Personal Statement
My name is Jocelyn Hernandez and I’m a senior at Lindsay High school. I’ve been attending the Lindsay Unified School District since I was in kindergarten. After I promoted from 8th grade, I made a promise to myself that I wouldn’t procrastinate in high school and I would graduate in 2017. I’ve overcome many downfalls throughout my three years in high school and it’s a bittersweet feeling to know that I am almost finished. My freshman year, I tried out for the Lindsay High School cheer team. Sure enough, I got in. To be a cheerleader, it’s important you have a positive attitude and you need to remember that you represent the high school and there are a lot of people who look up to you. An important role of a cheerleader, is showing good leadership and having great spirit towards your school. Basically, our job is to rowdy up the crowds at football, basketball, and volleyball games and get as much people as we can to cheer on our athletes. I feel like being a cheerleader has given me a great leadership experience because I’ve gotten to know so many people this way and it’s a great social tool, especially for someone who may be shy and wants to grow more socially. As a team, we put in great group effort to come up with these great dances and cheers to put on a show for our community. Another great feeling is seeing little girls go to the football games and cheer along with us. We need to look our best in front of them because they look up to us and some may want to be cheerleader when they get to high school. We encourage many people to try out and help us improve our students school spirit. Being a cheerleader we also have many responsibilities. It’s my job to stay on pace in my classes so I’m able to cheer. School comes before anything, so I have to find time to do my homework and also get to practice during the week so I’m able to cheer on Friday nights.
8th grade year, I applied to be in AVID (Advanced Via Individual Determination). I applied to be in AVID because I knew my plan after high school was to go straight to a four year university. I could not have been more lucky that I was given the advantage of this educational opportunity. AVID has prepared me for college by teaching me a higher level of learning. I was also shown how to stay organized so I know exactly where I’m at in all my classes. I now will have been in AVID for an exact amount of four years. Thanks to AVID I have grown so much into a better student and I’ve learned many different skills that others don’t get. For example, I’ve learned a great note taking skill called “Cornell Notes”. With cornell notes, I am able to go back and study for tests without a single struggle. AVID has been a great tool not only with the things I’ve learned for myself, but also with the help of the other students in it. I’ve never had a problem with asking for help because the others in my class will always. I’m still scared to think about college… but I will never be afraid of not being prepared. Before AVID, I was not as determined and focused as I am now. I have much more responsibilities and I’ve limited myself to things that have nothing to do with getting an education. Of course I need a break once in a while, but school is my top priority and I have a lot planned for myself. I wish AVID could become a school wide thing. It’d be nice to see how much the school would change if everyone was given this great educational opportunity. As an AVID student it’s become my job to help anyone who needs it because I know how hard it can be, and I just want to share my education and knowledge in certain subjects with others. I’m an advanced individual student who is determined and prepared for what college has in store for me.
Three personality traits I have that I feel sets me apart from other candidates applying to University of California are : I’m creative, determined, and compassionate. I feel like I’m a very unique student in my own ways. I’ve taken art class since my freshman year. Art is my path to relaxation and I feel like it’s the reason why I’m so creative. There’s a way around everything and there’s always multiple ways to do them. I’ve always gone the most creative way. I’m my own person and I hate taking credit of one’s work, so I come up with my own. Having a creative mind can get you through so many different situations and I’m proud of the things I’ve done so far. I’ve never been anything less than determined. Yes, there has been times where I failed or got a bad grade, but that has not stopped me from reaching for the skies. I have huge plans and I will not let anything, not even a 2 stop me from getting there. There’s been a few times where I have felt like giving up, I cannot lie about that… but even then I wanted to be a better person because I know I don’t settle for less. I am determined to do better every day because I have faith in myself that I will soon be the student I dreamed of being when I was younger. I must admit, I do have a big heart, I’m very compassionate. I have a habit of feeling sympathy towards others and having a great concern for them. I just hate to watch others fail. I’ve offered helped to many students that did take it, and others who rejected me, and that’s fine. It’s always nice to at least ask if someone needs help because they may or may not be embarrassed or shy to ask for help because they don’t understand something. I’m the type of student you can count on for help on anything, I may not be an expert, but I promise to try my best to understand your situation.
There’s been a time in my life where I’ve overcome a challenge that influenced my academic achievement. Towards the end of my sophomore year, I got the news that my AVID teacher was moving to a different state. It was one of the hardest things to hear, and to this day I still miss him more than anything! My AVID teacher was one of the most intelligent teachers I have ever had. He was such a joy to be around and he had been a great influence on me and the rest of the students in my class. When I heard he was leaving us, I immediately dropped my things and told myself I was done trying. It resulted in bad grades and a lower GPA. I let my emotions get ahold of me and take advantage of my life. I wanted nothing to do with school, until I decided it was time to get help from another teacher who in which reminded me that I wasn’t going through this hard time alone. My whole AVID class hated the idea of our teacher leaving us. I just had no faith that someone could replace him, I felt like without him I’d fail anyways. But the truth is, failure begins and ends with yourself. Achievement begins and ends with yourself. You can never really blame someone else for being the reason you’re failing. Whether you want to pass a class or fail a class or do a level 4, become a better student, that is all up to you. You make your own decisions… everything begins and ends with you and your choices. This is where my advanced individual determination comes in. I’ve come to learn that you won’t always have someone there to help you, that’s where self determination lands. No matter what you do, you have complete control over your choices and actions. I now choose to stay true to myself. I know who I am and I know what I can and can’t do. I’m better than throwing a fit because my teacher had to leaving us.
