The Journey of A College Student

"Life is a journey and it's about growing and changing and coming to terms with who and what you are and loving who and what you are." 

- Kelly McGillis, American Actress  

Freshman Year- The Year of Exploration

As a freshman in college, you are exposed to a whole new environment that offers a lot more freedom and responsibility than you ever had before. The social comforts you once had, such as friends and family become distant.  However, this gives you a new opportunity to reinvent yourself, as you head down your educational career.

Within this new environment, you have to figure out how you will fit into the "ecosystem" of the college.

What role will you fill?

Are you going to join clubs on campus, and if so, do you plan to take on a leadership role? Or will you be an active member?

From an academic standpoint what interests you the most?

You'll start taking classes in your desired major and eventually determine whether or not this is the path you want to continue to peruse.

However, a better understanding of what your major is and what you might be doing won't come until the towards the ending of your Sophomore Year.


Sophomore Year- Understanding Your Major

So you made it through Freshman year? Phew!

By now you have a familiarity of how the college life works.  Most likely by now you have figured out what role you are playing within the "ecosystem" of the college.

The next step of the journey is understanding your major. As you progress throughout your classes you will start to get a better understanding of the opportunities are available within your field. Then it'll be time to start researching various career opportunities, usually starting with applying for internships.

What kind of internship are you looking for and what do you hope to get out of it?

What skills do you have that will make you stand out from other applicants?

By the time your Junior Year rolls around it will be time to start applying to internships.


Junior Year- Field Experience

So you landed your first internship! Great work!

But wait you just realized that through this internship that this field isn't something you want to pursue. Don't sweat it! This is perfectly normal, it is apart of the college students journey.

On campus there are tons of resources available that will help you find the right fit for you!

On the flipside, let's say that you absolutely love your internship, what do you do then?

Well you become the very best intern you can be.

This means be willing to take all opportunities that you are given.

After all you are there to learn and get hands on experience.

Maximize your time by branching out to as many relationships within your internship as possible. The larger your network is the more easier it will be to land a job in the future.

Constantly update your resume with new skills and abilities you acquire, so that way you are prepared for the final part of your undergraduate academic career.

Senior Year- Career Bound

It is amazing how time flies! Seems just like yesterday that you were a freshman trying to orientate yourself within the college "ecosystem".

At this point in your college journey you have to make an important decision about your future.

You may decide that you want to explore graduate school or go straight into your industry.

Either way you choose, the journey takes a similar path.

The biggest thing to consider is how are you going to market yourself to a potential employees or graduate schools.

This could be from industry experience you had while at a internship or any other relevant experiences that you might have.

Preparation is key  in these last few months.

Your cumulative experience at college has prepared you for the road ahead. Each part of the journey helping you grow into a more educated and well rounded individual.

Denotation vs. Connotation

What are we if not just an assimilation of thoughts, ideas, dreams and our ever growing imagination?
Are we nothing more than a mere spec on the wall or do we have the ability to become something more?
Are we a mere denotation in the eyes of society or are we our own individualistic connotation ?
If we choose to live by our own individualistic connotation is this necessarily a good thing?
Or is it better live your life as a literal definition?
  

2016 the Best Year of My Life

On this Thanksgiving evening, amidst all the holiday cheer, I've found myself reflective of this past year. It is hard to believe that 2016 has nearly come to the end. It feels just like yesterday, I was celebrating Christmas with my family. Then before I knew it we were on a plane heading to London. I remember how anxious and excited I was to be able to go. Little did I know then, of how much my study abroad experience would change me. Studying Abroad, made me into a more adventurous and ambitious individual and for that I am forever grateful.

The summer rolled by quickly, and I was excited to return to Curry and be with my best friends again. Move in day came along and I was eager to reunite with my best friends whom I hadn't seen in what felt like forever. Weeks turned into months, and I was having the best time of my life. Who would have thought rooming with your best friends would have been such an amazing experience; from late night movies, to video games, to other crazy extravaganza's, I am truly grateful to have friends like them!

2016, has hands down has been the most memorable and life changing year. I am forever grateful of the people who made this year possible. Here's to 2017, and many more happy years to come!

How Adapatabilty in Travel Can Relate to Crisis PR

Whether you have traveled abroad or within the United States, one aspect that will always be prevalent is how you adapt to an unfamiliar environment. Where ever you go in this world, there will always be different people around you who might not necessarily understand what you are trying to communicate; This might be the result of a language barrier, cultural differences or even words lost in translation. Regardless of this inevitable scenario, how you choose to communicate your messages is vital.

While I was in Florence, Italy, I found myself in a situation in which, I was not able to fully communicate to those around me, due to a language barrier. I became lost, while trying to find my hotel. No one around me spoke any English, so I had to use what limited Italian I had learned ahead of time ,to get where I needed to go. I wanted to panic in this situation for sure, but I knew that I had to keep my composure and use what resources I had with me to get to where I needed to go.

Similarly, to Crisis PR, you are not always going to have all the information about an incident in the present moment. However, you must react promptly to get your organizations message out, before the incident becomes construed by either the media or the public.  

River Veins

I stand idle upon an open road, not a soul around but mine.
I look down upon the open road and study its imperfections.
The cracks in the road remind me of river veins that run like time.
Each river vein held no semblance to one another.
Yet I found myself lost.
I found my eyes scanning the river veins, looking for some meaning to an end.
However, every time I would find a logical end, the river veins would split off to another direction.
I looked further down the road and noticed a patch of road, seemingly unfazed by anything.
It was smooth to the touch, like a freshly painted wall.
I began to wonder, why has this patch of road had stood the test of time?
Was it because the cement was made better? Or was this road was freshly laid?
Yet I came to realize, a couple days later that upon further inspection, that this perfect patch of road wasn't as perfect as I thought it was.
Indeed, it too had river veins running through it, that now little to no sense.

As a nation, we are far from perfect.
We have made our mistakes and tried our best to find semblance.
Yet as of recent events, somehow we have found ourselves searching for a logical end to the river veins that lie in the road ahead.
Mending these river veins will take time, but what we must come to together and find our beginning.
Only then with patience, will we be able to see clearly down the river veins that we once were.

Autumn Calling

Autumn leaves in full blossom, hue the morning sky as they slowly drift by.
Down by the river the weightless leaves freely glide; only to be disturbed by an occasional breeze.
In the trees they hang with a sense of delicacy and patience, waiting for that inevitable moment in which they are set free once and for all.

A Run in Richmond Park...

An open plain laid before me with blades of grass of varying hues.
The road before me was made of lightly packed dirt.
As I began running, I took in what was around me.
In a nearby tree I could see a group neon green birds surveying the land.
The wind began blowing, humming its soft song slowly into my ears.
As I continued running, deer's roamed freely about; some were busy grazing the open fields, others were at play.
I came upon a body of water as blue as the morning sky.
Swans, ducks and geese swam eagerly about the pond.
As I got closer, a path opened up with a row of trees leading the way.
Curiosity beckoned me to press on.
I continued to run and came upon a field filled with dogs frolicking about.
In the distance you could hear a woodpecker working his craft meticulous and methodically.
The sun was slowly beginning to set and I began running faster.
A hill was on the horizon and my feet were beginning to become tired, but I pressed on.
Upon reaching the top of the hill, in the faraway distance the city of London laid before me.
I stopped for a few moments to take in its beauty and watched as the sun slowly set.
I turned back around and ran back in the direction from which I came, only leaving behind London and my own footsteps...