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The road to selecting my major has been a long one, full of twists and turns. Never the
less, I have always persevered. We will begin our discovery where the road to my future first
began, graduation from High school in 2004. Then we will discuss come of the twists and turns
that have begun to shape my future, including the most important events that helped define my
In 2004 I graduated from High school, extremely driven and ready to start my College
Career. I moved down to Santa Barbara to attend school at Santa Barbara City College. My
original plan was to become a teacher, I have always loved children and had a natural love for
people. After two years in Santa Barbara, I decided to move back to the Bay Area to finish my
general education. By the fall off 2008 I was about to graduate with my Associates Degree, and
only needed a few more classes that spring. But life had different plans for me, and in August of
2009, I gave birth to my beautiful daughter Lilly. This was the first important event that defined
my future.
After having Lilly I took a break from school to begin working full time. I was the sole
supporter of her and I and worked very hard to provide a good life for both of us. From
2008-2014 I worked my way up the ranks to become a store manager for a very high volume
retail store. During my time with this company, I honed in on my business acumen and
communication skills. I learned about different cultures, from all the customers I met; which
of people. I loved the business side of retail as well as my customers, but it took an extreme toll
on my work-life balance. So I decided to quit my job, move back home, and return to school in
When I returned to school in the spring of 2014 I only had a few classes left to complete
and decided to take a few business classes out of curiosity. I was contemplating switching my
major to business when I transferred to California State University Monterey Bay. One of the
classes I took was business Law with Professor Sonja Banks; this class and professor changed
my life! As she began to lecture on everything from contract law to family law, something
sparked inside of me. I couldn't get enough of the material she was teaching. I loved the way the
law made you think. There was no right and wrong answer, everything was debatable. The
professor also pushed me in my writing, and I received great feedback from her. She told me I
had a natural ability to think and write like a lawyer. She even said she was going to make it her
mission to make me switch my major! Well her plan worked, and I decided from then on that I
would become a lawyer. The section of the law that interested me the most was family law,
My personal experience with Family Law came from two areas of my life. The first was
how I was raised. I am the product of a divorced family, and then a single mother. I saw how
hard my mother worked to provide for us and take care of us without my father involved. When
my stepfather came into the picture it taught me that nontraditional families can still thrive.
Secondly, when my daughter was born I decided to also become a single mother. I didn’t marry
my daughter's father out of the sake of tradition; I never believed it was best for the child. These
experiences in my past combined with my love of the business law class was the turning point in
Most students in my position may have entered in as a Human Communications major since that
was what most pre-law students selected. But there were a few ideas that I based my decision on.
My career as a store manager gave me the real-life experience I needed to have basic
communication skills, I had also taken several communication classes in my general education as
well. I also knew that I would be attending law school after my undergraduate work, and would
receive extensive training in this area. I did, however, select pre-law as my minor, so I would
have a more detailed understanding of the law in order to do well on the LSAT’s; which is
needed to get into a good law school. The last idea that shaped my decision to select SBS was
As a family lawyer, you deal with many aspects of clients affairs. Many times court cases
can be won based on research and studies found to support your claims. Lawyers spend hours
researching and building cases. I think the skills and theories learned In SBS will provide me
with a great foundation to become a successful lawyer. I will have the knowledge and the ability
to create my own studies. As a lawyer, I would also like to handle every aspect of someone's
divorce. I would like to be their mediator and asset controller. Knowing how people think and
interact with a community can help me better understand how families work. This can give me a
In 2004, if you would have asked me where I would be in ten years I don’t think I would
have ever imagined I would be a mother and still in University! But just because my journey has
taken me down a completely different path doesn't mean I regret a single moment of it.
Everything happens for a reason, and if I hadn’t had all those experiences I would not be the
person I am today. One thing that has never changed is my self-efficacy and perseverance. I
didn’t always have the support of others around me, but I drove myself. I kept myself on track
and never gave up. I never believed that law school was out of reach. I always found a way to
pay for school and continue my dreams. Just as I reflect now on my previous experiences, I
know in another ten years my time as an SBS major will be just one more event that took me to
unexpected places. I know I will stay with the study of law, but who knows what else may be in