Due Date: May 8, 2025
As I complete my first year at the University of Maryland as a freshman student, I realize now that I have learned much both inside and outside of the classroom during my time here. I have taken numerous courses for my major and College Park Scholars: Science and Global Change, and have experienced dormitory life in Centerville Hall. Moreover, I have had the opportunity to be a part of the Iranian Student Foundation and Women in Engineering. In all these experiences, I have learned about new, different perspectives across campus from students, friends, and professors.
One of the courses I took that surprised me and impacted me significantly was Introduction to Engineering Design (ENES100). As an engineering major, I was forced to enroll in this course and expected it to be similar to the equivalent course I took in high school. While certain aspects aligned with the high school version of the course, there were numerous differences. Firstly, the university version of the course proved to be quite extensive. Also, from day one of the course, we were introduced to the semester-long project of creating an autonomous robot in a team of students. Because I had not worked on this type of large project and environment before, this course proved to be a learning curve for me, alongside my fellow teammates. With the other seven students in our team, we were able to learn about each other’s personalities, strengths, and weaknesses as well as forge friendships. We practiced many skills relating to teamwork, including effectively communicating with each other and organizing plans and tasks. As we worked together on various parts of our robot, I realized that there is much trial and error involved in the engineering process and that there is always room for improvement in a solution to a problem. I also learned to have an open mind and be patient when certain results do not turn out the way they should initially, and instead, continue trying different methods to solve the problem. I understand now that these skills are highly valued and transferable to my future courses and eventual career. Summing this all up, my piece of advice to future students of this course is to consistently work with your peers and be open to new ideas and occurrences that may arise.
With regard to participating in class, I acknowledge that this is a key part of building relationships with faculty members at the university. It is important to note that oftentimes freshmen are enrolled in mandatory core classes that typically have hundreds of students at a time. This naturally makes it much more difficult to forge relationships with faculty. However, I believe that if you are a student who constantly tries to make their presence known by sitting in front of the class and/or asking questions and interacting with the professor, you are more likely to understand your professor and eventually create a strong relationship. Additionally, if you are present in every lecture, discussion, and/or laboratory, you are significantly more likely to build said relationships. Having said all this, it is critical to note that this can be applied to relationships with teaching assistants as well as other faculty members. Having these relationships is especially beneficial as you progress further into your undergraduate education and potentially graduate school. Adjusting to university life proved to be difficult initially due to the increased freedom, dormitory experiences, and overall being a part of a new school community. Being on a vast and diverse campus allows you to meet new faculty members and students everywhere, from both inside and outside the classroom setting. I especially met many people in my scholars program and made some of my greatest friends there, who are always with me every step of the way. My note to future freshmen is that it is simple to make friends if you put in the effort to be present in class and events, and if you are willing to interact with others. These interactions allow you to exchange new viewpoints, gain a better understanding of other mentalities, and have more general support. In addition to the above positive experiences, there were some aspects of the start of my year in which I felt unprepared and frustrated. In contrast to high school, university courses are more fast-paced and are taught at deeper levels, making it hard to find a balance between classes and out-of-school activities. This was especially the case at the start when the course content was completely foreign to me. However, as I became more used to this type of academics, I felt better about my tactics and more confident overall. My recommendation to future freshmen is to have a balance between different types of classes and to do a little by little of your work every day to not overwhelm yourself. A key part of this is also taking breaks between work, which helps to decrease stress and anxiety.
As a freshman, I decided to live in a residence hall with my best friend as my roommate. This was my first time being away from my home, which was different than usual. Another part of what made this experience hard was that the other residents on our floor were often noisy, disrupting my studying and sleep schedules at times. After reflecting on these aspects, I believe that life in a residence hall is not for me. Despite that, I believe it is important to understand how these types of experiences depend on the individual, and that you will not know until you try something new like this as a freshman. As much as I personally did not enjoy the overall residence life here, I admit that I learned much about being independent and that having new experiences is a part of coming to new places, such as UMD.