I have recently returned from a two-year humanitarian trip that I had saved up for all throughout high school. I came back with little savings, moving to a new state, starting college. As a result, I am now studying computer engineering, working night-shifts as a security guard to try to pay for my education. With costs of living rising and homework constantly due, stress tends to be a constant companion. I find myself sacrificing sleep to make sure that I can pay necessary living expenses (as nigh shifts tend to pay more and I have been unsuccessful in finding a different job that pays as well). Balancing my lack of sleep while also studying full-time and maintaining my social life between shifts has taught me a lot about my ability to push myself beyond what I think is possible. Throughout my life I have pushed myself to achieve as much as possible. I graduated high school with my Associate of Arts degree while being a four-year state-championship swimmer. On my humanitarian trip, I learned Spanish fluently and help significantly improve the areas I was tasked with working in. College is no different, I consistently push myself physically and mentally to maximize my output. It shows me how much I can do and gives me confidence in my own abilities. When people shy away, I can be certain that I can complete with whatever the task is because I have been through worse. The only thing limiting my output is myself. That knowledge works for both good and bad. It helps me know more about what I am capable of, but it also gives me a sense of responsibility to constantly push myself to the max when it is not always healthy. I feel a sense of responsibility to always achieve, even when it is not ideal. Knowing that I can function on less sleep sometimes pushes me to put off sleep for extended periods of time, causing me to crash. This knowledge helps me to understand the importance of balance in everything. I cannot always push myself if I do not take time to recover. This is where time management come in. If I am good about managing my time and making sure that everything has its time and place (both work and rest), I can then reach maximum output for the longest period of time. The more I learn about myself, the more I can acheive.

College has taught me the truth of the statement, "time is money." If I am not earning money, I am loosing it. I am in college because it is an investment in my future. However, unlike other investments, college requires a large time commitment, especially if you want to maximize your return on investment. I recognize, if I want to maximize my college investment, I should take the most amount of credits possible at the lowest price possible. The problem lies in the fact that the more credits I take, the more time I need to spend in class and working on homework which leaves me less time to earn money to pay for college. I want to graduate college without debt. I have seen how debt can tear apart relationships and I do not want the same for mine. I do not want to have to ask my future wife to help me pay off my debts because I needed to take out student loans while studying. To combat this, I need to take less credits to work. Although this makes me more money, it reduces the amount of credits I can take, slowing down my progress toward graduation. This also impedes my ability to give back to my community because I am spending all of my time studying and working. I cannot work on projects to help fill needs in the community because I have neither the time nor the money to do it. Scholarships from generous individuals and organizations helps students, like me, to achieve their dreams faster and with less stress. It helps us get through college life without having to worry so much about the little things, and help us save for the future. This later helps our kids and others achieve more because they can use the example of their parents and benefit from money invested early by their ancestors. This helps both parents and children build healthy saving habits and continue to achieve their goals in faster and more effective ways. All this comes through hard-work, planning, and the good graces of loved ones and people who have the means and desire to help. I hope to one day be one of the individuals who can give back. Not just through my university endowment funds, but by giving direct to the individual who needs it. The way to do that is to start saving and investing now, to eventually put it back and help others do the same. We do not all have the resources to pay for our own college but with a little support from many, one can do it and eventually help others too.

College has taught me the truth of the statement, "time is money." If I am not earning money, I am loosing it. I am in college because it is an investment in my future. However, unlike other investments, college requires a large time commitment, especially if you want to maximize your return on investment. I recognize, if I want to maximize my college investment, I should take the most amount of credits possible at the lowest price possible. The problem lies in the fact that the more credits I take, the more time I need to spend in class and working on homework which leaves me less time to earn money to pay for college. I want to graduate college without debt. I have seen how debt can tear apart relationships and I do not want the same for mine. I do not want to have to ask my future wife to help me pay off my debts because I needed to take out student loans while studying. To combat this, I need to take less credits to work. Although this makes me more money, it reduces the amount of credits I can take, slowing down my progress toward graduation. This also impedes my ability to give back to my community because I am spending all of my time studying and working. I cannot work on projects to help fill needs in the community because I have neither the time nor the money to do it. Scholarships from generous individuals and organizations helps students, like me, to achieve their dreams faster and with less stress. It helps us get through college life without having to worry so much about the little things, and help us save for the future. This later helps our kids and others achieve more because they can use the example of their parents and benefit from money invested early by their ancestors. This helps both parents and children build healthy saving habits and continue to achieve their goals in faster and more effective ways. All this comes through hard-work, planning, and the good graces of loved ones and people who have the means and desire to help. I hope to one day be one of the individuals who can give back. Not just through my university endowment funds, but by giving direct to the individual who needs it. The way to do that is to start saving and investing now, to eventually put it back and help others do the same. We do not all have the resources to pay for our own college but with a little support from many, one can do it and eventually help others too.

