After deciding to come to Tech, I knew I had a huge challenge to overcome. My entire family had gone through Michigan Tech and I was the only one left to go through. My sister, Sara, is an amazing person. Not only is she a blast to hang out with, but when it comes to school she’s pretty much a genius. She graduated from Tech with a 3.9 GPA, several co-op experiences, awards, and is currently continuing her education toward a PhD. She is the best role model anyone could ask for and I’m so proud of her. However, one of my biggest challenges I have faced at Tech is to follow my sister’s path of success.
The first time I felt overshadowed occurred when I visited while still in high school. My family came up to attend a small award ceremony for my sister and a few other students. After the ceremony I met a couple of Sara’s professors and mentors who all encouraged me to come to Tech and do all the great things my sister had done. Many of faculty members and “higher-ups” in the University easily recognize my sister’s name and know of all her accomplishments. It sometimes seems like they have “silent expectations” of me to be the same way, which makes me pretty uncomfortable, because I felt I had to do all the things she did to be viewed as successful. For example, I introduce myself as “Emily Mantila” and often times I will ask someone I meet if they know Sara Mantila. More often than not they respond by saying, “Oh, you’re Sara’s sister!”
At first, I had a difficult time with it because I just felt like I would never live up to anyone’s expectations. Just the other day I was introduced to a very important person on campus and I said “Hi, I’m Emily Mantila. You know of Sara Mantila and I’m her younger sister.” I had first met him at Sara’s small award ceremony a few years earlier. He replied, “Wow, what a way to introduce yourself!” I felt so dumb! The person who introduced us quickly spoke up saying, “Yes, but she’s making her own great mark!” That gave me a bit of encouragement, but I still felt like an idiot.
As time went on, I realized that I don’t need to be exactly like Sara to be successful. Looking back now, I can appreciate the people who know my sister and all of her accomplishments, because they only expect me to thrive as well. I also want to thank her for doing so well because it was a way for me to get my foot in the door and have greater opportunities. My sister and my parents are all very encouraging and keep me motivated to do well. One of my goals is to keep my GPA above a 3.0 and I will be very happy with that. I’ve joined groups on campus that keep me involved and I have many opportunities to improve myself. This year especially, I’ve taken on more responsibilities other than just class, homework, and studying. This semester I have a job, I joined an enterprise, and I’m writing for Making Our Mark. All of these things will provide me with more opportunities and success in the future.
