By Elaine Shankute, current Auburn student
War Eagle! My name is Elaine Shankute. I am a junior here at Auburn studying psychology, hailing from just outside of Atlanta, Georgia. As an out of state student, I understand there’s a lot more that you have to consider when looking at Auburn. For any of you that are from Georgia like me, you’re familiar with the HOPE scholarship and the role that it’s playing in your respective situations. Personally, I have always wanted to go to school out of state, so I understood what that sacrifice was going to look like for me from early on. I do want to stress the importance of considering logistics like distance and finances, but keep an open mind while exploring your options. Consider my Auburn story as proof that life on the Plains can be for anyone. It’s a long one, but there are lots of lessons that I still carry with me today, and of course, I wouldn’t be here without it.
I first visited Auburn as a sophomore in high school. It was my first time ever visiting a college campus and I had absolutely no expectations. The tour wasn’t even for me; my best friend wanted to check out the architecture program while we were on spring break together, and I agreed to making a stop along the way. Little did I know, that day was going to change my life forever too. Auburn felt like a dream. I was in awe of everything I saw and how much older everyone was than me, and how happy they all looked to be here. That day is when I fell in love with the idea of college life and really started getting serious about what I wanted out of my university one day.
I kept this in the back of my mind, and once I got to my junior year I started doing some research, spent a lot of time on the CollegeBoard website, and began visiting other campuses. I noticed that no matter how excited I was about visiting a school, they all fell short of the way I felt when I was at Auburn. I would listen to tour guides share facts and figures and each time I would be comparing them to what I remembered about Auburn. After giving a few more schools a chance, I decided I wanted to come back to Auburn for another tour— just to make sure I was remembering it correctly. Sure enough, I left that tour even more excited, not just about college, but by the possibility of my future here as a student.
So one year and two tours later, I was finally sure of the fact that this is where I wanted to be. But college decisions are a big deal, and as sure as I was about Auburn, I was still scared to make things final; I was on the hunt for as much affirmation as possible. This is the part of my story where things get a little crazy.
New age philosophy suggests that if you make a wish when the clock is at 11:11, whatever you wish for will come true. It’s something about how that number is supposed to represent the universe telling you to listen to your heart, follow your dreams, etc. Well, personally, I just don’t think there is enough luck out there for the whole world to be wishing at the exact same time, so I’ve always preferred to wish at the time that matches my birthday just to make things feel a little more personal between me and the universe. My birthday is February 17th, so for my entire senior year of high school I dedicated 2:17pm to making the exact same wish. Every single day for months, I wished for a sign to come to Auburn. I knew this is where I wanted to be, but I needed one small push to tell me to go through with it, give up that HOPE Scholarship, and make myself a Tiger once and for all. During that year of wishing, I also applied for scholarships, talked to as many alumni as I could, all while I waited for my sign to come.
Well, as I’m sure you suspected, nothing happened. Eventually deposit season came around, and I decided to pay my deposits at Auburn and the last few schools I was considering. I gave up my daily wishing in exchange for pro-con lists and running the numbers in an effort to think more practically. I was half-way to convincing myself that life on the Plains was a little too good to be true, when I got an email from Auburn with my housing assignment—Glenn Hall, Room 217. My Auburn student email shares these digits as well, and according to the university, this was pure coincidence. But to me, it meant finally saying yes to my dream.
Now I am not suggesting that all of you will have your destiny spelled out for you the way mine was. Your journey to Auburn could be a lot simpler, and that’s great too. But if there’s one thing I hope you can take away from my story, it’s that the Auburn family wants you here just as much as you want to be—however big or small that amount may feel to you. If you’re passionate about this place after just one tour, or maybe you have been for a while and the numbers aren’t adding up the way you need them to, whatever part of you that’s not ready to give up just yet, pursue that. If you’re like me and need a little something extra to say yes, I promise you, the fact that you’re looking for a sign is symbolic enough and there’s nothing wrong with owning what you want. You’ve worked so hard to get to this point in your academic career, and your decision should be a celebration of that.
Maybe you came here today looking for some more practical advice. Well don’t worry, I have some of that too. Please, if you’re able, come visit campus. Our admissions office offers a few different options for you to get a feel for life here at Auburn, but nothing beats planting your feet on the land and getting to explore your future home. Secondly, do your research. Consider the factors that are important to your college experience and see what they look like in the context of each school you’re considering. For me, financial aid, involvement, and quality of life were under a microscope everywhere I visited. Ultimately, all of that falls under how you feel and how hard you’re willing to work to make sure those boxes are checked. Since my decision to attend this university, the Auburn family has stepped up massively through scholarships and anonymous donors, virtually eliminating any financial burdens I faced when making my decision. That truly goes to show if you care enough about where you are, people will notice. HOPE scholarship is an amazing opportunity, and your in-state schools may be sending you some very intriguing offers right now, but I challenge you to think about where you would be if that wasn’t a factor. For me, that was Auburn by a mile. And you can call me the poster child of a high-risk-high-reward mentality, but I know that looking back at these last two years, I wouldn’t trade the outcome for anything. I hope I get to share that joy with all of you one day being here at Auburn too, but truthfully I just want you to feel this good about wherever you end up. I was in your shoes not too long ago and I wish I heard that more often. Now all I hear is “War Eagle” and that sounds really good too.