Gearing Up for College: My Interest Letter

Gearing Up for College: My Interest LetterHigh school was a big waste of time for me. I hated school, quite frankly. I was always bored with it. From history class to mathematics and even lunch breaks, I dreaded the school year. I rarely did homework, but still managed to get good grades. I had few friends through high school, and have actually lost touch with nearly all of them. To this day, I only speak to maybe one or two of them.

High school was a time to work on my golf game and prepare for college. I had no idea where I was going to school, but I knew I wanted to play golf. I had looked at schools all over the country, and was not sure where I wanted to end up. One school, Palm Beach Atlantic University, was the front-runner for a long time. It is located in Palm Beach, Florida, just north of Fort Lauderdale. The school literally sits right on the beach, and their home golf course is a Trump National track. It was perfect.

Part of the application process, besides the actual application itself, was a letter to the office of admissions. I had actually been asked to write a letter like this to most of the schools I had applied to. But I wanted to share the one I had written to Palm Beach Atlantic with you here today. This letter was written on Thursday, February 14th, 2002.

“Let me start off by saying that it is an honor to be able to apply to your school. I love the fact that your school is a Christian college, and I feel that it will fit quite nicely into my future plans and goals. I plan to attend, if accepted, Palm Beach Atlantic College for four years and receive my bachelor’s degree in compute science. I then plan to attend a university, unknown at this current time, and receive my masters up with doctorate in that field as well. I feel that Palm Beach Atlantic offers a good course curriculum, whether it is computer science or not, and will be a challenge not only in the classroom, but also on a personal and spiritual basis.

Compute science is one of thousands of thing that I am interested in. I chose this field of study for more than one reason. First, I enjoy computers and the way they work. I feel that every computer, in a sense, is like a human being. Each has its own components, or body parts, and the all look the same in a matter of respect. Like human, their parts that are similar sometimes falter and are left to be fixed. This is like when a human gets hurt; he/she must then see a doctor. If I were given the chance to attend PBA, I would do everything in my power to succeed in this field of study. I love how the course curriculum offers a background of Christianity in every classroom. It reassures me that I am doing the right thing when it comes to learning. God has a plan for me, like He does for us all, and I feel that my plans include the four years that I would like to spend learning at PBA.

Golf is another thing that is big in my life. I have played for four years on my high school team, and I wish to play in college. I feel that I am good enough to play on the collegiate level, and if I ma accepted to PBA, I will try to make a differing in the team. If you were to ask my high school coach, I am sure he would have nothing but good things to say about me as a person and a golfer. I also feel that the team has brought a sense of brotherhood to me on a personal level. This year, on the high school team, I plan to make the best of my final year in school and show my coach that I am collegiate material.

In closing, I believe that there is no other school that I am aware of that will provide me what I need to succeed in the future. I feel that PBA would fulfill all of my goals in the classroom and then a step further with my spiritual level.”

Having read that some eight years after writing it, it reminds me of how much I wanted to go to that school. I remember driving down there to meet the coach, play the course, and talk about my potential as a member of the golf team. He was impressed with my swing and said I would make a great fit for their squad. And I was eventually accepted into that school. But for some reason I decided against it. I ended up playing golf and studying for my first two years at Marian College.

But memories like this are important as I start to look into graduate schools. That has not changed in the eight years since I wrote this. I still want my master’s degree. And I still wouldn’t mind getting my doctorate if that ever becomes an option. I just thrive on learning and desire that net level of education.

Anyone out there who is looking to start college, remember that it is a small portion of your life that will teach you so much not only about yourself, but also about how you work and deal with others. I with you luck in your collegiate activities, and I hope that this blog entry shows you a little bit about where I started before college and where I have come in the last eight years since.