Who do I think I am? For the past few years I been asking myself this question and I have come up with various answers. I am an ambitious person. I am a person with the dream to succeed. I am a person who wants to stand out in a crowd. I am a person who wants to be recognized for something significant in the world. Now that I think of it, I am all these things. Although I may not seem like that person now, I am building myself to become that person. I am a person with dreams.

Over this past month, I have been trying to get use to the “Baruch Culture”. In my experience, I have grown concerns about my capabilities. For example, I sense a lot of competition in classrooms as every individual is aiming for an A. In addition, there are expectations that are implied without any notice. There is also a ton of reading for each class and it is easy to be overwhelmed with work. Basically I’m afraid I will not be able to keep up with the college level work. Despite my optimism of who I want to become, I feel it will take me a long while before I’m truly up to speed.

In my opinion, college’s greatest aspect is the amount of freedom given to each and every student enrolled. Anyone has the ability to choose their own schedule, classes and even professors. There are no guidance counselors or teachers making sure we are on track or making schedules for us. There are also many opportunities for people to get involved and build resumes. With a wide collection of club, teams groups, and internships it is easy to meet new people and to fulfill extracurricular. However unlike high school, college requires a lot of responsibilities as assignment deadlines are not frequently announced, textbooks and learning materials are bought individually and a person’s success or failure is all up to them.

In my first year of college, I will definitely learn to manage my time properly. I will grow to become the person I aim to be by learning various self improvement skills. Skills such as being able to speak publicly which will prove to be an advantage against competing classmates. I am sure by the end of my freshmen year I will be more involved with the Baruch community.