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Dear Future Bruin…

Hello Everyone!

My name is Gio (He/Him), and I am a 3rd year Psychology and Sociology major. Being born and raised in West Los Angeles, I really didn’t know what to expect from this school since it was extremely different from what I was used to. I was always a part of the LAUSD public school system and it constantly felt that the campus here was fairly unachievable.

Growing up, I was always told how difficult it would be getting into such a prestigious school that I started trying to figure out different, “more realistic” paths. Pile on top of that being a transfer student made it all feel more defeating; until that acceptance letter came in. It didn’t feel real no matter how many times I told myself that I was smart and resilient enough to deserve this spot. This began a long battle with myself to prove that I belonged here. I felt everyone here seemed so intelligent and it started making me doubt in my own abilities. I would vent all the time to my friends about how daunting being on this campus was at times and trying make sense of it all seemed impossible. Right when it felt like it was too overwhelming, I had an existential moment that really shifted everything into perspective for me; it was a simple yet complicated question: “How did I even make these friends to begin with?”

Being in the summer program made the process of transitioning to this school go so quick that I never stopped to think about what it was that made me become friends with my current friend group. It wasn’t until I asked them how we met and one of them mentioned how I just seemed so friendly and nice that they wanted to get to know me. This made me realize that if I would have never been true to who I was, I would not have had such amazing friends who are there for me when I need it most.

If I were to give any person advice about coming to an institution like UCLA, it is to always trust in yourself. Yes, it hard to get into this school but you didn’t get her by coincidence. You went through your entire life, full of challenging life experiences, to get here and that already is enough to make you exceptional; why would that change now? You have your own dreams and aspirations that pushed you to go this far and a difference in your environment shouldn’t make that change.

That instinct that brought you this far will take you even further for your future, I’m sure of it.