I hurriedly tap the keys on my laptop as I fill out my application for my class ring and graduation attire. I am 17 years old junior and the fact that I am graduating a whole year early keeps running through my head as I am filling out the forms online.

People have a misconception that you have to have straight A’s or a 4.0 GPA in order to graduate early. I can guarantee that having all that has nothing to do with graduating early. It requires hard work, determination and a lot of time, time and more time. It may sound difficult but the reward in the end will be quite satisfying.

Normally when I tell people that I am graduating early everyone always asks why. At first I would tell them that I didn’t know because I had no real good reason as to why I wanted to, only because of the reason that I dislike the whole high school setting. But as I start to think about it more and more, I came to a real, feasible conclusion as to why I am graduating early: I want to get ahead in life.

I spent my summers and breaks at my desk at home working on summer classes in order to receive the credits I would need to graduate in 2015 instead of going out and hanging out with my friends. I would have to miss friends’ parties and family events in order to catch up with my work for school. I admit, it sucked so bad but I knew it would pay off at the end of the school year in 2015.

After high school, I plan on doing my basics (core classes) for two years at TCC before going off to a bigger college. My choices for college include TWU, UTA and UTD. When thinking about where I wanted to go to college, one major thing stuck in my mind: close to home. I wanted to make sure I was going to a college where I could easily go home whenever I wanted to and not have to worry about gas money and time to see my family.

When I graduate, I want to earn my doctorates in nursing or DNP (Doctorates in Nursing Practices). Ever since I was little, I loved helping people in many ways. I was that kid in class that would always ask the teacher if she needed any help with stapling papers, erasing the chalkboards and picking up trash on the classroom floor in the classroom during recess and nap time. I would always go out of my way to please others before accommodating my own needs. I quickly got the nickname “Goody-Two-Shoes” once I hit middle school.

I would highly recommend incoming freshman to take this high school path because of the many benefits it can bring in the end. Graduating early has made me have good time management skills and made me a better learner overall. I am so proud of myself.