Overcoming academics: My journey through math and dual enrollment. by Sheldon

Overcoming academics: My journey through math and dual enrollment. by Sheldon - December 2024 Scholarship Essay

High school was full of ups and downs, but if there’s one thing I took away from it, it’s that challenges really do help you grow. For me, those challenges came in the form of math and dual enrollment classes in history and English. At the time, it felt overwhelming trying to balance everything, but now, looking back, I realize those experiences taught me so much about perseverance and figuring out how to handle tough situations.

Math has always been my weak spot. No matter how much effort I put in, it just didn’t click for me the way other subjects did. In middle school, I could get by with some extra effort, but high school math was a completely different story. By the time I hit Algebra II in my junior year, I was really struggling. Quadratic equations, graphing functions—none of it made sense no matter how many times I went over it. I would spend hours going through problems, watching YouTube tutorials, and trying to teach myself, but it felt like I was spinning my wheels without getting anywhere.

At first, I didn’t want to admit I needed help. I thought, “If everyone else can figure this out, why can’t I?” But eventually, I hit a breaking point. My grades were slipping, and I knew something had to change. I started going to after-school tutoring with my math teacher and joined a study group with a few classmates who were really good at math. It was intimidating at first because I felt like I was way behind them, but they were patient and explained things in ways that actually made sense to me.

What really helped was seeing how they approached problems. I realized I was so focused on memorizing steps that I wasn’t actually understanding the “why” behind them. Once I shifted my mindset and started looking at math as a puzzle to figure out instead of a list of rules to follow, things got a little easier. Don’t get me wrong—it was still hard, but I started to see progress. By the end of the semester, I wasn’t acing every test, but I was passing, and more importantly, I felt like I could tackle problems without panicking.

While I was trying to stay afloat in math, I also decided to take on dual enrollment classes in history and English during my senior year. I had always enjoyed reading and writing, but these classes were on a whole different level than what I was used to. They were college-level courses, so the expectations were much higher. I went from writing simple essays in high school to having to analyze historical documents and craft well-supported arguments for English papers.

The first few weeks were overwhelming. I remember my first dual enrollment history assignment—a research paper about a historical event—and feeling completely lost. The professor gave us so much freedom to choose our topic and sources, which sounded great at first, but I quickly realized I had no idea where to start. I spent hours in the library and online, trying to piece together enough information to write a coherent paper. When I finally turned it in, I was convinced I’d fail.

But then something unexpected happened. My professor gave me detailed feedback, pointing out both the strengths and weaknesses in my work. Instead of tearing me down, the feedback helped me see where I could improve. I started breaking assignments into smaller, more manageable steps—research one day, outline the next, and so on. That approach not only made the work less overwhelming but also helped me produce better papers.

English was a similar experience. The assignments were much more analytical than anything I’d done before, and it was tough at first to keep up. But what I loved about that class was how it pushed me to think critically and express my ideas more clearly. I learned how to connect themes from literature to real-life issues, and by the end of the year, I felt way more confident in my ability to write and argue my points.

Balancing these dual enrollment classes with my regular high school workload wasn’t easy, especially with math constantly demanding extra attention. There were late nights and plenty of moments when I thought I’d taken on too much. But in the end, I learned how to manage my time better, how to prioritize, and—most importantly—that it’s okay to ask for help.

These experiences taught me that challenges aren’t something to run away from. Whether it was math, where I had to rethink the way I learned, or dual enrollment, where I had to step up to meet higher expectations, I grew so much from those struggles. Now, as a college sophomore, I carry those lessons with me. I know I can handle tough classes, adapt to new situations, and keep pushing forward even when things get hard.

Looking back, I’m grateful for those experiences, as frustrating as they were in the moment. They not only helped me become a better student but also showed me how resilient I can be when I put my mind to something.