Senior Spotlight | Nickolett Donoughe
TNA Class of 2021
NICKOLETT DONOUGHE
TNA senior Nickolett Donoughe will set sail for an Ivy League education. Having been accepted into impressive colleges such as Carnegie Mellon University and Howard University, Nikki has decided to pursue excellence at the University of Pennsylvania (Penn). She came to Pittsburgh from Colorado in 2017, and it’s easy to say she’s come a long way, geographically and academically.
“I was not a good student, believe it or not! Some circumstances made it hard for me to care about school. It was not that I didn’t have the ability or that I wasn’t ‘smart’ enough… At one point, I was even struggling with truancy,” said Nikki. “I’m experiencing a see-saw of feelings being accepted to such great universities! There are a lot of times where I doubt myself – mainly because of my previous academics. I ask myself, ‘Did they make a mistake? Am I going to get an email that says they sent the acceptance letter to the wrong person?’ and now I’m finding pride in myself.”
The COVID-19 pandemic has made it hard for Nikki to tour the Penn campus, but she’s managed to find a way to explore and research her future home of Philadelphia from Pittsburgh.
“I did a lot of research on the university before I submitted my application, so I’m not too concerned. Between taking an interactive tour of the campus and even watching YouTube videos of the school, I can tell it’s the right place for me,” said Nikki.
Nikki has a tremendous respect for art, and she loves to dabble in all forms of artistic expression whether it be painting, dancing, drawing, music, or theater. However, her favorite expressive outlet is creative writing.
“I currently have over 30 different stories plotted and planned in my Google Docs. I absolutely love the adventure and fantasy genre stories and I am fascinated by authors creating different worlds, cultures, and norms,” she said.
With this passion for writing, Nikki intends to major in English and minor in Spanish or Korean.
“I’ve chosen to study English because there is so much I can do with it and so many different career paths I can take. I’m deciding between becoming a teacher, a college professor, going into journalism, or even becoming a doctor,” said Nikki.
Nikki credits TNA for preparing her for this leap into higher education.
“TNA most definitely lives up to its name as a college prep school. The functioning of our school day functions much like a day in college,” she said. “TNA is a place where you can find many things: home, friends, or connections. You’re going to find them if you look for them.”