- Describe an example of your leadership experience in which you have positively influenced others , helped resolve disputes or contributed to group efforts over time :
My name is Jocelyn Hernandez and I’m a senior at Lindsay High school. I’ve been attending the Lindsay Unified School District since I was in kindergarten. After I promoted from 8th grade, I made a promise to myself that I wouldn’t procrastinate in high school and I would graduate in 2017. I’ve overcome many downfalls throughout my three years in high school and it’s a bittersweet feeling to know that I am almost finished. My freshman year, I tried out for the Lindsay High School cheer team. Sure enough, I got in. To be a cheerleader, it’s important you have a positive attitude and you need to remember that you represent the high school and there are a lot of people who look up to you. An important role of a cheerleader, is showing good leadership and having great spirit towards your school. Basically, our job is to rowdy up the crowds at football, basketball, and volleyball games and get as much people as we can to cheer on our athletes. I feel like being a cheerleader has given me a great leadership experience because I’ve gotten to know so many people this way and it’s a great social tool, especially for someone who may be shy and wants to grow more socially. As a team, we put in great group effort to come up with these great dances and cheers to put on a show for our community. Another great feeling is seeing little girls go to the football games and cheer along with us. We need to look our best in front of them because they look up to us and some may want to be cheerleader when they get to high school. We encourage many people to try out and help us improve our students school spirit. Being a cheerleader we also have many responsibilities. It’s my job to stay on pace in my classes so I’m able to cheer. School comes before anything, so I have to find time to do my homework and also get to practice during the week so I’m able to cheer on Friday nights.
- Describe how you have taken advantage of a significant educational opportunity or worked to overcome an educational barrier you have faced :
8th grade year, I applied to be in AVID (Advanced Via Individual Determination). I applied to be in AVID because I knew my plan after high school was to go straight to a four year university. I could not have been more lucky that I was given the advantage of this educational opportunity. AVID has prepared me for college by teaching me a higher level of learning. I was also shown how to stay organized so I know exactly where I’m at in all my classes. I now will have been in AVID for an exact amount of four years. Thanks to AVID I have grown so much into a better student and I’ve learned many different skills that others don’t get. For example, I’ve learned a great note taking skill called “Cornell Notes”. With cornell notes, I am able to go back and study for tests without a single struggle. AVID has been a great tool not only with the things I’ve learned for myself, but also with the help of the other students in it. I’ve never had a problem with asking for help because the others in my class will always. I’m still scared to think about college… but I will never be afraid of not being prepared. Before AVID, I was not as determined and focused as I am now. I have much more responsibilities and I’ve limited myself to things that have nothing to do with getting an education. Of course I need a break once in a while, but school is my top priority and I have a lot planned for myself. I wish AVID could become a school wide thing. It’d be nice to see how much the school would change if everyone was given this great educational opportunity. As an AVID student it’s become my job to help anyone who needs it because I know how hard it can be, and I just want to share my education and knowledge in certain subjects with others. I’m an advanced individual student who is determined and prepared for what college has in store for me.
- What are things that you think sets you apart from other candidates applying to the University of California? :
Three personality traits I have that I feel sets me apart from other candidates applying to University of California are : I’m creative, determined, and compassionate. I feel like I’m a very unique student in my own ways. I’ve taken art class since my freshman year. Art is my path to relaxation and I feel like it’s the reason why I’m so creative. There’s a way around everything and there’s always multiple ways to do them. I’ve always gone the most creative way. I’m my own person and I hate taking credit of one’s work, so I come up with my own. Having a creative mind can get you through so many different situations and I’m proud of the things I’ve done so far. I’ve never been anything less than determined. Yes, there has been times where I failed or got a bad grade, but that has not stopped me from reaching for the skies. I have huge plans and I will not let anything, not even a 2 stop me from getting there. There’s been a few times where I have felt like giving up, I cannot lie about that… but even then I wanted to be a better person because I know I don’t settle for less. I am determined to do better every day because I have faith in myself that I will soon be the student I dreamed of being when I was younger. I must admit, I do have a big heart, I’m very compassionate. I have a habit of feeling sympathy towards others and having a great concern for them. I just hate to watch others fail. I’ve offered helped to many students that did take it, and others who rejected me, and that’s fine. It’s always nice to at least ask if someone needs help because they may or may not be embarrassed or shy to ask for help because they don’t understand something. I’m the type of student you can count on for help on anything, I may not be an expert, but I promise to try my best to understand your situation.
- Describe the most significant challenge you have faced and the steps you have taken to overcome this challenge. How has this challenge affected your academic achievement? :
There’s been a time in my life where I’ve overcome a challenge that influenced my academic achievement. Towards the end of my sophomore year, I got the news that my AVID teacher was moving to a different state. It was one of the hardest things to hear, and to this day I still miss him more than anything! My AVID teacher was one of the most intelligent teachers I have ever had. He was such a joy to be around and he had been a great influence on me and the rest of the students in my class. When I heard he was leaving us, I immediately dropped my things and told myself I was done trying. It resulted in bad grades and a lower GPA. I let my emotions get ahold of me and take advantage of my life. I wanted nothing to do with school, until I decided it was time to get help from another teacher who in which reminded me that I wasn’t going through this hard time alone. My whole AVID class hated the idea of our teacher leaving us. I just had no faith that someone could replace him, I felt like without him I’d fail anyways. But the truth is, failure begins and ends with yourself. Achievement begins and ends with yourself. You can never really blame someone else for being the reason you’re failing. Whether you want to pass a class or fail a class or do a level 4, become a better student, that is all up to you. You make your own decisions… everything begins and ends with you and your choices. This is where my advanced individual determination comes in. I’ve come to learn that you won’t always have someone there to help you, that’s where self determination lands. No matter what you do, you have complete control over your choices and actions. I now choose to stay true to myself. I know who I am and I know what I can and can’t do. I’m better than throwing a fit because my teacher had to leaving us.