How Does College Effect on Us

College is a new experience. It allows people to follow and achieve their dreams; discover who they really are; and to participate in unique opportunities they wouldn't get anywhere else. Purdue is the place where all of these things come together to create a wonderful opportunity for myself and thousands of others.

My major is Wildlife; a major that to me seems to be easily looked over, but I chose this career when I was only five. I would watch The Lion King everyday and had the words memorized by the fourth time through. This simple Disney movie sparked the driving force for achieving my dream. I became obsessed with lions; wanting to learn everything there was to learn. My curiosity stemmed and I wanted to know every animal. My family would buy me plastic toy animals every chance they got. I collected and learned about every species I owned. Occasionally my siblings would have fun and have me try to name them all and I could. Being so in love with animals I would tell everyone that I wanted to grow up to be a "Daddy Lion" and no one could tell me different!

This love for learning and animals was further solidified by several special occurrences that happened to me. At the age of about six, I was at the zoo with my family. I approached the glass of the chimpanzee enclosure and placed my small hand against the glass. As I stared in amazement at the apes, a large male climbed down from his perch and sat in front of me. He ever so slowly reached his hand up and placed it against the glass where my hand was, holding it there for a few seconds before I ran off yelling to my mom what had happened. Several years later at the same zoo, I played a "game" with an orangutan. She reached out of the fence and picked up a large stick and handed it to me. I grabbed it and passed it back; this went on for several minutes and she genuinely seemed to enjoy herself with this activity. More recently, I visited the Exotic Feline Rescue Center in Center Point, Indiana. I got to have a "behind the scenes" tour of the rescue and it further solidified my love for animals. I saw some of these big cats closer than most people will ever get and I wanted to help them lead a happy and healthy life. These few spectacular moments I had with animals fueled the fire in me to be able to work with animals and to pursue my dreams.

My greatest influence to attain my dreams of helping and working with animals was Steve Irwin. This man was, and still is, a powerful inspiration for me. He would go to great lengths to educate people and make them more aware of all the animals around them, not just the ones that needed saving. Promoting the idea of relocating crocodiles and other outback species, rather than shooting them on the spot, he saved countless animals' lives. I agree with his belief that if we educate people and they become less ignorant about animals, they would learn to love them and would be more likely to put forth effort in saving and protecting the species.

Choosing Purdue to be my home was easy. It offered a spectacular wildlife program, millions of job and study abroad opportunities, and a strong support group of faculty and students alike. It also was a good distance away from home, but it was still close. There were only two schools in Wisconsin that offered zoology/wild life as a major and their programs were not nearly as good of quality as it is here in Indiana. I also chose Purdue because it was quite different than where I came from; it offered a vast amount of diversity. I believed this was an important part in choosing a college because it can open up so many new experiences and opportunities in your life.

This college will provide many with new experiences that will allow them to achieve their dreams. With perseverance and a dream in my heart, I cannot wait to go after my dream of becoming a Wild life major at this world-class university.