Blog
Find advice and follow the college experiences of our current first-gen student bloggers.
On the 11th day of Christmas, CSO gave to me… college with some clarity
Center for Student Opportunity’s scholarship has helped allow me to attend Pomona, my top choice after visiting the campus three years ago. Since I was little, my mom reiterated that I would have to get a scholarship to go to college; education was pushed in our home,...
On the 10th day of Christmas, CSO gave to me… the tools for social mobility
Currently in my sophomore year, I am looking forward towards building my resume with relevant experiences that will make me a standout in the job market. I spend my nights writing papers and constantly obsessing over how to make the grade. Even with all the work I try...
On the 9th day of Christmas, CSO gave to me… the opportunity to dream
There are so many kids, just like me, first in the family to go to college, looking for ways to afford it. Close friends of mine, who went to the same school as I did, came from low-income families, got into the same schools that I did, attended college and dropped...
On the 8th day of Christmas, CSO gave to me… a chance to lead
Irvin Gomez blogs about what CSO means to him. Check out Irvin Gomez's video below. Please donate to Center for Student Opportunity this holiday season and help underserved, first-generation college-bound students in their pursuit of college.
On the 7th day of Christmas, CSO gave to me…college info and advice…for FREE
CSO was really helpful in teaching me about college. It was amazing to go a website where people were being honest about college in every possible way. CSO really helped opened my eyes and made me think about what I was looking for in a college. The scholars who write...
On the 6th day of Christmas, CSO gave to me…the ability to kick-start my dreams
First of all, I am so thankful to have had an opportunity to apply for this scholarship. This is an amazing program and I continue to benefit from it. The CSO scholarship has helped my dreams come true because it allowed me to actually consider college. There was no...
On the 5th day of Christmas, CSO gave to me…brand new possibilities
The Center for Student Opportunity has showed me that college is definitely a possibility for first generation college students. I come from a low socioeconomic background and it was an incredible struggle to try and pay for college. But thanks to the CSO scholarship...
On the 4th day of Christmas, CSO gave to me…the chance to break free
Of course CSO has helped me financially, but it is been so much more than that. CSO and the people there have helped me by believing in me, and telling me that I do have a chance. Obviously I am the first in my family to go to college, but that also means I am the...
On the 3rd day of Christmas, CSO gave to me…the gift to make my dreams a reality…
Alex Montes is a 2011 recipient of the CSO Opportunity Scholarship. CSO made it possible for him to attend the University of Rochester and achieve his dream of becoming the first in his family to attend college. Check out my video below. Please donate to Center for...
On the 2nd day of Christmas, CSO gave to me…the chance to be all that I could be
Center for Student Opportunity has provided me with a gift that is irreplaceable, my education. Growing up in a home situation that was often tumultuous, I used my education as a means of coping. I always knew that education was the one thing nobody could ever take...