Celebrating College Signing Day 2024: Spotlighting Two NAF Seniors Who Share Their Academy Memories; Lessons Learned; and Advice for Current Students

Spring signifies a time of new beginnings. It’s a time for reaping the benefits of seeds that have been planted, and acknowledging all the hard work and preparation that has gone into the journey. To mark National College Decision Day (or College Signing Day) 2024, NAF is thrilled to spotlight this significant milestone for our high school students.

Meet two NAF seniors, Natalie A. and Lena V., who are getting ready to graduate and attend college this fall.

Natalie has been accepted to Harvard University and will be majoring in Chemistry. She is most excited about meeting people from different cultures and from different parts of the world. At Johns Hopkins University, Lena will be majoring in Neuroscience and completing the prerequisites to attend medical school.

In reflecting on their NAF Academy of Health Sciences experiences at Bryan Adams High School Leadership Academy in Dallas, TX, Natalie considers key highlights to be her internship with Verizon and participating in labs. She values the skills that she learned throughout her internship, such as with time management and organization. Her NAF AOHS has helped to ready her for the future, through the exploration of career options, assistance with interview prep, as well as teaching her to become more organized with her calendar and managing deadlines.

For Lena, throughout her four years in her NAF academy, her favorite days were being with friends and visiting career worksites and colleges. Her journey also enabled her to grow her confidence, as well as sharpen her skills in leadership and communication. Interning at Capital One, with a focus on teamwork and collaboration, was another beneficial opportunity for Lena to develop connections with peers and mentors and learn about professionalism in the workplace. With her team, Lena created an organizational tool for the loan serving department.

With both young women having just gone through the college application process, they know that having good grades is very important, but want to note that something else to remember is that colleges also look at your activities, as joining meaningful extracurriculars and earning leadership positions displays interest and involvement.

When crafting a personal statement, Lena decided to write something that was unique about her – how she started playing Minecraft at the age of seven and experienced more confidence as a girl in the gaming community and related it to her confidence around academics. Overall, the essay helped her to stand out from other applicants and showcased her determination and connected her unique experience to other aspects of her life.

Natalie shared that what worked for her was writing down the prompts on a Google doc and using a piece of paper to brainstorm. She jotted down the different ideas for the prompt and then decided on which story would fit best. After writing, she would meet with her advisor, so that they could proofread and offer feedback. Her top tip would be to set up consistent meetings with your advisor to ensure success with the entire process.

Both senior students are also already starting to think more about what being a young woman in STEM means to them. Natalie hopes that as a first-generation Latina, she can successfully become a doctor and inspire other young women to follow their dreams, no matter the stigma. Lena also takes pride in the journey and understands that being a girl in STEM will also challenge her to find her place and use her voice. She sees much benefit in young women supporting one another and hopes to become an inspiration for female leaders coming after her.

In ten years, Natalie hopes to be in her second year of anesthesia residency and Lena imagines herself at Johns Hopkins Hospital completing a residency for diagnostic radiology.

We wish both young women and all our senior students getting ready to graduate the very best, as they prepare to take their next steps after high school – whether that’s college, career, or another pathway.

As NAF Alumni, you will have a growing network of business professionals, mentors, and fellow NAF alumni rooting for you and ready to help you discover new career opportunities. Click here to learn more about the NAF Alumni Network.

Click here to access College Decision Day graphics for NAF academies. All you have to do is print the flyers and have your students write in their pathway and next stop (ex. college, technical school, internship, summer job etc.) Then, take photos of your students with their sign and tag @nafcareeracads in your social post to be featured! Sample social copy is also included.

We can’t wait to celebrate NAF students as they take the next step in their college/career journeys!