Jose Chaca, 24, standing in front of his former high school (Photo: Errol Lewis/THECollegiate)

When graduating from high school at age 21, Ecuadorian born Jose Chaca didn’t initially know what he wanted to do with himself. Now 24, Chaca currently finds life after high school a rewarding experience after enrolling at Hostos Community College majoring in Dental Hygiene, which he decided to pursue after recalling a conversation he once had with a dentist during his younger years.

“I had many problems with my teeth when I was young,” explains Chaca. “My dentist told me that you could make a lot of money with this, but that it’s ‘going to take time and in the future you are going to be [financially] well off.'”

Chaca chose Hostos as a matter of convenience.

“I chose Hostos because it was close to my job [at the time],” says Chaca, who also could have chosen City College of New York or LaGuardia Community College as other options for his interest. It helped that the schedule fit into his own availability, and that he received some support from the College Office at his former high school, Manhattan Comprehensive Night and Day High School.

“I realized that without college my future was bleak,” says Chaca after talking with a college representative at the school. “Especially for anyone hoping to have a family.”

As for what advice he’d give to someone else looking to decide what to do after graduating high school, Chaca says, “Never give up. It’s better that you go to a college office, or department, or else it’s going to be hard searching on your own trying to get information. You’ll ultimately be lost.”