Jeremy’s Student Story

Meet Jeremy

Jeremy Hall is a Junior at an out-of-state historically Black college. He loves playing basketball and listening to jazz music. He grew up in the South Side of Chicago with his mom and studies Biology and Finance in college. He is persistent, hard-working, and personable.

Navigating High School

Growing up, Jeremy lived with his mother and three doors down from his grandparents. From a young age, he seemed to embody a sense of purpose, recounting, “I grew up around older people, I was always around adults.”

Jeremy attended a high school that was not a great fit for him. After an incident at school that left him feeling unsafe, he decided to transfer schools, with advice from his mom and his grandma. In April of his Sophomore year, he started at his new neighborhood high school. He recalls, “It was the best decision I could have made at the time.”

“It was the best decision I could have made at the time.”

A teacher nominated Jeremy to participate in program through a local non-profit organization to help students reach their post-secondary goals. Jeremy was accepted the summer before his Junior year of high school. “It was a great program,” Jeremy reflects, “We actually had time to start on our personal statement, start on our college search, and identify pain points we wanted to learn about.”

“We actually had time to start on our personal statement, start on our college search, and identify pain points we wanted to learn about.”

Jeremy served as a caregiver for his grandfather during high school. After his grandfather passed away, Jeremy decided to pursue medicine. This path pushed him forward in his studies and shaped his post-secondary goals. He said this event helped him identify what he wanted to do early on.

Jeremy’s College Journey

Jeremy was very disciplined and rigorous in his college application process. He recalls keeping a tight schedule to ensure he could fit it all in and be as prepared as possible. He said, “Going into my Senior year, I took that very seriously. So, every day at lunch I would go sit at a table alone and I would go on my computer and apply to scholarships and eat my lunch. I did this because at the time, my mom was laid off of work, and I knew that if I didn’t get a full ride or at least some scholarships, I would not be going to college.”

“Going into my Senior year, I took that very seriously. So, every day at lunch I would go sit at a table alone and I would go on my computer and apply to scholarships and eat my lunch. I did this because at the time, my mom was laid off of work, and I knew that if I didn’t get a full ride or at least some scholarships, I would not be going to college.”

Slowly, Jeremy felt like he was getting closer to his goals of going to a great university and being able to afford it. He applied to twenty-eight colleges. He got into a range of schools, but not into his dream school, a highly selective out-of-state private university. Jeremy then began to compare packages, financial aid opportunities. He said he could play basketball at some schools, which would provide him even more financial aid. When asked about that time in his life, he said, “I would not trade those times for anything. It taught me that if you are able to do what is needed to be done at that time, it will set you up for what is your next step.” He said he tried to focus on being one percent better every day than he was the day before.

Jeremy had a hard time selecting a college. He weighed many options, trying to consider affordability, aid packages offered, academic rigor, and more. He sought out the advice of trusted adults. After a few days of indecision, he had a memorable conversation with his mom and decided to go to an out-of-state HBCU. It was a more expensive option than his other packages, but he was excited by the academic offerings there. Jeremy said the decision was scary, but his mom gave him a piece of needed wisdom. She said to “trust myself, and do what I do best: put my head down and work hard.”

“Trust myself, and do what I do best: put my head down and work hard.”

Transitioning to College

The summer before heading to college, Jeremy was very nervous. He went through what he called a self-improvement stage, recounting, “I wanted to be sure I was prepared for anything that came up.” This included getting up early, working out daily, eating a nutritious diet, reading and listening to motivational texts.

By the time school began, Jeremy was ready! He pushed himself to embrace the experience during his first few weeks on campus. “I look back and I am not sure how I did that,” he continues, “I came on to campus Freshman fall and was talking to everyone, doing everything on campus… Being able to immerse myself, go through that phase of self-development, and persisting through the things… It helped me realize who I was and what I needed to do to go further.” Jeremy mentioned that growing up he had a speech impediment and over time slowly he has worked quite hard to become an effective, clear speaker. In college, he felt he was able to reflect on how far he had come.

“I came on to campus Freshman fall and was talking to everyone, doing everything on campus… Being able to immerse myself, go through that phase of self-development, and persisting through the things… It helped me realize who I was and what I needed to do to go further.”

Jeremy felt confident each step in his journey got him closer to where he wanted to be. He deeply desired to continue improving and wanted others like him to be afforded the opportunities to grow and develop themselves as well. He shared that he had spoked to other high schoolers at his alma mater recently and was excited he could help them see their own potential.

What Worked for Jeremy

• Jeremy often benefited from the counseling of trusted adults. From transferring schools to selecting a college, Jeremy was able to think through important decisions with mentors and advisors.
• He began thinking about his long-term career goals at an early age. He used personal experiences and interests, like caring for his grandfather, to identify long-term interests. This gave him a guiding light for where he was and where he wanted to be in the future.
• Jeremy allowed himself to find what worked for him! For example, while he loved basketball as a high school student, he was clear with himself that academics was his priority. Jeremy said he communicated these goals and priorities to his basketball coach, who was understanding and supportive. Rather than trying to fit into other’s visions for him, Jeremy focused on himself and his own definition of success.

Jeremy’s Aspirations for the field

1. To other students: Try to show up one percent better than you were the day before! Often, improvement and progress can feel intimidating and hard to measure. Instead, Jeremy tried to focus on just the day ahead of him and showing up fully at each moment he could. He also spent time reflecting on his goals, skills, and personal and academic areas of improvement.
2. To other students: Allow your interests to grow and develop! Jeremy benefited from opportunities to self-reflect, dream, and envision the future he wanted for himself. He did this through non-profit community programs and self-created opportunities. For example, despite being on a pre-health track in college, Jeremy discovered a passion for business and has tried to allow space for himself to explore finance, economics, and entrepreneurship alongside his pre-health coursework.
3. To teachers, counselors, and families: Try to support middle-grade students in finding a good fit for high school. Jeremy ended up transferring high schools halfway through his second year. This process was stressful! As much as possible, teachers, counselors, and families should work together with young people to find high schools that meet the academic, social, communal, and extracurricular needs of students. From exploring school websites or attending high school fairs, to speaking to people you might know about their experiences at different high schools, there are many ways to learn more about schools. Supporting young people in this complicated, convoluted process can help them find a high school community that best meets their specific needs!