When I first spoke with Diana just two months ago, she was frustrated and demoralized because she really didn’t know how to get started with college applications or who to go to for help. Things aren’t free and easy, but they’re certainly looking better: she’s applied to eight colleges and has an acceptance. Read her short-but-full interview below.

Meet the Class gets updated each month from September to May. Each installment features an interview about both the facts and the feelings of where the student is in the process.
Interviews may be edited lightly for clarity and grammar. Names may be changed to protect privacy.
Diana ATTENDS A Public HIGH SCHOOL IN Texas

When we last spoke you were working to send off several applications by November 1. How did that go? Where have you applied? Have you heard anything back from anyone? How does it feel to have some applications out the door?

I sent most of my applications off before the 1st. It felt REALLY good. I applied to University of Oklahoma, UT Austin, UT Dallas, UT San Antonio, Baylor, Texas A&M, Texas Tech and University of North Texas. I heard back from Baylor: I officially was accepted and have been awarded with scholarship money.

You were also in a bit of a deadlock when it came to the FAFSA and financial aid. Has there been any progress on that front?

My FAFSA has been started. I’ll probably finish it in the very near future.

At least some, if not all, your applications require an essay. Would you mind sharing with us what essay prompt(s) you've answered, and give a brief summary of your response(s)? Is that type of writing easy for you, or was it a lot of work? Or both?

I used the Common App essay prompt about something that has shaped me into who I am. I wrote about being sexually harassed, which was difficult to relive, but it ended up being a good essay. It was hard for me to write just because I’m not good at personal narrative writing, but I had other people read and edit for me so they helped me improve and fine tune it.

How's school going, both in terms of classes and your extracurriculars? How are you holding up?

Extracurriculars are good, work is good, I’ve been keeping up and staying organized.

Let's look at you college list. As of last month, it was:

University of Oklahoma (top choice)

Baylor

Texas A&M University

Texas Tech University

University of Texas at Austin

University of Texas at Arlington

Are there any changes to that?

That’s all.

Thanks for reading! If you have college admissions questions for Diana, leave a comment or email me. You can find other Meet the Class responses here. Please send this to someone who would like to read it, or share it on your social networks.

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Photo by Angela Elisabeth.