This guest post is by Kristen Chew, a young woman on the autism spectrum who was diagnosed with Asperger’s and has been accepted into a college. Kristen is applying for the Spring 2022 Making a Difference Autism Scholarship via the nonprofit KFM Making a Difference started by me, Kerry Magro. I was nonverbal till 2.5 and diagnosed with autism at 4 and you can read more about my organization here. Autistics on Autism: Stories You Need to Hear About What Helped Them While Growing Up and Pursuing Their Dreams, our nonprofit’s new book, will be released on March 29, 2022 on Amazon here for our community to enjoy featuring the stories of 100 autistic adults.
Having autism inspired me to attend college and better my life. During early childhood, I experienced signs of being on the autism spectrum. Eventually, I was diagnosed with Asperger’s. This came with many unfortunate events while growing up; for example being bullied by other students, social stigma, and simply being left out of the crowd. Additionally, the bar was lowered and little was expected of me from society in general. At first, I felt conflicted because of the uncertainty of my condition moving forward. Life did not start out in the positive way I had expected. I began to lose focus on my education and long-term goals all because I was anxious about my autism becoming a hindrance.
After realizing that my fears and low hopes were not getting me anywhere, I designed a life plan for my future. I sought counseling, volunteered in local communities, and joined school clubs. I even found my career passion which is accounting. Little do people know my potential as a student who has overcome obstacles to pursue my dream of becoming a college graduate and obtaining a degree, exemplifying academic strengths and career possibilities one can achieve, despite being on the autism spectrum. I began to further realize my capabilities and qualities as a person.
The next step I took was enrolling in college to pursue a bachelor’s degree in accounting, with an interest in becoming a certified public accountant. In a diverse world of network, finance, and communication it is in my interest to create financial plans and budget plans for other individuals and companies. Additionally, I enjoy helping other people. As someone who is going through financial hardships herself, I empathize with others who need assistance with budget planning and financial advising. Moreover, I enjoy working with numbers and in the near future strive to be important work to a firm that specializes in accounting. During my enrollment, I have had the pleasure of interacting with other like-minded students and interesting professors. Moreover, I’ve been active in school clubs and events, which reminds me that I’m not alone in this journey. I am blessed to have the opportunity to pursue my career path in accounting and will do what is necessary to achieve my goals.
I am currently a member of the CPA prep club at Lock Haven University. This club is for accounting majors who are interested in learning more about accounting, regarding jobs and careers as well as gathering information necessary to prepare students for the CPA exam. I am blessed to be a part of this club that is geared towards my interests and major. Every school year, I will continue to take the courses I need and learn the proper skills to achieve my goals. Once I graduate college, my main goal is to take my CPA exam, pass the exam, and officially become a certified public accountant. I will then use my skills to assist others with financial plans, forms, and budgeting. Accounting will be my career as I continue to get older and become more experienced in the field. I already have two years of experience as an accounting intern so I am confident that I have what it takes to achieve my long-term goals.
To conclude, I have a goal and I am well prepared for what the future holds because only I can control what is ahead for me. With consistent work and effort in my education, I am confident that I will obtain my degree and become what I envision. I hope to make a better life not only for myself but for others as well. Furthermore, I have learned not to feel ashamed of having autism, regardless of what anyone thinks. Autism does not make someone flawed but instead unique. I have become who I am now and am turning my life around all because I did not let my autism become an obstacle.
Follow my journey on Facebook, my Facebook Fan Page, Tiktok, Youtube & Instagram,
My name is Kerry Magro, a professional speaker and best-selling author who is also on the autism spectrum that started the nonprofit KFM Making a Difference in 2011 to help students with autism receive scholarship aid to pursue post-secondary education. Help support me so I can continue to help students with autism go to college by making a tax-deductible donation to our nonprofit here.
Autistics on Autism: Stories You Need to Hear About What Helped Them While Growing Up and Pursuing Their Dreams, will be released on March 29, 2022 on Amazon here for our community to enjoy featuring the stories of 100 autistic adults. 100% of the proceeds from this book will go back to our nonprofit to support initiatives like our autism scholarship program. In addition, this autistic adult’s essay you just read will be featured in a future volume of this book as we plan on making this into a series of books on autistic adults.
