in spite of where I end up or how I’m feeling, I’m going to be appreciated by many. I strive just to be as wonderful as these millions of nurses, including my mother. I hope to adopt some of my mom’s best qualities (as well as many other nurses’ qualities) as I grow into a mature adult because she truly is a wonderful lady. I strive to follow in her footsteps in becoming a nurse and helping my community remain happy and healthy. Therefore, this April, I committed to the University of Massachusetts - Amherst as a nursing major! I can't wait to start school this fall and begin my journey of earning my BSN and becoming an RN.

My college essay was about pants. That’s right, the garment you wear to cover your legs. This is only because, throughout high school, I gained a better understanding of myself and an improved confidence in expressing who I am. My volunteer experience throughout high school was a main factor in this new positive self-image, as well as some new skills I’ve developed because of these opportunities. My junior year of high school began my volunteer experience: I volunteered to clean up trash and other rubble from my high school's grounds during my school's 'green week'. Not only did cleaning up the high school make it feel more clean and welcoming, but it also satisfied something inside of me. I have always wanted to leave a positive impact on my community and this was quite a rewarding way to do so. I left that day feeling fulfilled that I had helped out my fellow students and neighbors and happy since I had improved a few of my skills. One of these skills is my ability to communicate with others. Whether it be about a problem someone is facing, a question that needs an answer, or just a random friendly conversation, throughout high school I’ve definitely grown my social skills from where they were in my primary school years. This volunteer experience showed me just that. While cleaning up, if I wanted help with something or needed a new trash bag, I found I could simply ask. Years prior, I would've been hesitant with these kinds of questions even though they seem quite simple. This showed me I was ready for more. During my senior year of high school, my town was holding its annual trivia bee in order to raise funds for the town and entertain citizens. However, they were having some trouble finding people to participate in the game so the organizers reached out to the high school mentioning they were in search of some volunteers. After confirming my communication skills, I felt confident that I could play in the trivia bee, even without knowing much about pop culture or having any random fun facts on hand. This proved to be true as I played with an important city figure whom I had never met before. Then, I helped with some of the most meaningful community service activities I have volunteered for recently. Helping run Girl Scout activities, including a candy bingo night and a father-daughter dance. In elementary school, my mom co-ran our Girl Scout troop: troop 85014. (Speaking of elementary school, I also volunteered at a Valentine's Day pasta party for K-4th graders!) Even though I have lost connection with many of the girls who used to be in our troop, I still cherish the connections we used to have and the fun things we did together. I have a few good friends now who were a part of our Girl Scout troop and we are still encouraged to help out the little Girl Scouts and foster the connections they share with other girls their age. Working with these girls has shown me the impact something as simple as scooping ice cream, calling bingo numbers, or even demonstrating a dance can have on people, especially children. As I said previously, I feel I need to help people in my community. With that said, I am proud to say I am attending the University of Massachusetts, Amherst in the fall as a nursing major. My volunteer experience has had a large impact on my future plans and I can't wait to make the world a better place!

Imagine you are spending two weeks of your summer working, studying, and learning off the beautiful coast of Maine. That will be me. This summer, I will attend a two-week oceanography camp called Acadia Institute of Oceanography (AIO) on Mount Desert Island. I have been to AIO before. They have an amazing program for beginners where you learn about various marine topics; but I wanted more. So, I decided that this summer, I am going to attend their advanced session to learn more about oceanography and marine biology. From this session, I get college credit as well as in-depth information. Since I plan to study marine biology in college, I think this camp will definitely push me in the right direction. The course is very hands-on and educational. We attend lectures about sea creatures and the environment as well as perform field work, laboratory exercises, physical and chemical sampling, and more. We also analyze a variety of ecosystems on Mount Desert Island including Somes Sound, Acadia National Park, various beaches, and more. The ocean is very interesting to learn about. Even though the program is very informative, it is also very expensive. That being said, I would use this grant to pay off most of the tuition and cost of the college credits.