A few days ago, I was told that I need to attend a more prestigious college if I want to be considered remotely competition to men my age. This must have been the most eye-opening experience I have yet to have. As a young girl, I try not to pay attention to other's opinions of me because, quite honestly, it's none of my business.

But having someone tell me I can't do something based on my gender angered me to no end. Now, the wage gap is real and sexism is alive and well, but here's the catch: it shouldn't be. And we're not doing anything about it.

I am an 18-year-old with two full-time jobs (first as a student and then as an Editor-in-Chief here at Odyssey) and a full-time obligation to my family and friends. My two best friends are some of the most accomplished women that I have ever met.

My mom was a successful businesswoman who worked as hard as anyone to get the job she deserves. The girls that I go to school with are a small sample of the millions of well-rounded ladies this earth was graced with. So why is it that we are put below men every day of our lives?

Matt Bowman, a former firefighter in the city of Toronto was found tweeting consistently, belittling women more and more with each tweet. A man considered to be a hero by some is publicly demeaning women simply because he thinks he can. It was found that some of his co-workers joined in and helped him compose his tweets.

It appalls me that boys, in some parts of the country (and world), are taught from the day they are born that they are superior to women. Parents allow their kids to walk out of the house thinking that some people were made to be treated differently than others and these kids take that knowledge into the world and implement it.

Why do people think it is okay to stereotype -- to put human beings in little boxes and categorize them and their futures based on whether they are "male" or "female?"

Court cases (*cough* Brock Turner's case *cough cough*) have ruled time and time again against women, especially during sexual assault cases. One judge even had the nerve to ask a rape victim why she "couldn't keep her knees together?"

Girls are faced with gender-based insults day-in and day-out: "You throw like a girl." "I could wipe your face off with a Kleenex." "Are you on your period or something?" "You're such a girl!"

Being hit with these remarks every day of our childhood has made this type of behavior seem almost normal to us as teenagers. They've become jokes that people -- not just women -- hear every time we walk out of our homes.

I shouldn't feel ridiculed or insulted for being who I am. No one should. It shouldn't matter what gender I identify with. What should matter is who I am as a person.

Unfortunately, that gets overlooked because I am a girl. I automatically get categorized as "lesser than." I get paid less. I get made fun of. I get put down. And all because I identify with a gender that is not male.

And I do not deserve to be put last on the totem pole just based on my gender.