17-Year-Old American Girl Accepted To 113 Colleges

The season for college admissions in the US has begun. Many high school seniors are anxiously waiting to hear whether they have made it to their desired colleges or not. One such girl, Jasmine E. Harrison, was accepted to as many as 113 colleges, reported the New York Times. She is a 17-year-old senior at The Academy at Smith in Greensboro, North Carolina.

Accepted to 113 colleges out of 115 to which she applied

Harrison was accepted to 113 colleges and universities out of the 115 to which she had applied. The scholarship offers she received totalled over $4 million, according to Harrison. Her mother kept track of the financial offers. The ecstatic girl told NY Times that at first she could not believe it,. When it sank in, she felt honoured.

Online applications

Harrison used online college application tools to apply to multiple institutions at once. The girl is an exceptional student with a 4.0 grade point average. She said acceptance letters and financial offers from various places gave her more confidence.

Harrison and her mother started the application process in September last year. Only two universities -- the University of South Carolina and Seton Hall University -- turned Harrison down.

“I could go anywhere, and discover who I am,” - Jasmine Harrison

She even reached out to colleges farther from home. She used the Common Black College Application, which put her academic record into the sights of 53 of the country’s historically black colleges and univs.

In the end, Harrison decided to stay close to home. She chose Bennett College in Greensboro, North Carolina. The college offered Harrison a full scholarship covering the $28,000 annual cost to attend.

Harrison wants to major in biology and work as a neonatal intensive care unit nurse. She was inspired by the women who cared for one of her brothers, Zayden, in such a unit.

Terri Y. Fletcher, Harrison’s English teacher, wrote multiple recommendations for her. She said Harrison would often visit her office to read works by Ntozake Shange and Maya Angelou. “She does not put any limitations on anything,” Fletcher said about Harrison.

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Bhawana is an intern with SheThePeople.TV