I plan to use my education to make a positive impact on the world. From a young age I became aware of the struggles my immigrant parents faced in coming to America, and how their sacrifices provided me the opportunity to pursue not just general education, but also higher education. This is something I have never taken for granted. Currently, I am 19 years old, a sophomore at the University of San Francisco, majoring in Psychology and minoring in Gender and Sexuality studies. As a transgender woman who is also a person of color, my experience in education has been far from ideal. Although my parents’ sacrifice for my education has motivated me to pursue higher education, unfortunately due to my queer identity, I never had the financial support from my parents to attend college. While I initially committed to the University of San Francisco under the impression that my parents would support me financially, this abruptly changed. Upon discovering my transgender identity earlier this year, I have been cut off from contact with family, and left alone to cover college costs. After being cut off, I considered all my options. As many other transgender women throughout history have unfortunately had to resort to, I considered sex work as a means to support myself financially and not go to college. I finally figured it would be best to at least try to go to college, and pursue my dreams of becoming a psychologist and learning more about the mind and mental health. I used the little money I had in savings from my part-time retail job to put a down-payment on college, and took out loans to cover my first year. So far in college, I have been learning about fascinating topics in my classes, and reading books about Psychology in my free time. The educational barriers I have faced outside of my University are not the only educational barriers I face. Upon housing assignment for my dormitory at my University, I was assigned male housing– which is discriminatory, considering I am a transgender woman. I have had to contact the school and get this changed, but it is still disheartening that as a transgender woman I have to constantly advocate for my identity and for the ability to be seen. I chose this University because of its progressive reputation. While I am grateful to be in such a city that is so accepting, I still face transphobic discrimination by peers, strangers, and employers on a daily basis. This discrimination I currently face, and have faced throughout my whole life, has fueled a passion in me to find my community and support them. A key part of my goals is the belief that mental health resources should be available to everyone, regardless of their financial status. Many times, people who require resources the most are unable to access them because of financial constraints or other barriers. I hope to create a positive transformation in both individuals and society through my work. Having personally experienced mental health crises without the support I need, I am now motivated by a desire to end patterns of generational trauma that I and others in society have dealt with to ultimately help create a brighter tomorrow. Even with the challenges I face like discrimination, harassment, and constant financial and mental health struggles, I am resilient in my dedication to my goals. Since I have realized the importance of self-care in my mental health journey, I have started therapy at the beginning of this year, which has allowed me to focus on my own mental health. Realizing that I am taking care of my own mental health has allowed me to improve my ability to help others efficiently. I am excited about the opportunities that the future holds, and I am committed to achieving my goals. I am majoring in Psychology and plan to get a doctorate in Psychology after I get my Bachelor’s so that I can be licensed as a Psychologist. I am minoring in Gender and Sexuality studies so I can learn more about the nuances of both of these things, and learn more about the intersection of queerness and mental health. In the future, I strive to be a psychologist– but not just any psychologist, specifically one that works with queer and transgender people. I don’t only want to help queer people, but especially queer people of color, and those who come from low-income backgrounds. I want to make the pursuit of mental health services more equitable and give back to communities who historically have not had access to such services. Through the privilege of my education, I strive to give back to the LGBTQ+ community, and be there to support them just as they have supported me all throughout my life.