Final Blog Post – Kristine A. =]

Some aspects of my experience at Baruch did not live up to my expectations. I was absolutely not ready for such a great load of work. The transition from high school, where seniors did almost nothing, to college, where students have to complete almost 2 intensive/critical thinking essays weekly and read many chapters in a very short period of time, was terrible! It was very difficult to organize myself in the beginning. Thankfully I met a wonderful, enthusiastic, supportive friend who helped me through the tough assignments, encouraging me to be more focused on the tasks and not fool around during my spare time. There was actually a time when we spent 13 hours straight (with about 10 X-tra large cups of 7-11 coffee!) in the library studying for midterms! Thank you, (you know who you are). I’ve heard rumors saying that professors in college are very ignorant and do not really care about their student. However, I did not particularly find those rumors to be true; or maybe I just got very lucky this semester… All of my professors promptly responded to my emails and tried their best to help me understand the materials which I inquired questions about.

The first semester of college could definitely be better than it was for me. I didn’t have a great transition from HS, as I already mentioned. Also, I always felt rushed about the homework to the point where it seemed as if I wouldn’t be able to get anything done on time. Since I am, or at least was in High School, an A student, receiving B’s for every class (with one exception) is not the most fantastic feeling. And most certainly, I am not too proud about that either. I did meet a few awesome people without whom this semester would be a total disaster!

If I could do it over, I would most likely not work! Those 20 hours are very precious and could be productively used towards completing the homework. I realized that SO MUCH can be done in those 20 hours. However, it is impossible for me to stop working because then there wouldn’t be anybody who could pay for my college tuition. Even now, I do not make enough to cover all of my expenses. Another thing I could try to do differently is delete my Facebook account, or at least limit the amount of time I spend on browsing through it! That social network is extremely addictive and time consuming. Rather than sitting on FB, even for 5 minutes, I could’ve contributed to finish the assignments and study for exams. In addition, I could have been more dedicated to school work right at the begging of the year, not a month into the year. That would have saved me some nerves and wouldn’t put me through as much stress and pressure.

I think I changed a lot since the beginning of the semester. My level of commitment and devotion towards school increased tremendously. My work ethic improved as well. For example, instead of simply reading the texts, I began to annotate and outline them. It actually proved to help a lot in understanding and drawing connections in relation to the material. I also started spending more time in the school library after my classes, because it seems like I can concentrate better in a quiet, undisturbed environment. I have also become more independent, and stopped relying on professors and advisors to spoon feed me and hand everything on a silver platter.

Despite the negative aspects mentions, I am most definitely looking forward to pursuing my education and career at Baruch College.