Perspective
As someone who is intrigued with greater scales, I want to leave you with a few words on perspective.
I first want to reiterate to you how important it is that you know you have a place within these fields. By taking the step of scrolling through these pages, my hope is that you can take at least some part of it with you that enables you to succeed in whatever field you choose. The fact is, when you come from an underrepresented background, you come in from a different place than the majority of your peers. That is a fact that you must accept, but I don't consider that to be a disadvantage. You may not come from money, so you'll have to dedicate time to work. You may not have come from an amazing high school that has prepared you for college, so you'll have to learn the best ways you need to study. You may be a part of an identity group where there are very few of you, but you are not alone. You may not have even had any role models, but I guarantee you that by the time you graduate you will be a role model to someone.
We all carry the privilege of being able to attend school, which is not an opportunity always given to the communities that we come from. This is a time for you to gain a better understanding of how you'd like to contribute to this world, no matter how big or small that is. By embarking on the journey that is college, you're already one foot in the door. So, don't let societies expectations of you stop you from studying something you enjoy. I'm not going to lie and say college will be the easiest thing you ever do. You will get upset, cry, be frustrated, but you'll also laugh, smile, discover something you love, and appreciate something about the experience. You will always have a seat at the table, even if you gotta ask someone to scooch over. And the door to these fields is unlocked, even if for underrepresented folks sometimes we have to push with a little more force.
Hope to see you maybe at a conference or on social media (@afrophysicist__), if I haven't already, godspeed!
I first want to reiterate to you how important it is that you know you have a place within these fields. By taking the step of scrolling through these pages, my hope is that you can take at least some part of it with you that enables you to succeed in whatever field you choose. The fact is, when you come from an underrepresented background, you come in from a different place than the majority of your peers. That is a fact that you must accept, but I don't consider that to be a disadvantage. You may not come from money, so you'll have to dedicate time to work. You may not have come from an amazing high school that has prepared you for college, so you'll have to learn the best ways you need to study. You may be a part of an identity group where there are very few of you, but you are not alone. You may not have even had any role models, but I guarantee you that by the time you graduate you will be a role model to someone.
We all carry the privilege of being able to attend school, which is not an opportunity always given to the communities that we come from. This is a time for you to gain a better understanding of how you'd like to contribute to this world, no matter how big or small that is. By embarking on the journey that is college, you're already one foot in the door. So, don't let societies expectations of you stop you from studying something you enjoy. I'm not going to lie and say college will be the easiest thing you ever do. You will get upset, cry, be frustrated, but you'll also laugh, smile, discover something you love, and appreciate something about the experience. You will always have a seat at the table, even if you gotta ask someone to scooch over. And the door to these fields is unlocked, even if for underrepresented folks sometimes we have to push with a little more force.
Hope to see you maybe at a conference or on social media (@afrophysicist__), if I haven't already, godspeed!
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