I started seriously looking at colleges during spring break of my junior year. I was spending the break with my aunt in Los Angeles, and she suggested I start looking. After telling her I was interested in studying photography, she came up with a list of schools in the area that we take a look at, including University of Southern California, Otis College, and University of California, Los Angeles. 

Each school made me realize more of what I wanted out of my college experience. Otis College was specifically an art school, and I realized that if I decided photography wasn’t for me, then I would have to transfer schools to pursue something else, since I am not necessarily interested in pursuing any other forms of art for a career.

After looking at USC, I really liked the campus. It was stunning, and everyone I met seemed very kind. Not to mention, it was sunny and gorgeous. Unfortunately, I would later discover they did not offer a specific photography degree, rather a general art degree with a photography specialization, which wasn’t what I wanted, and ultimately helped me decide against applying there.

Then came UCLA, which also had a stunning campus. They were on spring break, so there wasn’t much going on and it was hard to get a real feel of what the campus was like. My aunt has told me for years that in order to really know if you want to attend a college or not, you need to go while school is in session. I knew I would have other opportunities to visit UCLA, so I decided to apply there for a photography degree.

Fast forward to my senior year. It is fall, and it is time to start the application process. I dragged my feet so much. I didn’t want to think about my senior year coming to an end. I was having so much fun. My mom helped me get focused by helping me create a spreadsheet of schools I was considering attending, and that helped me narrow it down. 

I ended up applying to UCLA, Andrews University, Pratt Institute, and Pacific Union College. All of these places offered photography degrees, and those were my top options. In the meantime, my high school had a college fair, in which a few colleges came, and if you applied to them right then and there, it was free. Due to this, I also ended up applying to Walla Walla University, Southern Adventist University, and a few others.

Due to the fact that I was applying for a bachelor’s in fine art degree at Pratt and UCLA, I had to submit a portfolio of my work. This process took weeks. I curated what I believed to be my best photographs and showed them to my family. My dad was not impressed with my choices, and helped me sort through all my images again and pick more photos that he believed were more artistic than the ones I had originally chosen. Over these few weeks of back and forth, I ended up going out and doing some more shooting, and the majority of photos that I ended up submitting were new images I took during those few weeks.

Fast forward a few months, and the acceptance and rejection letters started coming in. It has been a few years since I received these letters, so it is difficult to recall all of the ones I was accepted to, but I do know I was accepted to Southern, WWU, Pratt, Andrews, and PUC. That was when I had some tough decisions to make. I started to visit the schools I hadn’t seen, starting with Andrews University. My father and I went and toured the campus, and the people were so kind and I was so excited about all they had to offer. 

After that, we flew to New York and toured Pratt Institute. When we toured, the campus was nice, but very urban due to it being located in the city. The guide we had was kind, but she didn’t seem to know anything about the photography program at all, which I found rather concerning, especially since she was a film major, and the two usually are closely related.

By the end of that trip, I had a strong feeling I would be attending Andrews University, but I was scared to say I was going for sure, especially since I hadn’t looked at all my options, specifically PUC. 

A few months later, I traveled to northern California to tour Pacific Union College with my mother. This option intrigued me since they were a lot closer to home. I live in the greater Seattle area, so northern California is a lot closer to me than Michigan, which is wear Andrews University is located.

From the second I got on campus, it was like God was telling me that this wasn’t the place for me. It was pouring rain that day, and while we were provided with umbrellas, we still did a walking tour in the torrential rainfall. My mother and I struggled finding the cafeteria, but to be fair, we are both a little directionally challenged. Not only this, but they told us that food can’t be delivered there, and we had no cell service. On top of it all, the fire alarms went off that evening, which sent us out in the pouring rain again. Ultimately, while the people in the office were very kind, and the school was nice overall, I just didn’t feel like it was the best fit for me. 

Upon returning home, I was pretty set on my decision to go to Andrews University, but I was terrified to actually say it, because that made it so real. Once I said it, there was no going back. I remember my mom talking me and telling me to just say it, because she knew that was what I wanted to do, but I couldn’t. So I left the room, put on my Andrews University sweatshirt and hat, walked back in, and said, “I’m going to Andrews.”

That is the moment that everything changed for me.