Daniel Soong Website

Reflecting back on my entirety of my Freshman year, I can definitely say that I have made mistakes, had fun, and acclimated to the College life experience. Like I said in my initial journal, I do feel that college life is pretty drastically different from high school, middle or any previous life that I have had the extreme pleasure of living. The courses I took this semester were in less quantity but I feel in more depth than the ones I took last semester. If I had to say, this semester’s courses were slightly easier, or they were about the same level of challenge that I had as last semester. I have not taken that many courses, however I do want to remark on my ENEE150 course, which is C programming for Electrical Engineers. As opposed to the ENEE 140 class I took last semester, this class is way way more challenging, and I encourage all students to be wary of taking this class. Another class I found surprising was MUSC229P, or pep band. I found that I actually had to take this class because I participated in pep band through the fall, winter and spring semesters because it was mandated to be an actual class. I was extremely surprised and didn’t realize I had to pay for extracurriculars in terms of actual UMD courses. I encourage everybody to re-evaluate this, and carefully consider which courses are actually necessary and passable, not being a waste of time and money. While I had fun, I would not have participated had I known it was a paid class. As a whole, I feel incoming students just need to dive in and be prepared for the worst mentally and physically. Some classes are deceptive, and the professors are an added layer of randomness. Do know that SGC or CPSG is a fun class, where the classes are extremely enjoyable, fun, and help to increase your worldview. As far as developing strong relationships with staff, I have had opportunities to get to know staff, whether it be helping them with research, or enjoying a meal with them. My advice would be to be open, branch out, and not be afraid to take the first step. I know that any rising Freshman or recent High schooler has had to deal with networking and reaching out, and it is an excellent opportunity to start early in college. Incoming students can be as open or formal as they want, but I believe a good mix of both is the right idea. Especially leaning to the more open side. Adjusting to interpersonal relationships with my fellow students is another interesting matter I would like to talk about. I have definitely made friends with my peers of my same grade, as well as some upperclassmen. My friends of the same grade have become integral to helping me succeed in classes. Whether it be working together with projects, tutoring, or even having amicable correspondence for future interactions I feel that they are a valuable resource. They also add a lot to the camaraderie in struggling through all my classes. As for the upperclassmen, They are also extremely valuable. While I don’t exactly relate to them on a lot of levels, they provide extremely useful insight and advice for how I can change my future, and how to do it with connections. Some other things I would like to reflect on real quick are about UMD as a whole. The campus is massive so I am extremely fortunate and happy to have my bike. There were moments where it broke down and I was forced to walk quite a bit, however I learned that it’s not the end of the world, and is very conducive to keeping a healthy lifestyle. I also enjoyed so many different opportunities. Ranging from using the terrapin works manufacturing labs, to the ice cream in 251 north, the usages of this campus are endless and amazing, and I encourage everybody to explore!! The least prepared part of university life I think for me was probably the living experience. The food here is livable, but you definitely have to know what, when, and how to eat. Customizing and choosing my lifestyle to set certain goals and to do certain things were challenging for me, but I think I did a relatively good job of refining that through this semester. I am a bit apprehensive next semester though because I feel that I will have to completely re-adjust to college life as a sophomore. No doubt will I have harder classes and more responsibilities, but living in a different environment and having to pull more weight will be extremely challenging. I am apprehensive about the endeavor, but I do welcome it.