After graduating a year early from high school coming into a school as large and diverse as the University of Maryland was a little nerve-racking. I had heard stories about college from my older brother and worried that I would be overwhelmed. However, the stories I had heard were from an aerospace engineering major. Then I received a letter from the scholars program suggesting that I join Earth, Life, and Time, which fit in perfectly with my choice to be a geology major. I had heard good things about the program, especially about the two amazing professors who teach the course, and thought that it would be a good program in which to get involved. Three semesters later, I think it is one of the best choices I made coming into college. It has helped me grow as a student and gain valuable friendships. The course has also helped me gain a better understanding of the world around us. Group activities and interesting field trips made this class more than just another college class.

First semester of freshman year was not at all what I had expected it to be like… It was so much better! The scholars program was a great way to get involved and used to college life. Being a geology major I really enjoyed discussing and learning about the natural world. It was really neat seeing what I had already learned in my geology classes and then discussing it again in scholars. I almost felt a step ahead of the other students! UNIV100 was not nearly as great as the colloquim class. I felt like I had already learned everything that we were taught in class back in high school or from life in general. However, it was clear that other students needed it! To me, though, it was a waste of time. Overall, the scholars program opened up several doors to me. I made several friends that I would not have otherwise met. Scholars also showed me several things about the university that I might not have ever found out about, including different clubs and resources that campus has. It was great having Dr. Holtz and Dr. Merck as teachers because both have such a wide range of valuable knowledge. Dr. Merck, my geology advisor, was such a great help in adjusting to college life. ELT lectures gave me a better understanding about what science really is, especially from the pseudoscience lectures. We learned a fair amount of what I had also learned in my GEOL120 class, including geologic structures like synclines which we saw up close and personal on a field trip to Sideling Hill. This field trip, although on a cold and windy day, was thoroughly enjoyable because it was a great way to see what we had learned in the real world. Actually being able to climb the syncline was amazing!!! By the end of second semester there was no doubt in my mind that ELT was one of the best decisions I could have made!

The second semester of ELT was probably even more fun than the first. We learned boatloads about Charles Darwin and evolution, a topic I highly enjoyed in high school. One of my best friends was in BSCI106 at the time and it was interesting being able to discuss with him things I was learning in ELT and that he was learning as well in a biology class. ELT broadened my knowledge of the biological world, something that I think is highly important even to those not going into life sciences fields of work. Although I did not go to the Scholars in New York field trip, going to the museums in Washington D.C. were equally as valuable to me. Going to the National Museum of Natural History was a lot of fun! Being able to see examples of fossils and other exhibits after learning about them in class was fundamental to my understanding of the concepts we had learned in class. Also, the zoo trip was a great way to see the result of thousands of years of evolution! Another one of the highlights of the second semester of ELT was the family history project. I learned more about my family and ancestors than I would have otherwise. The world maps were a great way to see how our families moved around throughout history. I wish other classes could have cool projects like this one!!!

Third semester was a lot like our second semester. However, there were more current events discussed in lecture which was a real eye opener. Staying busy with studying and work makes it hard to stay up to date with all the things going on in our world. Global warming and natural disasters are huge problems in our world today and learning about them is really important. Graphs, pictures, and video clips were great examples, and somewhat scary examples, of what might happen if people do not make a change to their lifestyles. The number of endangered animals and decreasing polar ice is a real problem, not something the media is making up. It is really important for everyone, including busy college students, to get involved in making this a better world both for humans and the other living beings we share it with.

Overall, ELT was very educational and rewarding to me, and I believe that it has helped me grow both as a student and as a person. I feel that as I have become more aware of what is going on in the world around me, I have become less ignorant. I will take what I have learned from my three, and soon to be four, semesters of ELT and use that in the next two years of college, and then in grad school and the real world. I never would have guessed that I could get so much out of three semesters of class, let alone a one-credit class! Although I plan on going on to work in broadcast journalism, the knowledge that I have gained from this class will never leave me. It will give me an advantage over other journalists because not only will I have my education in journalism, I will also have a knowledge of science that others who have not taken ELT will be lacking.

The last piece of advice that I would like to leave for incoming ELT freshman is to stick with the program for all four semesters. There is no other program like this one and it is incredibly valuable to your education. You will be so happy that you did!