How to succeed in your upper-division courses once you enroll at the university.

My profound interest in environmental protection did not become apparent until my junior year of high school. While I had been raised to respect the natural world, I never considered these values more deeply until my AP Environmental Science teacher suggested that I volunteer to lead the school’s new Eco Club. I did truly want to dive deeper into the Environmental Science course material, and coordinating the Eco Club seemed like the perfect opportunity to bring the theories I learned in class to life. I decided to take her up on the offer; the rest, as they say, is history. I quickly discovered that this subject was what I wanted to dedicate my life to.   

I started by drafting a proposal for my school board on various energy efficient lightbulb models. My fellow Eco Club members and I successfully convinced my school’s Facilities Committee to gradually replace every school lightbulb with low-wattage LED bulbs. We pushed on, switching our focus to the Meatless Monday campaign. Thanks to the program’s success, our cafeteria eliminated all meat products for two meals each week, leading to unmatched environmental benefits and significant financial savings for the school district.

During my three semesters as a community college student, I have displayed a similar drive. While my current school is quite small and does not offer a formal Environmental Science major, I have been able to craft my own path towards this subject by taking the highest-level courses available in several departments, including Earth Science & Geology, Biology, Chemistry, and Political Science. I not only received top grades in all of these classes, but I have also remained active in environmental-related faculty research projects and even created my own Eco Club on campus, modeled after my high school group.
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I am sure that I will face some challenges while completing my degree in a traditional four-year university, but I am confident that my one-of-a-kind passion for the environment, leadership skills, and commitment to academics will allow me to continue striving towards my goal of studying Environmental Science and eventually earning a master’s degree in Environmental Engineering.