Community College Success Stories

TransferDK
Mon, 27 May 2013 04:30:23 +0000

I guess I should post my story as well (though a bit light hearted than most)

I was a decent student throughout elementary - middle school. Mostly B’s and A’s. Not Ivy league status, but enough to get into a low tier UC. As a 1st generation American, learning English was a painful process, and the assimilation to school was even more difficult.

Until I got into high school.

I come from a small south bay school in California, which to be honest, am sure a lot more tolerant to immigrants than most. Apparently not for me. I been made fun of, outcasted to the point that my grades dropped so hard, that people were considering to put me into remedial school. My freshman GPA was barely a 2.0. I met some friends thankfully, but I grew up hating high school and the people inside of it.

The worst part was when I was in my sophomore year. My aunt who just graduated from Columbia University (She was my role model) went berserk and almost killed my mom. (She’s been mentally ill for sometime) It was to the point that we had to call the police and have the issue cleared. On top of that, my little brother who was autistic, was bullied in his school (we lived in a different home due to a group home program). With all the stress piling together, I didn’t take the SAT, ACT, or any standardized test. Hell, I was amazed I was managing a 2.3 GPA at this point.

Things got better throughout Junior + Senior year. Couple of bad break ups, however my grades were nowhere college level. My counselors would not recommend me to go to college, but to a vocational school. At anyrate, I was doomed. My brother definitely couldnt go to college (his autism is severe) and my family was doomed to be stuck as a blue collar family.

Although I’m sure they meant good to me, their answer and their pity was something I couldn’t stand. So, just to rebel (haha) against them, I decided to enroll myself through community college. I think the only and ONLY reason why I succeeded was because I was able to focus on my studies without worrying about what people think of me. Take the classes, and get out was my #1 priority. Unfortunately due to unforeseen circumstances, I had to take a job to support my family, which ended in 8-9 withdraws on my college transcript.

However with determination, this year with a 3.4GPA, I was accepted to UC Davis as a communications major, I was literally beyond happy when I got my acceptance letter. My father and mother wouldnt stop talking about my accomplishment, and even my brother would proudly say “My brother is going to UC David” (He cant pronounce Davis haha).