Graduating college without debt has been a life-long goal of mine. I have seen how debt has brought problems into my parent's relationship, and I do not want it to affect any of my relationships. I remember hearing my parents yelling at each other through the walls of their room. As they decided to pay-off their debt, the fights slowly dissipated. I am sure that they still fight and have their disagreements, but I have not heard them yell at each other in the same way since paying off their cars and credit cards. Now, in college myself, I find it incredibly difficult to keep up with the costs of education, rent, food, and other living expenses. I want to work while also maximizing my credits to earn more education for less money. I find that scholarships are necessary to help free up my time to work on homework and maintain a good GPA when I am not working. If possible, I would love to study without working so I can take more credits, and graduate faster. I realize that the faster I graduate, the faster I can enter the work-force and earn a salary above minimum wage. I can also begin to explore subjects that help to diversify my skill-set and knowledge. The more information that I know, the more it can help me in the work-force and as a productive member of society. Like Steve Jobs said in his commencement speech, "you never know when it is going to connect." I am paraphrasing, but the point is still applicable. The more information you know, the more useful you are to help other people. I want to graduate debt-free so I can also help my future kids; because the more money I can save and invest early, the more money I will have to help them achieve their goals. It can help me start my own business in the future, and make more jobs for people that need them. As a college student, I recognize that there are opportunities to contribute in my community. There are many markets where the supply does not meet the demand. Those demands can be filled through service or through businesses, but both solutions require someone to contribute time. With all the time I am spending, working and studying, it is hard to find time to serve and start projects that may later earn money if they do not immediately begin to earn. With scholarships, I can then devote more time and take on more risk to try to contribute to my community in ways that are more productive.

One of the most prominent technologies that has helped me to improve (and I think, if leveraged correctly, can better everyone) is the use of Chat GPT. Many teachers are fearful of the capabilities of Chat GPT, but I have seen how much more I can learn in a short amount of time thanks to Chat. Like many young adults, I remember a world before Chat GPT. Going to class, and then scouring the internet for videos to teach me content that I did not understand. Usually, piecing together bits of information from multiple sources to find solution to homework. This worked for simpler subjects, but come to more complex and specific problems, it became almost impossible to figure out the answer without an expert in the room. With Chat GPT, I may not get the exact correct answers (because of how the program does math), but I can learn which specific equations and principles I need to learn to be successful in class. Recently, I began taking computer science classes. We have been learning python, html, and basic computer science principles. Chat GPT helped to explain to me how to work with python classes, regular expressions, and linked-list manipulation. I never copied and pasted the code that Chat gave me, but I would analyze it to figure out how the computer would read my code to get tasks done. It would not always give me the right answer, but would give me ideas to debug my own code. The use of Chat GPT is not limited to obscure computer science topics, but also in physics. In the physics class that I am currently enrolled in has been especially difficult. In class the professor will explain topics, but the homework he assigns go way above and beyond what is gone over in class. Sometimes, the topics tested are classes ahead of what has been taught. It makes it almost impossible to do the homework, especially when we are graded on how we show and explain our work. Chat GPT has been a lifesaver, teaching me physics principles that are nearly impossible to find through simple google searches. Some professors fear the advances in machine learning technologies. I think the world of education should embrace it. Instead of trying to stop the use of websites like Chat GPT, teachers should teach students how to use the technologies to answer questions that they have about principles taught in class. Websites like Chat, can be used to teach more students in shorter amounts of time in harder-to-understand principles, saving money and resources on teaching assistants and help labs. It can also help students in areas with lack of education resources gain a deep understanding of complex subjects.

When I was in fourth grade, I told my mom that I wanted to be an engineer. I have always been fascinated by how technology works and the idea of building things. It started with a desire to be an electrical engineer. As I grew up, I became mesmerized with the car industry, specifically custom cars. I wanted to be a mechanical engineer. As the AI boom commenced and Chat GPT showed the world what AI could do, I found out about computer engineering. It felt like the perfect balance between the cutting-edge of technology and physical application. I declared it as my major and I have not looked back since. I love how I can use concepts form electrical engineering and computer science to build something unique to solve problems. I hope to keep learning in the field. By the time graduation comes, I hope to have an idea of how current technologies work and what I can do to help improve them. After earning my Bachelor's degree, I have considered earning a masters degree in either engineering or business. Engineering to build my resume and understanding of the world we live in, or business to help me understand the how to run my own and diversify my skillset. As I progress through my career, I hope to eventually start my own business and continue contributing to building new technologies. Within five years, I hope to be starting my career as an engineer, or entering graduate school to earn my masters degree. While I am working on either, I hope to continue my research of the industry to find holes that need to be filled to help make everyone's lives easier.