I never thought in a million years I would get selected for something like the International Science School. It’s highly selective and I didn’t feel like I would be a good enough candidate for something so cool. When the selections were coming out I was practically deathly ill with the flu. I don’t think I did anything for days except sleep and take nyquil. As anticlimactic as it is I entirely slept through the livestream. At 4 in the morning as I was coming off my fevers and I couldn't sleep, I checked my email to find “CONGRATULATIONS!” written at the top. I would have screamed my lungs out if my voice wasn’t shot. I ran into my parents room and in the pitch black told them “I GOT IN!!!”. I then proceeded to start fevering again and took more nyquil and absolutely knocked out. It took me 12 more hours to actually read the email and get the word out to my friends, and then even longer for me to not be sick so I could actually see them in person and we could scream about it together. It was an unconventional reveal, but it's genuine.

I cannot wait to meet the students from around the world and meet the scientists who will be teaching us. It will be life changing to have a chance like this. I’m so glad I applied. For everyone who thinks they won’t get into a program, job, university, or anything JUST APPLY. You might surprise yourself. Don’t tell that little kid who would dream of building, creating, and learning more that you missed out because you didn’t fill out an application. Just keep trying.