Transitioning.

The transition from attending a university to a community college has been a drastic change. Attending a university felt like an unrealistic dream with all the parties, the hectic sleep schedule, and the easy-going classes; it was everything I imagined for college life. However, all dreams do come to an end and that university dream was eradicated after I finished my first year and moved to California. Applying for a community college was highly discouraging to me after having the university experience, but I did it anyway because I still wanted to continue my college education regardless of if it was a university or not.

                Oxnard College was difficult for me to get into. Being an “Out of State Resident” meant that the tuition was much more expensive than if I was a “California Resident”. There was a whole list of conditions that I had to meet to become a resident, including waiting a year (and a day) before I applied, paying California Taxes, and even providing the school proof of when I moved here (i.e. Plane ticket, bank account resident change). A whole year (and a day) went by until I came back to Oxnard College to apply, but the Admissions Office was being rather difficult. I jumped through all the hoops that the Admissions Office threw at me before I could finally call myself an “OC student”.  Following the excruciating process of becoming an “official resident” came my first semester, which happens to be this Fall 2014 semester.

                My first semester at Oxnard College has gone rather smoothly. My transition from university to community college, surprisingly, hasn’t been awful. In fact, I feel as though I enjoy attending a community college better than a university. At Oxnard College, I focus more on my schoolwork because I don’t have the college party life distractions that I did at the University of Dallas. I’ll admit that the workload and teachers at Oxnard College are far less demanding than at a university, which is good because my sleep schedule is much more manageable now, but bad because I’m one of those nerds that like to be kept busy with school work. Although I don’t plan on staying at Oxnard College, attending this college has definitely been a good decision that I’ve made; especially for my future.

                Doing well in my future, becoming successful, and proving everybody wrong is what keeps me motivated. Of course everybody wants to do well in life and live happily, but to me it means more than that. My family couldn’t financially support my decision to pursue a college education therefore making them pessimistic towards my dream. It is my drive to prove, not only to myself, but to my family that finishing school and being successful is something that I can do.