Graduation is approaching really fast and the pressure of graduating from high school is hitting everyone.
I have always dreamt of leaving my hometown as fast as I could, but as much as I wanted to leave initially, I knew I would be staying nearby for college.
My plan was just to do 2 years of community college, since for my degree I just need my Associate’s Degree, which I can get done in a nearby college. I had 3 in mind – Hartnell, MPC and Cabrillo College. I was set to decide on one of them, not looking into any other CSUs or UCs.
However, something shifted after a talk I had with my counselor. We had constant meetings because I wanted to make sure I was on the right track for everything. This specific meeting was December 13, 2024, just a few days before CSU’s deadlines. If anything, maybe around 8 of their applications were still open because they had been extended.
We talked about my GPA and family background information. He brought up how I would get great help if I did decide to apply to CSUs and I should give it a shot at least, and I did.
That same day, I decided to try it out and applied to 4 schools: Fresno State, Sacramento State, Chico, and Channel Islands.
In January, I got my school acceptance letters back. To my surprise, I got accepted to all of them. I wasn’t really expecting to get into all of them because it never crossed my mind to even apply.
Initially, I took Channel Islands as my first choice because I like big cities. I would love to live and study there. I’m not sure if it’s because it reminds me of the lovely memories that I had there with special people or because the city attracted me there. Regardless, after thinking about it for 2 months, I made my decision, and it was to stay close to home.
Hearing everyone leaving far away definitely had me questioning my decision to stay for community college because I feel as if I will continue to have the same small responsibilities. Making it feel as if I am “less of an adult”.
Despite the feelings that I had towards the decision, I knew that the only struggle to leave was going to be money. My whole life, I have lived in Salinas. I come from a low-income single-parent home. Growing up the struggle was the same one over and over, stressing over how the bills were going to get paid. Let alone paying the crazy expensive rent every month.
It has always just been my mom, my younger sister, and me. My mother always reminded me that she would try to help me as much as she could while I was in school. Regardless, I don’t wish to put any more stress on her.
I have a great, close bond with my family. Which is something that I wanted to keep strong. They are my first source of motivation. I was inspired to be a good role model for my younger sister because I know she looks up to me and because I will be the first one to get a degree.
Throughout my 4 years of high school I never felt pressure of school because my mom was always there to support me regardless of anything. As long as I had passing grades and I tried my hardest on the work, it was enough for her. She always mentioned she would support me as long as I made it out of working in agriculture, which is where she has worked for 20 years.
I knew that leaving would mean having the support from my family, but they all live here in Salinas or nearby; leaving 5-6 hours away, I would have no one. I am not used to being alone, let alone living alone. It was also a matter of not being prepared to go out and live by myself just yet because it would be a drastic change.
An estimated cost of living if I decided to move to Channel Islands on house campus housing starts off between $8,150 and $12,470 per semester and the average rent for a one-bedroom apartment in the Camarillo area is $2,724 per month. Living at home would mean not having to worry about paying for rent. It would allow me to save up and eventually move out when I am done with the 2 years; it would reduce financial stress. I am sure I would get pretty good financial aid since I am first generation, raised by a single mother, good GPA, and am from a low-income household, but I would still be falling into debt which I can avoid by staying.
While Hartnell also offered me the same program, I found the campus in Monterey to be more appealing and I love the area, how it’s surrounded by trees and the weather. I would be able to get dropped off and picked up, so it wouldn’t be an inconvenience.
My major is going to be health science, and I only need my Associate’s Degree to be able to get a job in healthcare. The job I want to pursue is sonography. For this job some clinics accept you with just an associate’s degree and teach you along the way, but for the most, many ask for you to attend an accredited sonography program, which usually takes around 12 months. These programs help you find jobs in clinics faster and they advocate for you.
I found a pediatric sonographer intriguing because I love being around babies and children. I wouldn’t specifically be working with them, but I will be watching them grow inside the belly, which I find really fascinating.
I know this job also comes with many downsides like having to break down bad news of when the baby is no longer alive and dealing with difficult patients at times, but I would rather see it on the positive side. I also like this type of healthcare because it is not very demanding compared to other healthcare workers.
In California, entry-level medical sonographers typically start around $96,502 per year and increase with the amount of experience you have. This is because California such as many other regions, lack sonographers because the population demand is outpacing the supply due to increased ultrasound utilization across various specialties and limited educational capacity
After I finish my 2 years, I plan to transfer to the Sacramento Ultrasound Institute. I have some relatives there that would be able to support me while I’m there and just go on from there. This is what I have planned out for my future and what I believe will work best for me.
