Alex Almaguer is a ninth grader in Dallas, Texas.
My name is Alex Almaguer and I graduated from T.C. Marsh Middle School in Dallas. This summer, I had the chance to attend the Roadmap to College Tour with my aunt, some friends, and amazing teachers including Ms. Isaak. The main reason to attend this tour, for me, was to determine the location of the college I would like to join in 2016.
I have always wanted to attend college outside of Texas, to get a new point of view of other places and to be independent. Before registering for this trip, I never knew exactly what I was searching for in a college. To be honest, I really didn’t focus at all about the details to attend a college and all the years in between. My dream is to become a family attorney. All I knew was that to make this possible I must go to law school.
Alex Almaguer during her college tour. Photo courtesy of Courtney Isaak
During this trip I visited nine different colleges around Texas, including Texas A&M, Austin College, Rice, and others. All these colleges are different in many ways; some are big, some are small, some offer study abroad, many don’t, many have traditions, and some don’t. It made me realize that there are many unique colleges I could go to. If I really put my mind to it and become a well-rounded person I could choose any college that’s right for me.
Touring all of these wonderful colleges has taught me so much and opened my eyes to the variety that is out there waiting for me. I know I could succeed at anything and everything I put my mind to. This trip has not only taught me about these colleges, but about me and what I will be doing at a university. I found out that you do not necessarily have to major in economics or politics to be a lawyer. Another thing, I didn’t know there was a test, the LSAT, that I must take to get accepted into a law school. I would like to go to Stanford University for law school, but I have yet to determine where to get my bachelor's degree.
Seeing all these different colleges made me realize that I now know what I am searching for in a college. I want to attend a private college of small to medium size so I can get to know the professors and interact with others in my classes. I do not want huge classes where you can’t see the professor or have group discussions. I would love to go to a place were they have traditions and myths about the college that makes that particular place unique and different than other colleges. For example, every person who graduates from Texas A&M gets a ring of accomplishment. At Rice University, all the freshmen go through this arch in the front of the college, and the legend is that if you walk out through the arch before your four years are up,you won't graduate. At Rice's graduation, they let the graduates, finally, walk out of the arch and into the real world. I think legends like this are fun and make the college its own, and that’s what I want in my future university.
As I mentioned, I want to get out of Texas to see other places and other points-of-view on life. Yet another thing I learned during this college tour was that I can stay in Texas but study abroad for a whole semester. I can go anyplace I want to and learn their language, try their food, study their religion and culture, and of course tour their landmarks. I love to travel, and now I realize the ability to study abroad is a must for whatever college I attend.
When the Roadmap to College Tour was over, I realized I wanted to visit other colleges around the world before I decide on one place, because looking at the colleges in person is completely different than searching for them on the internet. I know I have big dreams and this tour has taught me that my dreams are not farfetched. If I am determined, then I can succeed at anything I set my mind to.
