13b Save Money for College on My Own

Unit 13 Text B Save Money for College on My Own I will never forget the day in my first year in high school. I was sitting on the stairs descending into the basement, putting my head in my hands and crying out in despair to my parents that I would never be able to save enough money for college. My parents tried to console me, but it seemed impossible to save $64,268, the cost for the private institution that I desperately wanted do attend. Now let me tell you the amazing story of how I earned this sum of money. It all began with a paper route in Ankeny, Iowa. I hated delivering that route, but was determined to stick it out six months until my family moved to Wausau, Wisconsin, with a few meager dollars from my paper route, my savings began to develop. My next job was with an athletic company as a telephone customer service representative. The savings account continued to grow very slowly. Then came the fall of my junior year of high school, and I began to work as a waitress at a restaurant. It was hard work, but the money began to roll in and this job paid at least twice as much money per hour. By the time my senior year arrived, I had saved a considerable amount of money. This was encouraging, but I knew that I would also need some help, so I began the process of applying for scholarships. Sometimes it was discouraging because I was rejected again and again. Then, my first scholarship offer came in, $2,000 a year to play tennis. This is only a small dent at a school that costs approximately $14,000 a year, but it was start. Several other academic scholarships also came my way and soon my scholarships were up to $9.050. With the scholarships and my savings, I had enough money for my first year! Another interesting development emerged. I began testing out of classes. Running anxiously to the mailbox in anticipation of my test scores became part of my daily routine. Excitement mounted as test after test came back with passing results. Each passing result saved me approximately $1,000 in tuition and then enabled me to graduate a year early. This would save room and board expenses as well. Finally, I entered the institution. Become of my careful savings, I did mot have to work during the school year. Then, summer came and it was time to work harder than ever. I continued working as a waitress at night, instructed tennis camps several mornings a week and worked as a secretary for a few hours in the afternoon. Being a little overzealous, I also decided to take a class at a community college. This class at the community college saved me $650. It was an exhausting summer and made me anxious to return to my relatively easy life at college. During my second and third years of undergraduate schooling, I decided to work about five hours per week in the campus admissions offices answering phones. This provided a little spending money and kept me from draining my savings. The overall situation looked hopeful as I approached my senior year as long as I could make as much money as I had the precious summer. I wanted to go to Israel to study for 3 weeks, but I hesitated in making this decision because it would cost me $1,600 more to get the credits in Israel. About two weeks later my Mom called to tell me that I had $1,600 in the bank that I had forgotten about! One of my concerns about this trip was not only the cost, but the loss of time to make money; however, I made as much that summer in the ten weeks when I was at home as I had made during the fourteen weeks when I was at home the summer before. The way everything worked together to make this trip feasible was one of the most exciting things that have ever happened to me. Finally my senior year of college came and to keep things satisfactory, I decided to buy a car. I obviously did not have a lot of money to spend on a car and yet I wanted something reliable to make the ten-hour trips between home and school not too tiring. I searched many newspaper ads and my father and I began searching for good used card. I was ecstatic when I found a crashed car that had been fixed up for only $4,200. Then, I also attended an eight-week course on marriage and family in Colorado. This was an incredible experience that taught me a great deal about my worldview and how to develop a healthy family. This experience was also very costly, $4,000. I was surprised to find that I had graduated with no dept and so many remarkable journeys along the way. This experience has shaped me in many important ways. The first thing that I learned was the importance of a strong work ethic. Working long hours did a lot to mold my character and helped me learn the value of a dollar. It also made me learn how to craft creative solutions to difficult dilemmas. Whenever I am overwhelmed or afraid of the future, I can remember my $64,268 miracle.