Michelle Obama, Gemma Busoni and Zaniya Lewis on the May cover of Seventeen Magazine. Photo by James White/Seventeen
Donning a pink and red color-block dress, First Lady Michelle Obama shines on the front cover of Seventeen Magazine. FLOTUS sat down with the magazine to discuss higher education and offer advice to those hoping to attend college one day.
Her Better Make Room campaign, launched last year, encourages students to “take the next step: get a better education, have a better career, imagine a better future, and live a better life.” The campaign’s official website provides visitors with a step-by-step plan to prepare for college. Tips and resources for SAT registration to financial aid options are available.
Some might be unsure about what they want to do in life, but Obama admits she didn’t have her whole life planned out at 17 either. There may not always be a definite answer for what you want to be in the future.
“I always tell people, the question of what you want to be when you grow up is one that you will eternally be answering. I’m still asking myself that question!” she told Seventeen. ” I’m always going to be discovering new parts of myself, and you’ll find that you will be, too.”
She also shared her secret to staying motivated, as everyone didn’t support her dreams of becoming a lawyer.
“…When it was time for me to apply to colleges there were some counselors who said, ‘Maybe, with Princeton, you’re reaching a little high,’ ” she said. “And I thought, ‘You really don’t think I can do it?’ But here’s what I did: I decided to ignore the doubters. I plunged ahead and I got in. I went on to Harvard Law School and every step of the way I used those doubting voices as motivation.”
The First Lady urged students to choose a school not for its notoriety, but because it’s the right fit. She offered the same advice to her own daughters Sasha, 14, and Malia, 17, who’s starting college in the fall.
“The one thing I’ve been telling my daughters is that I don’t want them to choose a name,” she says. “I don’t want them to think, ‘Oh I should go to these top schools.’ We live in a country where there are thousands of amazing universities. So, the question is: What’s going to work for you?”
Obama’s sound advice to readers is just another indication of her for love of learning, empowerment, and commitment to education.
