I heard about the Coast Guard Academy freshman year of high school from my mom who mentioned it offhand as something to consider. I don’t have any family in the Coast Guard and was unaware of what the missions of the service were. As I did more research, I found the Coast Guard Academy and the Coast Guard at large aligned with what I wanted to do: engineering and helping others.

I knew I wanted to pursue a STEM degree; it was a choice between two majors, ORDA (at the time ORCA) and electrical engineering. I was focused on those two specifically because of my love for problem solving and math. I decided that I may as well do the one I thought was harder because then I would never question if I could’ve pushed myself more. I ended up loving electrical engineering and am extremely motivated to continue to pursue some of the subjects I’ve learned about in the major either through field work or graduate school.

Throughout my major experience and my responsibilities as a cadet, my biggest challenge was to overcome the feeling of imposter syndrome. I have been put into many roles I felt underqualified for, but my growth was realizing that I was ready for those opportunities, or I wouldn’t have been the one offered them.

If you’re considering applying to the Academy, your motivation to come here must be motivated most importantly by yourself and must extend beyond wanting to get an education here to wanting to serve in the Coast Guard.