This first semester of college has definitely been somewhat like what I thought it would be like when I was a younger kid picturing myself going to college. My main STEM classes (Math140, Chem135, and Enes100) have definitely given me the most struggle throughout this semester. The exams in these classes have been nothing like any exam I’ve ever taken in high school. We cover a large amount of material over such a short period of time. However, I did expect these particular classes to be higher paced because they are college courses and I am familiar with college courses because I took a couple of AP courses in high school. In contrast, I didn’t expect myself to do better at calculus in college than in high school. Yes, I had already taken calculus in high school, but I didn’t remember any of it so it was like a fresh start. This seemed kind of strange to me but I am satisfied with the outcome. All that’s left to do now is to prepare for finals for these classes. From what I have heard from upperclassmen, the finals are very difficult. I already knew/expected this so my studying ethic has changed a lot from my high school studying ethic.
For the Science and Global Change Scholars Program, I didn’t expect us to be coding as much as we are. For me, I am very inexperienced with coding and anything involving coding so that part has been much of a struggle for me. It has been more of a learning experience because in the future, there are some aspects of engineering that will involve coding so having somewhat of a previous knowledge will be helpful. Also, another thing I didn't expect to cover in this class was rocks. However, I actually found that part to be very interesting. The idea behind how you can tell where a rock might have been located is very neat. I hope in the future of the course we will go into more detail about ways in which humans can contribute positively to the changes made by climate change. I think I would find that part of the class very interesting and helpful because basically, my generation and generations below me are the future. Furthermore, the outside-the-classroom-activities are actually very interesting. For example, service day was an experience for me because I’ve never really been in a pond, nor have I helped to clean a pond. For the most part, the activities were different then expected, but in a good way.
There are similarities and differences in university life and what I pictured university life would be like when I was still in high school. For example, I knew that the classes would be more difficult than in high school. Also, I knew that I would be gaining a lot more freedom. At home, my parents were very strict and did not let me go out as much. Now, I have the freedom to hang out with my friends whenever I want. Something that is a lot different that I imagined was my dorm life. For example, I didn’t expect the showers to be so disgusting but now I understand why that is the case. Also, I feel that living with a roommate has been a lot different than I expected it would be. I currently live with my friend Collin from high school. At first, I thought that since we are best friends, being roommates might mess that relationship up because this is what I’ve been told by other college students. However, we’ve gotten along great. We have basically the exact same sleep schedule, similar classes, and similar music taste which we play over my roommate’s Amazon Alexa. This worry about our friendship has been put to ease and it is something I hopefully won't have to ponder again.
I think there is a fair amount of advice that I could give to future SGC students to ease them into college. First off, don’t stress about your grades too much. Yes, it is ideal to get straight A’s and above a 90 percent on all your exams, but in reality, this isn’t going to happen. You should be trying to meet new friends, going to various sporting events, and just getting involved in different clubs and activities. By doing this, you’ll meet new people and make new friendships that will hopefully last a long time. Another bit of advice is to not take certain classes for granted. For the SGC scholars program, really try and make the best out of it that you can. Take the information that you learn and try to apply it in the real world the best that you can. That goes with any other class as well. Another piece of advice, that is crucial in my opinion, is to bring shower shoes to college! The shower floors are not clean and trust me, you do not want to be stepping barefoot on them. With all of this taken into consideration, your first semester should be fun and exciting. Try not to stress as much and enjoy the moment.