Scholarship Essay Sample

During my life, I've overcome many obstacles. To begin with, I was born in the city of

Los Angeles, and at a young age I moved to Mexico because of my parent's decision. Growing up in Mexico was hard for me at the beginning. It was a completely different environment that I'd never seen, so I was having trouble adapting. Learning Spanish was a huge requirement since I was attending school there, but it took me quite a while to learn the language. At the age of 11 I came back to the United States for a better future, but the circumstances were the same. As a student who didn't know English it was difficult, I had forgotten my native language (English), so having to learn English again was a tough task. During the time where I came back to the U.S I had a challenging encounter; it was tougher than my past experiences in Mexico. There were times where I didn't know if I could even pass a class, and my teachers never helped me out, so I had a difficult time yet again. My background and personal circumstances influenced who I am today, and because of the experiences I went through, I learned how to be a better person; one that never gives up.

As a person who has been through many experiences, I can confidently say that I have big dreams and career goals. My plan after high school is to go to college and study Software Engineering, but it is not the only thing I want to do while in college. During college I plan to study to be a mechanic as my plan B, but my priority is to get my degree. Although my father is a self-taught mechanic, he is quite knowledgeable in his studies, so I would like to be taught by him in the mechanic field. Studying Software Engineering is my major plan, and there's various reasons for that. One reason is because I love coding and technology, and it's just something I've always liked ever since I was younger. Another reason is because I want to work for influential companies like Google, YouTube, or Netflix which would be one of my most significant accomplishments. Moreover, one of the other reasons why I want to study Software Engineering is so I can start a joint company with my father, one where he works on the engine and I work on the computer system of a vehicle. There's many career goals and dreams I have to work on, but I will for sure get there and accomplish them.

Studying as a first generation student is going to be rough, and I know I will face many hardships along the way, but it is my goal to make my family proud, to show them that I am capable of graduating and having the future they wanted me to have.

Moreover, as a first generation college student, there’s many reasons why I would say I deserve this scholarship. My parents moved from another country to give me a better future, and that is something I will always appreciate. Studying and getting a degree is my way of repaying everything they have done for me, which is plenty. In my current situation I can count on my parent’s emotional support 100%, but not with financial support however. Ever since I came to the United States, I’ve known that I could not count on financial support from my parents, so I’m constantly trying to find ways to get and save money for my career. Getting money from scholarships and financial aid is a huge help for me, because I’m in a situation where any amount of money would be significant for me and my future academic career. 

The Sanchez Family Foundation’s Scholarship would help me to a great extent, if I were to get this scholarship I would definitely take the most advantage of it. There’s many people who don’t even get the opportunity to apply for scholarships, so for me to obtain a scholarship like this one is something I am aiming for, as it would mean that I would be closer to achieving my goals without worrying about my financial situation. Ever since last year I’ve started working to save money for college, and it’s been tough because I also have to financially help my parents by paying bills myself. It is definitely not an easy task to work and do school at the same time, but I’m always trying to move forward despite the obstacles. Sometimes there’s moments where I question if I really could make it to college, worrying about how to make more money to financially help my parents and how to save enough money for college is tiring to think about. Whenever I’m in a situation where I have to think about how I’m going to help my parents I try not to stress out, because I know it will work out in the end. 

Nevertheless, this scholarship would mean plenty to me, and even though there’s struggles I have to go through I will not let this scholarship go to waste, as it would help me complete my goals and I’ll be one step closer to achieving my dream.