I was very excited when the University of California Davis gave me admission to their university. I was very happy and full of joy. I felt the greatest satisfaction knowing that all my hard work had paid off. I felt that I was finally going to accomplish my dreams, and I was going to attend the university of my dreams. In the process of getting ready to attend college, my father lost his job and my mother had to shorten her hours. I was still fighting to attend UC Davis but I saw the struggles my parents were facing on paying the rent on time and still they were going to help me pay for my housing at Davis. I couldn’t make them go through more. Part of me felt like I was giving up on my fight, but the other part made me feel like I was doing the right thing for everyone.
As the days passed my decision had to be made. I was very frightened to decline UC Davis. I felt like I was letting everyone down. I made my final decisions after talking to one of the advisers from The Ed. Fund. He explained to me my options about community college and made me realize that there is nothing wrong. He helped me organize a budget. After that phone call I felt good knowing that what I was going to do didn’t make me less than others.
When I look at this journey I can’t help but to wish for a rewind button. I wish I had done things differently. Even now, when I look at my UC Davis ID, I get a little sad knowing how different things could have been, but I learned a lesson that will forever help me in the future. Throughout this experience I learned that it does not matter where I go, but rather to walk that path even if there are curves and bumps to get there. I am an AB540 student and I don’t get a lot of financial aid. I come from a low-income family and my parents don’t have secure jobs. I just wish I would have taken these factors into consideration and actually be realistic about my chances of going to UC Davis. I wish I had a clear view on what I really wanted to do. Since I took long taking my decisions I register late for classes at my community college, and now I have to wait until next semester to obtain classes that I need to transfer.
I don’t ever want to see anyone facing the same situation as me. Have your goals set and ready. Be realistic about your goals. It’s not wrong to dream high, but also consider how you’ll get there. Make a budget plan with a college adviser and be sure how much financial help you can get from your parents. Also, know that there is absolutely nothing wrong with community college. Some of us have to go to different paths to get where we want to be. The important thing is to accomplish it.
-Elienai, UC Davis/Contra Costa College
