My lifetime goals are to work with kids and to help people, especially through health care field. To ensure that this is the career that I truly want to pursue, I have sought out relevant opportunities that have allowed me to experience the field firsthand. At the age of nine, I realized that I genuinely enjoy caring for and nurturing children. I started my own babysitting service and spent my free time on weekends tending to the neighborhood children. When I was fourteen years old, I volunteered at the local YMCA as a youth counselor and childcare worker. I loved volunteering at the YMCA so much that as soon as I turned sixteen I applied for a paid position. I have worked there for the past three years and have quickly worked my way up to …show more content…
At fifteen, and while still in high school, I took the tests to enter Southwest Illinois College. I was one of three students who were accepted. I challenged myself by taking classes such as cognitive psychology, abnormal psychology, world and U.S. geography, and drawing. Not only did I enjoy the more demanding environment, but I learned that I thrived in the context of higher learning. I was even on the Dean’s List every semester. Having taken on multiple extra-curricular activities, my high-school classes, and a full-time college course load, I was required to learn how to manage my time proficiently and use every study period to my advantage. I discovered how to push myself academically and how to be a better student. I believe my upbringing has also helped me to succeed academically. I have been homeschooled my entire life (except for my college classes). This approach to learning has enabled me to develop the discipline to study and has made me highly independent. I was fortunate enough to take numerous diverse classes to expand my horizons, from mechanics, to advanced cooking, to the history of Washington D.C. Thus, I was able to discern my true passions. Homeschooling has also taught me how to educate children of various ages and reinforced my passion for working with children. Within our homeschooling group, older kids would periodically teach younger kids while adults taught the whole class. I learned how to work with kids of various ages and levels of