Essential Question: What education skills are needed and beneficial to succeed in topics of study at the university level and in careers that you deem engaging and worthwhile
Since I am going to be most likely going into a STEM field I am going to need some very valuable skills such as, collaboration skills and avocation skills. After looking at the STEM field and seeing how valuable these two skills can be to the work space or even in classroom setting. Since CSUSM, UCSD, and SDSU have moderately big classrooms it is imperative to have these skills in order to succeed. Also being apart of the schools community is important, it can help with finding friends and hobbies you can use your spare time on. After all college is what you make of it, so if you are wasting your time in your dorm or at home you will most likely have a negative experience. I am currently pushing myself in high school by taking all honors and being in multiple clubs, I feel like this is the best possible way I can prepare myself for the future and even more than that, being able to create a good work ethic for myself. I play club sports outside of school and I wish to continue either playing club sports in college or staying active because it helps clear my mind of stress and anxiety. Another skill that I want to work on is writing before testing or when I feel stressed. According to studies done by the University of Chicago if you write before a test you will improve your overall test scores by 5%. Alongside this testing strategy I would also like to improve my mathematical and logical thinking which is done in the parietal lobe which is located in the upper back portion of the brain. This can be done by doing puzzles or brain teasers that involve math in some sort of way.
Cal State San Marcos
Safety
CSUSM is my safety school since my GPA and SAT both are above the requirement to get in. GPA requirement is 3.27 and the SAT is 1030. My GPA is a 3.5 and my SAT score is predicted to above 1200 based off of my previous PSAT score. The acceptance rate is also high at 67%.
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San Diego State University
Fit
SDSU is my fit school since my grades almost line up with the requirement of 3.6 and my SAT score is predicted to be higher than their 1190 requirement. Fairly competitive school to get into with a acceptance rate of 34.2%. It is also a local school with many financial aid options. It also has a good engineering program which is what I want to major in.
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University of California San Diego
Reach
UCSD is my reach school because it is one of the most competitive UC schools that you can apply to. The average GPA is a 4.0 and the SAT score is a 1350. On top of that it has a moderate acceptance rate of 35%. I would need to make serious improvements to be able to go here. It also has a really good engineering program which is why I chose it.
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Interview:
For my interview I spoke to the SDSU admissions officer. The person on the phone was glad to tell me all about the schools financial aid options, the majors they offer, campus size, and attractions near and in the school. The types of financial aid offered are FAFSA, Cal Grants (A and B), the State University Grant (SUG), the Educational Opportunity Program Grant (EOP), and the Middle Class Scholarship Program (MCS). The campus is pretty big sitting at 30,000 students enrolled. The campus life is, "Bright and enriched with school events" this is to help students become a part of the community. The school itself is geared toward "Getting the student prepared to impact the outside world" which I found important. Overall I was very pleased with the results of the interview and I hope to get accepted for my freshman year of college. |
10 Year Plan:
High School Junior Year: Take SAT and score atleast 1150 and prep for the next test I will take High school Senior Year: Take SAT again and score around 1250-1300 and apply to colleges. Apply for financial aid and loans. Hopfully get accepted to UCSD or SDSU College Freshman Year: Go into college with undeclared major to give myself more time to decide if I really want to do engineering, also take GE classes College Sophomore Year: Finish my GE classes and get more involved in the on campus life through either clubs or fraternity College Junior Year: Chose mechanical engineering as my major and apply for internships in the engineering field College Senior Year: Finish the courses required to acquire my major and begin to apply for jobs outside of college in the engineering field Gap Year: Use this time to apply for Graduate school at UCSD and get a job while I am waiting to be accepted Graduate School Freshman Year: Attend UCSD to acquire masters in mechanical engineering and start classes for computer science Graduate School Sophomore Year: Acquire my masters in mechanical engineering finish taking classes in computer science |