Alicia Keys once said New York City is “the concrete jungle where dreams are made of”. While this may be partially true, your dreams are only what you make of them. For Saachi Sainath, a better way to describe New York City would be “the city that never sleeps”, because Sainath certainly has no plans of sleeping on her dreams.
As college decisions continue to roll out, students across the country are being met with tears of joy and tears of disappointment. As college admissions become increasingly harder every year, more and more students are facing challenges when getting into their dream schools. For North Penn senior, Saachi Sainath, getting into her top school only seemed like a dream, until it became a reality.
“I was in denial for a while that I got into NYU and that this was really happening,” Sainath stated happily. “It’s actually kind of funny because when I got accepted I was home with a fever so I was in bed all day when I got the notification that I had a new email. So, I opened the email saw that I got in, and went right back to sleep”.
While she may not have been able to celebrate the way she would have wanted, getting accepted into New York University (NYU) was a dream come true for Sainath. Ever since she was a little girl, Sainath knew NYU was the college for her. However, with an acceptance rate of roughly 12.5%, Sainath also knew that getting in wouldn’t be easy.
“I worked incredibly hard, taking all of the AP credits I could. I took AP Biology and AP Chemistry, and I am taking AP Calculus this year, which are all geared toward my major. On top of that, I also took AP Government, AP Literature, and some others just to help with credits,” Sainath shared.
Knowing that NYU was where she wanted to be, Sainath applied to the University as an early decision applicant, meaning if she got accepted, she would have to attend NYU. Sainath also applied to Penn State University, the University of Pittsburg, Temple University, and Northeastern University. With a variety of great options, Sainath still knew she wanted to attend NYU, primarily for the city environment.
“New York is a very energetic, cultural, and creative hub. I love the energy that surrounds it and the people you can meet there. I feel like everyone has the same ambition and there are just all these amazing stories unfolding around you,” Sainath revealed. “I always found the energy and diversity of the city so appealing, so I think no matter what I was studying or if my career paths were to change, New York would still be the place that I wanted to be”.
Sainath plans on majoring in Biology and Data Science and has most of her future career meticulously planned out.
“Right out of undergraduate, I want to get a job at a biotech or pharmaceutical company as either an analyst or consultant which is where the data science part comes in. After doing that for a few years I want to go back and get my MBA so that I can work on the executive and business side of pharmaceuticals,” Sainath shared.
With a love for science and an incredibly hard work ethic in school, Sainath has found that having a creative outlet is incredibly beneficial in helping her stay motivated. Sainath quickly learned that her creative outlet comes primarily from acting and signing.
“I am President of the Thespian troop here at the high school so I get to stay involved and help manage the play. I do like to be part of plays and musicals if my schedule allows, but unfortunately, my schedule didn’t work with the upcoming spring musical,” Sainath explained. “However, I don’t mind too much because I am also a part of some of North Penn’s chorus groups”.
North Penn takes all of their performing groups very seriously, so for Sainath, being a part of these groups was a lot of hard work, but also very rewarding.
“Getting to be a part of North Penn’s artistic groups, specifically their choral groups has been amazing. It is a lot of hard work and a lot of hours and sometimes I would be at the school from three in the afternoon to ten at night at rehearsal and it was brutal, but it always pays off,” Sainath revealed. “One of my favorite experiences though was caroling at the elementary and middle schools and getting to share all of our hard work with them, it truly feels great”.
With a heavy course load and long and grueling hours of rehearsal, Sainath was forced to learn how to juggle it all. Unfortunately, between a heavy workload and a perfectionist mentality, Sainath fell victim to some mental health struggles.
“In order to juggle it all, I was always trying to get as much work done in my study halls and lunches. All three years of being at the high school I worked through my lunches, which I wouldn’t say I recommend, but finding those pockets of time was what I needed,” Sainath explained. “I think it all definitely took a toll on my mental health. Especially my sophomore year I was having a lot of issues where I had to see multiple doctors. Now I really make sure to take a break in between shows and it has become important to me to consciously make an effort to take care of myself”.
As Sainath struggled to maintain a proper balance throughout high school between work and rest, she often questioned if this was the path she wanted to take.
“It was really a double-edged thing because I sacrificed so much to get to this point and there were times when I wondered if it was even worth it if I was unhappy for so long,” Sainath admitted. “Ultimately I feel really proud and I feel like any insecurities I had about myself went away a little because I see now that all of it was worth it and it paid off”.
During her struggles, Sainath was grateful that she consistently had a strong support system by her side.
“Everyone from teachers to family, to friends, has been so supportive. My parents were never super hard on me about grades so it was up to me to be hard on myself and if something ever happened they were always there to help me work through it. I am so grateful I could always turn to them,” Sainath expressed. “Obviously, NYU is a financial burden as well, but they have been so supportive of that too. As for my friends, they have always been so encouraging and I have been very fortunate that no one has ever talked to me like I couldn’t achieve my dreams”.
As Sainath prepares for her college journey, she has reflected deeply on her time at North Penn and is thankful for all it has taught her. Sainath feels she is ready for the future ahead and knows that North Penn has prepared her well.
“One of the good things about North Penn is it is what you make of it. You can take on as much as you want to but then you are forced to learn to manage it. Something my teachers say a lot is that if you can make it in a school like North Penn you can make it anywhere,” Sainath shared. “I think when it comes to college it comes down to sticking to the same principles and taking time out of my day to do things that are important to me, whether that is working or consciously carving out that time to sit down and unwind. I feel like I have gotten good at managing my time and building up a support system around me”.
While there is no doubt that Sainath worked hard to get where she is today, she wants to assure those who didn’t necessarily reach their goals, that their hard work doesn’t go unnoticed.
“I really just want people to know that although I did work really hard, it does also come down to luck. The college admissions process is so brutal and some people work hard their whole lives and still end up getting nothing,” Sainath stated passionately. “I just think that it’s so messed up, and I want people to know that it will all work out in the end”.