With my first year at UMD coming to a quick close, I've taken the time to reflect on my experiences and how much I've changed during the course of the year. Of course, this year had its mishaps and failures, but I'm ultimately grateful for the experiences I've had the privilege of getting and all the things I've learned along the way.
Attending UMD, I've learned that the amount of resources available on campus will never be matched by any high school, no matter what area you may have come from. A good example of this are the different courses that you can take. Coming into the spring semester, I was really excited for the courses that I had planned. I think the two courses that surprised me the most are CPSP 210: Art Tech Studio and CMSC 398L: Intro to Competitive Programming.
Funny story: I would've never thought to have taken CPSP 210 (a scholars specific course) if it weren't for having to fulfill gen-ed requirements. After sitting through the very first class of CLAS 170: Intro to Mythology of Ancient Greece and Rome, a course that I was originally excited to take, I realized that the focus of the course wasn't what I expected. The professor emphasized the religious aspects of these stories, and sitting through the lecture made me realize that it wasn't the class for me. Plus, it didn't help that the course required multiple hours of reading and active participation, which I wasn't sure that I wanted to spend on a subject that I wasn't passionate about. Scrolling through other gen-ed courses, I spotted CPSP 210, which was one of the only other courses left. That day ultimately proved to be one of the best decisions that I could've made. The course took me so many different places that I never knew existed on and off campus, like TerrapinWorks, Driskell Center, the Sandbox, the Kennedy Center, etc. It forceed me to go out of my comfort zone, and the course also requires a community project to be done. I met so many different people that I never would've if it weren't for that class, which is something that I'll always be immensely grateful for. Most importantly, it taught me the importance of taking the time to understand other people's stories, and how everyone has something interesting to share.
CMSC 398L, a student led class, is also an intersting course that I feel grateful for being able to take. It humbled me a lot (I already knew that there's a lot for me to learn, but this class really drilled it in), the fact that people can be so quick at solving problems and applying complicated data structures and algorithms to solve seemingly impossible problems, but it also motivated me. It's nice to know that I haven't hit the limit of my potential, and with hard work and dedication, I too can one day solve these problems quicker and more efficiently.
Another benefit of attending a research university is the opportunity to foster relationships with the faculty to gain invaluable insight and mentorship. Honestly, reaching to professors really isn't as complicated as it seems: all it takes is a little push from yourself and a little courage. Starting off the spring semester, I set a goal for myself to reach out to professors more. It wasn't easy at first; I find it hard to connect to people where there's a power imbalance (whether it was talking to my manager at the restaurant I worked at in high school or casually chatting with a teacher). However, I would say that professors are human too, and ultimately they enjoy meaningful interactions and working with their students. You just need to have a litte bit of courage to reach out. It's best not to overcomplicated it, and as long as you're approaching professors with the genuine curiosity and drive to learn, you'll be welcomed with open arms. Ultimately, the worst they can do is say no, which if you think about it, really isn't so bad or the end of the world.
Finding the place for yourself at any university is tough. In general, we humans are uncomfortable with the concept of change. Coming into college, I had the irrational and crippling fear of not finding "my people," or a solid group of people that I can consistently rely and count on. However, I think it's really important to realize that we're all incredibly resilient, tenavious, and adaptable, and sometimes we have the hidden ability to pleasantly surprise ourselves. A big goal that I prioritized was developing strong relatiomships with the people around me. I think finding a community of friends really helped me adjust because it fostered a sense of belonging, and that no matter what my goals were or what I achieved, there's always someone who would have my back and support me along the way. When I went through the many bumps of life, my friendships and relationships were what kept me in the rhythm of continuining to try. A piece of advice I would give to incoming freshmen is to reserve a mealtime for just hanging out with people, whether that be breakfast, lunch, or dinner. For me, that's dinner. Every day of the week, I would have a cycle of people to eat dinner with at a set time, which helped create a routine and deepen my relationships with them. I think the greatest obstacle in any relationship is finding the time and making the space for them in your schedule. I've found that it's really hard to negotiate a time that works for everyone at once. It also serves as reminder that once we graduate, the time you have available of them decreases dramatically, if even at all. I would say that the best use of your time, especially in the beginning, is to just go out. I would be lying if I said that I never regretted going out to events, but the amount of relationships I've made just from talking to random people at those events are so invaluable and enhacned my time at university that staying cooped up in your room is just not worth it.
In terms of the aspect of university academic life, looking back, I don't think there was much that I wasn't surprised by. What did shock me a little bit was the amount of variance and depth between different professors teaching the same class. At times, I would be a little envious of people with other professors because I felt like I was missing out on the amount of content or the depth in which they covered it in. I think while using the study materials provided by other universities, I realized how much of a difference it made choosing to study at different universities. It did make me realize that going to certain universities really enhanced their students' learning, but it was certainly all dependent on what the students were looking for in their education. I would recommend that prospective and future students keep these in mind when choosing classes or universities to study at, but ultimately, it makes little difference in the long run. Sometimes, there's just no objective way to live life, and the things you learn and pursue are all under your control and personal preferences. There's never going to be an objectively wrong way to do things, as long as you put your best foot forward and rise up to the challenge.