Miami Lakes Educational Center’s auditorium was full of alumni on Thursday— some had successfully completed their first semester of college, others were getting ready to graduate, and a few were still battling finals. Taking to the stage, they all answered questions ranging from dealing with rigorous classes to living with strange roommates.
Ms. Castro and Ms. Chavez served as moderators to guide the presentation towards the college bound 11th and 12th graders by asking questions and taking some from the audience.
The first question dealt with distance— a particular aspect of colleges that scares away many applicants— and how to deal with parents reluctant to have their children go far away.
“Getting out of your room and doing things and meeting new people is how to cope with [homesickness],” says Flavia Cuervo, Class of 2014, who is currently attending Harvard University in Cambridge, Massachusetts.
For Christopher Chamorro, Class of 2016, distance was a big issue: “Sometimes you’re just not ready. It’s a very heavy transition. Even leaving from MLEC to Florida International University was a heavy transition.”
The college process could be very tedious if you are met with parents who are hesitant to let you move hours away from home. That was the case for Gaby Nunez, Class of 2013.
“I made sure to include my parents in the college process,” she said. “The whole reason your parents work so hard is so that you can do the same.”
After looking at her acceptances, she was able to formulate a compromise with her parents. She currently attends University of Florida.
Many of the students in the crowd were curious about the college application process and asked about the most difficult part— essays.
“Find something about yourself that stands out to these colleges,” said Salwa Raza, Class of 2015.
Joanna Luo, Class of 2016, advised to write about something that makes you human, because they read tons of essays about saving the world and ending world hunger. When walking into the admissions office, they remember her as “the girl who wrote about Super Mario.”
“The most important factor [about the application process] for me was the way I wrote my essays,” said Nick, Class of 2012, stressing the importance of the essay portion.
He shared that his essay was about the time he visited the campus of the school and returned to his host’s apartment at 3 a.m. and watched Spirited Away. Nick is graduating from Carnegie Mellon.
Among the alumni was a Posse scholar, a Questbridge scholar, and a Gates Millennium scholar. When answering questions about how to pay for college, the most prominent answer was “look for scholarships.”
The now college students shared that there are foundations and schools that are very generous with their money. Look out for scholarships. Sometimes, you can even reuse essays that you submit for applications, shared Michelle Wu.
“Even though it may be an expensive school, apply and look at their financial packages,” said Diego, Class of 2012.
All in all, “The most important thing is don’t not apply because you think you can’t afford it,” said Flavia Cuervo.
Some students, like Ruth Reyes, Class of 2015, work part-time to help with expenses. She shared that sometimes she would sneak food from the dining hall into her dorm: “When you’re up studying at 2 a.m. for finals, you have nothing to eat.”
“Say goodbye to fajitas, say goodbye to arepas, say goodbye to croquetas, say goodbye to empanadas,” Nick said to all the hispanics in the crowd.
Although he said that was mostly false, he added that the hispanic food in other states is likely to be of lesser quantity quality.
Sharon Arana, Class of 2016, ended the forum by advising the crowd not to compare themselves to anyone, to look out for themselves, and to be unafraid.
