I want to finish college!

No one is useless in this world who lightens the burdens of another,” ― Charles Dickens. I remember like if it were yesterday when I read this quote for the first time I was studying for my English class. I never thought that learning a new language would open up doors that I would have never known existed. Not only as a professional but as a human being. I learned English in 2011 because I wanted to study Energy Engineering, a major that is not offered in the Dominican Republic (where I came from). My mother said to me once " ...of course, you had to choose something that DR does not offer". She knew, I didn't belong in one place. I belong to this world. My family and I decided to make this idea of studying abroad a reality. It was amazing how everything fell into place. One of my closest friends gave me an article about Penn State. What? I couldn't even pronounce that! I needed google translate and some research.

Do you remember the first time you fell in love? Love makes you happy, sometimes reckless but most important, love makes you fearless. Penn State and Energy Engineering did that to me. I had to take exams that I was not ready for such as SATS, What? The Dominican Republic education system does not have that! TOEFL what now? But I needed to prove that I was able to study in a foreign college. Therefore, I did it. I took the TOEFL test in February 2012 but guess what? The application deadline was in May and I failed the test. The good news was that the deadline was actually in three months I could not let my love just go away then I took the test for a second time and I got the score that was required. Finally, I transferred all my credits to Penn State where I did two amazing years. Unfortunately, when I was about to start my senior year I had to go back to the Dominican Republic because my family could not afford my career anymore. My mother was sick she had cancer and thanks to GOD we used everything we had in terms of money to give her the best assistance and now she is well.

I just have two semesters left. I am going to be honest I am not the girl that gets A´s, but who am I? I am the girl that can raise her GPA from 2.40 to 3.00 with the effort, the enthusiasm, and the hard work that I put in every of my endeavors. I am still learning and improving in every possible way, as you may notice reading this article my English is not yet perfect but I am happy that three years ago I was using a dictionary to understand my favorite song and now I can't just understand it but also communicate with great people like you. During my time in DR, I was able to get a loan with my dad, but we still need $18.000 to complete my dream. I wish I could work for this amount of money right now, but our global economy won't let me gain all that money without a degree. I just want to be the best Energy Engineer I can be for the world and with Gods guidance help my society in every positive aspect. As someone said: What we plant now, we will harvest later (Og Mandino).

God may bless you every day!
I thank you in advance for your generosity!!


Olga Dotel