I want to be a surgeon, more specifically a pediatric surgeon. When I tell people my career goals, they always say something along the lines of “you’ll probably change your mind.” While there’s a chance I might change my mind, it feels extremely discouraging when the people I consider closest to me say this. The reason I want to choose pediatrics is that I've always loved kids and I've wanted to be a surgeon since I was young, so I figured peds would be perfect for me. Another reason is that I found out that there are very few black female pediatric surgeons in America. The first was Dr. Andrea Hayes in 2002, and after twenty years there have been less than twenty black women that have followed after her. I hope that the number rises significantly in the next two decades. Being one of the few black females students my advanced and dual credit classes makes me want to pave the way for more black girls in the future to know that they can be great. I've always desired to be in the medical field since I was young. Growing up around my mom, who's a registered nurse, and hearing her stories of her patients inspired me to want to help people. It seems most black girls around me want to be nurses and while there's nothing wrong with that as we need more nurses, I feel that they think that's the highest level they can reach. I want to take it a step further and become a surgeon. Not only to prove the people who have attempted to discourage me wrong, but also to hopefully one day show little black girls that they can be more and follow their dreams, no matter how big. I find that most of my peers do not have a set idea of what or who they want to be in the future. Which is fine because they have time to decide, but I'm not one that blindly starts something with no plan. I’m usually a very indecisive person, but this has been one of the easiest decisions of my life. I have already started working towards my goal as I have completed a pharmacy technician program and enrolled in a certified nursing aide course at my high school. These certifications will help me by allowing me to get experience in the medical field. While I’m in college, I plan to work at one of the campus' nearby hospitals. I know that my dreams are big and I plan to achieve them no matter how long it takes. Thank you for taking your time to read this and considering me for this scholarship.