Sharon Oh's Freshman Time Capsule Reflection Essay

Now that it is May, my freshman year comes to an end. My coursework has had classes that range from Greek and Roman mythology to calculus II. As well as that, there are many ways that all of these course have enriched me and help me grow as a person, student, and friend. I learned a lot from this year whether walking to the diner would soon become a struggle or studying at Iribe provides a modern environment but studying at McKeldin provides a quiet environment. College is the time for people to learn and people to make mistakes and I certainly have made most of mine.

In total I have taken around 10 courses for the whole year. There are many reasons why courses came as the greatest revelation because they could either be terrible in terms of coursework or the amount of busy work. However, there were courses that were great and helped me grow. Of course, the math classes math140 and math141, calculus one and two, have humbled me in the ways where it tested my time management skills, and studying habits. On the other hand, classes such as COMM107 which is the communications class offered at UMD have proven that I can step out of my comfort zone in order to deliver speeches and be able to talk to a small group of people who I do not necessarily know. These classes have been introduced to me because these classes are either required in my program track or they were general education requirements at UMD. You may be able to find these classes because theyre required in a sense whether it is required in the major that you would like to pursue or required through general education requirements.

Relationships with faculty is usually a pressure that comes with being in college. It is definitely easier to create a casual relationship because most of the faculty members believe that we are an equal instead of a teacher-student relationship which was presented to us all of our elementary, middle, and high school careers. Creating relationships with faculty is easier in classes that are much smaller in size. My biggest advice would be to participate and be honest when participating whether it is just making a funny comment or answering a question that shows your weird self. Do not worry about creating a relationship with a professor that has a lecture size of 200, because it is remarkably impossible. However, do become friends with your TA, it is a good thing because your TA is here to support you, but they also can understand you better because they might be better friends with you.

Adjusting to college is scary and everyone is in the same boat as you. Likely the people living on your floor is scared to go out and make new friends. The biggest advice is make friends with people on your floor because theyre going to be the most likely to get meals with you, are most convenient to you, and could spend the most time with you. Finding friends on your floor is truly a blessing. The greatest obstacle is simply getting over the fear that they wont like you because they are nervous and anxious too.

I was definitely not prepared for academic life. I was not ready for the very discipline time management and the self control needed for academic success. Some classes are very demanding with time while others are not as demanding. It truly depends on the classes and the rigor of those classes that you take. Just prioritize work before anything else and get ahead in classes because it is better to be relaxing than stressing over an assignment ten minutes before it is due.

As my freshman year wraps up, the classes I have taken all have had an impact on me both whether it is good or bad. As well as that, all of these classes have helped me become a better student and learn more about myself.

Last modified: 10 May 2022