So, last September I made a very lengthy and drawn out “chances” post. Since then I’ve (sorta) stopped worrying about what school I’d go to, so long as I actually learn what I need to succeed. However, that hasn’t kept my eye off of MIT - my dream school. I’m on Spring Break now, giving me lots of time to myself and to overthink nearly everything, so I’m sorry if this post seems like I’m rambling but it makes me feel better about myself, so if you’re planning on reading this whole thing, good luck.
After devouring the admissions blog, youtube videos, and other information I’ve concluded that MIT’s culture is awesome. I want to be like those who attend MIT: thoughtful, innovative, and ready to change the world. A major point admissions tries to make is that you need to be yourself and that you need to be passionate about something. If you’re doing that, then you’re a good fit for MIT. Having some time to think, I’ve concluded that I probably am not “passionate” about something.
In my free time I sleep, play video games, lead an online community, occasionally exercise, watch the youtube, go down the rabbit hole that is wikipedia, and drink coffee, and well… to me that all sounds like something some guy living in his parents’ basement sounds like (luckily for me, my parents don’t have a basement). I really didn’t enjoy school until this year (I’m a junior) and as a result, my grades the past two years are pretty sleazy and I didn’t get that many opportunities presented to me. No invitation to Beta, NHS, or Governor’s Honors and the clubs I do “participate” in aren’t really interesting/fun. My school’s robotics team lacks funding and I don’t really enjoy the company of the other members, the SkillsUSA chapter at my school is the opposite, I don’t really care for what we do there but the people are awesome, plus I got out of sports when I was like, 9 or so.
There are subjects I’m interested in, and they’re very broad. I find the idea of being a politician interesting (but oh god the paperwork that would be involved). Creating software sounds fun (though I can never keep myself concentrated on a project long enough to learn the language I’ve decided to use proficiently). I’m personally leaning to studying physics now. The labs we do in that class are fun and engaging - understanding the laws and language of the universe is a pretty cool idea. I’ve also tinkered with things since I was a toddler, or so people tell me. If I could do anything, I would want to be the person to make first contact with an alien species while exploring the galaxy. Given that’s pretty much impossible right now, working towards enabling a future generation to do that would also be satisfying.
Anyways, with all of that said, how do I find my passion? Then, of course, how would I show and pursue that passion?
Plus, with seeing MIT as my dream school, could I be admitted anyways? I’ve heard the story of the creative writing major operating a nuclear reactor and am wondering if I could figure myself out while attending (if I did get in, that is). And although I’m posting in the MIT forums and asked myself what I’m passionate because of my desire to get into MIT, this isn’t something I’m doing just to get in. If I don’t get into MIT, I’ve still got to go somewhere and do something with my life, but it needs to be something I’d enjoy doing and am truly interested in.