College: Article strikes a chord with student

Re: “Many first-generation college students are not succeeding” (TNT, 2-7).

I am a first-generation college student at University of Washington Tacoma, and I can relate to Kavitha Cardoza’s article. My family encouraged me to go to college right after I graduated from high school. It seemed like the right thing to do at the time.

Now that I am in college, I’m not sure if I was ready. Sometimes I feel like my education is not fit for the college atmosphere.

I worked so hard to get here and want to stay in college for as long as possible, but with all the struggles I’m experiencing, it gives me less hope to continue on.

Cardoza writes, “When students do drop out, they often leave with debt and a sense of failure – that they’re not ‘college material.’” I feel like she defined my experience.

For the past two weeks, I’ve been thinking a lot about whether I should stay in college or just drop out. I have a scholarship and don’t want to give up, but it seems like the right thing to do.

This story was originally published February 19, 2016 at 1:53 PM with the headline "College: Article strikes a chord with student."