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College life on the first day
College students face many challenges
College students face many challenges
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My first year at Northeastern, I experienced all the feelings any typical college college freshman feels, anxious, out of place, and excited. As the year, progressed the anxiety and fish out of water feeling continued despite making friends and finding my classes intellectually stimulating and challenging. As I entered my sophomore year with all these feelings still prevalent, I joined the Resident Student Association due the persistent nagging from a friend who was in the organization. After joining and seeing how my fellow members were invested in making Northeastern a more engaged and welcoming environment for it’s residents, for the first time since taking that fateful tour at Admitted Students Day, I felt connected to my fellow students
After attending Admitted Students Day in April, I knew Boston University, and more specifically Questrom, was the place for me. Several friendly, caring, and intelligent Dean’s Hosts came up to me and offered me tours, advice, or asked if I had any questions. The Dean’s Hosts made me feel extremely comfortable and gave me a better perspective on what Questrom is all about. Ever since that day, I knew that I wanted to be a Dean’s Host because the Dean’s Hosts helped me realize that this is where I belong, and I want to do the same for others. When I started college in September, I immediately asked about how to become a Dean’s Host because I want to be able to introduce others to everything Questrom has to offer, like the Dean’s Hosts did for me. Being a Dean’s Host is a great networking opportunity as Dean’s Hosts get to meet past alumni as well as distinguished guest speakers.
...d the way in which she makes friends, also suffered. So what can other first generation college students do to avoid what has happened to Sarah? The answer lies in directing a passion towards learning and education in students and their families that will build self-motivation and avoid the negative predispositions of being the first in the family to attend college. While Sarah has not been attending the University of Miami for too long, her experiences thus far have given her a very good understanding of her position in this academic community, and nevertheless, gives a representation of first year first generation college students. Sarah is only one person though and may not be fully representative of the population first generation college students, but as a member of this community, Sarah’s input is essential to the ideas and views of the students in this group.
Upon arriving to college, many students face the challenge of finding a community to belong to. I believe the student affairs professionals on campus are the resource to building communities within the student body. Reflecting back on my first semester of college, I found my community within two organizations; Dance Marathon and UI Alumni Association Students Today, Alumni Tomorrow (S.T.A.T.). Within the organizations I met two advisers who opened my eyes to the world of student affairs.
I have done this by having group bonding activities often as well as appearing warm and welcoming to all, especially those who do not appear at our activities in order to make them feel included at all times. If made a Resident Assistant, I plan to go further than this and try to encourage the residents to open their doors more often in order to appear more welcoming to each other. I will also keep working hard on inventive group bonding activities. I find that more work can always be done in order to create lasting bonds between residents. Most importantly, I have grown to understand that even though we refer to our residence halls as our dorm, or simply “school”, the truth of the matter is that these residence halls and the college itself, is our home. Above all else, I hope to bring every sense of the word into reality for any future residents that I may
Prompt: In 500 words or more, describe your collegiate experience thus far. How has this experience and the knowledge you've gained influenced what you plan to study? How have they influenced your decision to apply to St. Edward's?
As a byproduct of the change in college culture, it will create a “friendlier” environment for first generation. Students need to feel safe rather than out of place. Additionally, prestigious institutions need to take initiative to create new programs that will make college a painless transition for first generation students by implementing new policies such as mentors or clubs. As many colleges and universities have not taken the initiative to help first-generation students, North Carolina State University is one of the few exceptions. As a fellow first generation college student at North Carolina State University, I have reaped many benefits from the different organizations they have around campus. In the Poole College of Management, I was assigned a professional mentor in my future line of work that made the transition into college a better experience for me. After listening to his forums, I was able to use the skills I had learnt from my parents and apply it to college and my study habits benefiting me in countless possibilities. Additionally, the sociology department at North Carolina State University has created a program that guides first-generations students throughout all four years of college making the transition as
The greatest advantage in participating in freshman learning communities is the chance to interact and socialize with a group of students known as a cohort. Lichtenstein (2005) noted that these programs are based on the premise that the better the student’s social involvement in the life of the college, the greater chance for academic success. Not only does this cohort of students assist in reducing the anxiety of the transition, but also gives students the social support needed to successfully progress through college (Engberg, 2007). Because of the small size, students are given a greater chance of participating, discussion, and overall getting to know one another. Students in learning communities not only tend to form their own support groups that extend beyond the classroom, but also spend more time together outside of class (Tinto 2000). Discussions outside of class, social activities, and study groups are all encouraged to participate in as a cohort.
