let's learn on equal footing by Ayomide

let's learn on equal footing by Ayomide - September 2025 Scholarship Essay

For those who are unaware or not paying close attention, education is expensive and challenging, and not everyone can afford it. In higher education, at the college level, it is definitely a business with little to no ideals in feeding the intelligence of smart people with beautiful potential, but rather perhaps smart people, perhaps less creative people, perhaps uncertain people, but 100% students who have the copious amount of money to pay high tuition. I need that to change!
In a decade, I hope to see the education system turn into a meritocracy rather than one based on whose parents started a college fund for them when they were a fetus growing in their mom's uterus for admissions and support throughout. A lot of universities claim that finances aren't in play, or there's a need-blind admission process, but it's clear that this is not true. Nine out of ten times, the spot goes to a student who is financially able to support the university. And if the spot does go to an economically disadvantaged student, there are still questions on that student's mind like "can I afford the tuition," "where will I find money to move to campus and pay rent," and "How will I eat?". That student isn't going to perform as well as the financially stable kid because of the burden that the disadvantaged kid has on their back. Colleges should establish student support centers where students can receive help without question asked, for those who genuinely can't afford it and are doing their best to pursue an education, and it's showing. Not making it harder for them by saying there's nothing they can do or that it's a business. They might as well have dimmed a potential scientist like Alexander Fleming, who could have helped humanity one day.
To make the process meritocratic, there must be the idea of equality, which encompasses the principles of fairness and justice, particularly in a manner that acknowledges and seeks to address existing inequalities. When students are being compared for admission, they need to be evaluated based on what they had access to. Perhaps there should be a standardized test to gain admission to Harvard, and anyone who passes can be accepted, without question. So, if you study really hard and work hard, you will get in, not by legacy, money, and so on, factors.
As a whole, in 10 years, I want geniuses from any background to have access to higher education in a stress-free way because they work hard for it. Success should be merit, not lineage.