Personal Documents
On a chilly Spring day
I gather with students and civilians
Standing proud beside my peers
Celebrating the football champions of the North East
In the background, a school in the heart of a historic city
congratulates the team for their victory
As Suffolk Rams gather in spirit
A community together, united and strong
Students of the school mingle with citizens
And professional football players
On a day where Suffolk’s campus is turned into a parade
Where students and faculty come together for a day
Commemorating and cheering the victors
In happiness and enjoyment, the Suffolk community
Becomes a strong-knit entity,
With passions of the students heard and reciprocated by faculty
For a day enjoyed by all of Boston
One of my personal documents is not something that I currently have on hand, but have saved back at home – my cap and gown from graduating high school. It was a warm and sunny June day; bright smiles flash and colorful bouquets are gifted. Long hair and graduation gowns twirl in the sunlit air. For all of the excitement and ambition, I felt little satisfaction in wearing the cap and gown. As I smile with friends in celebration, there is no hint of doubt for the challenges that accompany college. With a forced smile and a cap and gown I paid $75 for a single day of posed tradition, I celebrated what was, for me, the taxing but easily attainable high school diploma and high GPA. I did not know then, among the laughing faces and bright foliage, that college would not be a walk in the park.
My first document is the acceptance email I received from Suffolk University to congratulate me on my admission. I had not yet received my admission package in the mail, so this email was my first step in becoming a university student. It was the first incredible step in my college education; it marked the beginning of a journey. The excitement I felt was unimaginable: a university wanted me! Me! A university found my hard work and dedication to be prominent to accept me for study. More than graduating high school, I felt recognized for my work, and very excited and ambitious to continue my study at a school with an incredible location
My second document is a follow up email to my acceptance to Suffolk – it was a Financial Aid Reminder from FAFSA. With the glitz and glamour of acceptance out of the way, reality set in: the cost. Suffolk was a reach school for me – not in terms of acceptance rate, but in terms of tuition. Could I reach that price tag? Could I afford such a prestigious name? And here came FAFSA, brandishing sword and shield, ready and willing to slash that price tag to pieces. But the email included “Reminder” and “Deadlines” and “need based financial aid,” deadly words to an 18 year old who had never had a steady paycheck in their life. This was the first inkling that being a student was more than just study; it was about tuition and loans, too.
My third document is my financial aid award letter from Suffolk. It details the scholarships I have been awarded – discounts offered for achievement in my studies. As nice as those are, though, it also shows the subsidized and unsubsidized loans I have been granted – money that looks like a nice plus to dropping that tuition payment, but in actuality is a venomous snake that bites back. The loans may not look intimidating or menacing, but in the years to come, they will be a constant reminder that college comes with an everlasting cost. Further, too, the letter shows the actual cost of tuition – the most surprising element of the letter. To see such large numbers of scholarships and loans thrown around, still only a fraction of tuition, which is not broken down into specific expenses; it is just a lump sum, a large price tag that holds my future but seems artificially and incredulously inflated. The financial aid letter is a double edged sword: scholarships are nice to receive, but in tandem with loans and a tuition bill, is a single letter that holds years worth of financial decisions and repayment.