Students typically enter college in the fifth stage of identity versus identity diffusion. Students are struggling to explore their independence and develop an idea of the self. This is the perfect opportunity for student affairs to develop learning activities that will engage students in the exploration of other cultures, beliefs, and ideas. Residence halls at larger institutions are crucial for fostering communications and relationships that will help students build an identity from. For community college without residential capabilities, it is important to establish activities that promote student bonding and relationships in a fun, stress-free setting. These relationships will become a part of the following stage of intimacy versus isolation. A strong sense of identity will lead to healthy relationships.
Additionally, I plan on having a regular event that my residents can go to and unwind, like a movie night. I will also point any resident struggling academically to the appropriate resources or encourage multiple residents to study together because the transition into college classes often leaves students academically dissatisfied. Hopefully my residents can use these
My first week at Southern Vermont College has been great. There isn't anything I would complain about it. Vermont is very different from South Florida, where my family and I reside, but I enjoy it. The campus is a very peaceful environment. The mountains and green scenery is breath taking. When I came to SVC I expected the college to be very small and not really have too much going on. To my surprise, I was wrong. The school is surrounded by so much land that it appears larger than what it is. I realized there is more to the campus than what is shown on the internet.
The access to public education and the cost that changes so frequently to the student. The question continues to remain are we preparing students to be productive citizens post this college experience. An administrator at the University of Chicago stated “it is worthwhile to concentrate for a few sets on the task of adjusting freshman rightly to their new situation” (Loss,
As a first year student, college is an excellent opportunity to discover one’s own sense of identity and interact with a diverse range of people. Unfortunately, everyone will experience moments of confusion, loneliness, or even disengagement during their college years, which may cause a lack of interest for campus involvement. Through many studies, there are several theories that determine the parallelism between a student’s growth and their involvement interest, which also provides helpful methods for first year students to overcome challenges during this time. As Luckyday mentors this gives us insight to how to carefully approach different situations from mentees while forming a lasting impact on their transition from high school to college.
The most profound recommendations suggesting the benefits of an academic and student affairs partnership have emerged over 25 years ago. The Student Learning Imperative (ACPA, 1994) indicated the positive impact on students through such a connection: “students benefit from many and varied experiences during college and learning, and personal development are cumulative, mutually shaping processes that occur over an extended period in many different settings” ( p. 3). The document, Learning Reconsidered, the result of this collaboration was groundbreaking highlighting the weaknesses and missing elements in a holistic approach to developing the whole student. Learning Reconsidered defined learning as “a comprehensive, holistic, transformative activity that integrates academic learning and student development” (Keeling, 2004, p. 4). Finally, Learning Reconsidered 2 is another serious attempt at bridging the gap between academics and student affairs that
...new classes, I soon realized what would be the biggest challenge of college: deciding on a major. Yes, I am one of those people who started college without first declaring a major. I soon heard every question, suggestion, and response regarding possible options. I even began concocting false majors to throw some people off. Large-Scale Demolition was a crowd favorite.
At the start of my undergraduate education, I was taken aback by what I had ahead of me. Now finally out of high school, a bevy of opportunities suddenly sprang themselves upon me. I was faced with the questions of what classes to take, what to study, what to participate in, how to fend for myself, how to accomplish my goals, and countless others. After struggling with these monumental questions, I realized that, in fact, nothing had changed. I was still the same person I had always been, only now presented with much more opportunity and room to grow. Thus, rather than continuing to flounder in grandiose thought, I began to experience what only a university can offer, by embracing the infinite potential presented to me.