“I did it, I got into college!” says Melissa Ossorio, a senior here at Segerstrom High School. With college application season in full swing, Melissa got an email during lunch on Wednesday, December 1. When she clicked on the email and opened the page she saw confetti falling down her phone screen. As she read on, she saw that she had been accepted into Notre Dame with a full-ride scholarship. 

“I was shocked and in tears, I just couldn’t believe that I got into my dream school,” says Ossorio. 

Notre Dame hadn’t always been her first choice. She initially thought her dream school would be in her home of California, but when she visited her sister at Notre Dame, who had been accepted in 2017, Ossorio fell in love with the campus. Even though she was far from home at Indiana, she felt strangely at home. 

For Ossorio, this is the opportunity of a lifetime. Her scholarship will allow her to focus on her academics, so she can earn top grades in her classes. Now thinking about her future, she knows her goal is to be admitted into medical school to become a physician or to be admitted into a physician’s assistant program.  

Her biggest piece of advice for those who also want to be accepted into their dream schools is that you must work hard, stay involved and focus on good supplemental essays. Ossorio emphasizes that her parents have played a huge role in her success. 

“My parents have been my source of inspiration for wanting to succeed; without their support with my education as a young child, I wouldn’t be where I am today. Knowing they have sacrificed everything for me to reach my educational goals is what keeps me going,” says Ossorio (12). 

Being a first generation student, she has always worked hard to try and set a good example for those who are also the same as her. She wants to prove to everyone that with hard work and dedication you can achieve anything you set your mind to. Until she begins her new venture in Indiana, she will relish every moment she has with her family and friends.