Finding My Groove by EZEQUIEL

Finding My Groove by EZEQUIEL - September 2026 Scholarship Essay

For a long time I believed that fully balancing student and athlete was impossible for me, as I soon came to realize when my GPA fell to 1.8 well into my second semester. I realized I was going to study harder and make up the work I was neglecting for so long. The problem was not a lack of capacity but an ineffective approach to learning; I didn't really have an established study/homework session embedded into my routine. Realizing that my future opportunities and athletic eligibility were on the line it was time for me to lock in and get my grades up. There were complications to just "getting my grades up"; I was first going to need to create a study system that is tailored to my needs. I lacked the ability to sit for hours to do homework and study because I would get easily distracted, I was going to need to maximize the amount of work I completed in a set amount of time. To reduce distractions I would first get ready by eating a meal before and preparing my desk for work time; I would have a cup of water set so I didn't wander off to get one during study hours. I played background music to set a comfortable environment. I began my study session with about an hour of YouTube lectures on the subject I needed help with which was mostly math; after, for another hour I would do my homework to ensure I was on track. And finally the last hour I spent catching up on missing work. I would of course implement short breaks to grab a snack or just relax for a couple of minutes. Not all days with this new study method were sunshines and rainbows I would still get distracted from time to time but at least the method was working. During this time I would still practice so not all study sessions were long some were pretty short since practice was mentally and physically taxing. By the end of the semester I was able to bring my 1.8 GPA up to a 3.0 which I was and still am very proud of. What I realized from this experience was managing both school and sports is not easy but possible it just requires grit and determination.