Why not apply?

It was around this time last year that most of my friends were starting to figure out what they wanted to do with their lives. The majority of them were getting good jobs and preparing to move out on their own. Some of my basketball friends had decided to continue their careers in other countries. A handful of my other friends had chosen to go back to school and get their masters. I had contemplated each of these options but I was unsure which route I wanted to take. I was having one of those “there’s gotta be more to life” moments where I wanted to do something meaningful with my life. 

Then I heard about the Victory Scholars Program – it had it all. What’s more meaningful than getting the chance to better the lives of others through the sport I love? On top of that I would be able to get a masters, which would help me get a better job in the future. On top of THAT I would get the chance to keep playing basketball, which I knew I wanted to do. And even on top of all of that I would get to do it in another country, which was a big deal because I had never travelled.

I was sold and set out on doing anything I could to get the scholarship. Looking back now, I can still remember how I felt when I got the call that I did in fact get chosen. I couldn’t contain my excitement about the opportunities ahead, but I did not even know half of what was to come.

Yes, I got all of the things I had hoped for- coaching my cute little kiddies, getting a masters at Trinity, and playing basketball at both the highest level in Ireland and also at the college level. But even more than that I got the opportunity to learn and grow as a person while developing relationships with people I would have otherwise not known. Coaching the kids turned into them teaching me new things everyday. Going to school and playing turned into me pushing myself to new limits and learning from new people, along with making amazing new friends. Being a Victory Scholar turned into me being a part of a family. And being at Trinity in Dublin has turned into me not wanting to go home!

So I guess instead of trying to list out the reasons why someone should apply, it would be easier to ask: why wouldn’t you apply? 

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