College Intent

Dear Admissions Committee: After the sudden passing of my mother in 1999, I became a mother figure at the age of (twelve??) to my younger sibling. Whether it was applying a band-aid to a scrape or kissing a small bruise, I did what was necessary to care for my younger brother. Years later, in the summer of 2011, my grandmother was diagnosed with breast cancer; I returned from Spain to Chicago to help her during her radiation treatments. For the seven weeks during her treatment, I was by her side comforting her, encouraging her, laughing with her, and even crying with her. I held her hand to comfort her at every appointment, every ultrasound, and every blood test. The responsibility and care in which I provided during this time was a learning experience. It presented great insight into the health profession from the patient and caregiver’s perspective. I always considered the health profession as what I was meant to do in life but the ultimate push factor towards this field has been what I definitely consider, a journey.
An attempt at the college experience following high school did nothing but tarnish my GPA. I knew I needed some type of guidance in which could help me determine my identity, the path which I was meant to follow in life. It was then I decided to join the United States Navy in 2006 with the hopes of finding the answer. I initially decided upon the health field when asked for the career I wanted to pursue; however, due to the unavailability of space for the program, I chose law enforcement as my alternative.
I began to see the importance and necessity of an education while on active duty. I completed my Associates of Arts degree from Coastline Community College in May 2009. After an honorable discharge in October 2009, I began working on my Bachelors of Science at Kaplan University. I completed my bachelors with a 4.0 GPA, Summa cum laude, a major personal achievement considering my earlier adolescent attempt. I was encouraged to live by