r.goswami – Freshman Seminar Fall 17 FRB

Rajiv Visits the Met for the Millionth Time

As you might figure out, I visit the Met a lot. Like twice a week “a lot”. Thats like 114 times per year. This time was no different as I waltz into the museum and opened my bag for the security to inspect. They found nothing and I proceeded to pay my $1 donation and there I was. The Greek rotunda. Actual statues which were chiseled from big slabs of bronze and marble many centuries before Christ, and I was in vicinity of millions of dollars of art! I looked up at the vaulted ceiling and I always am amazed at the engineering and architectural marvel. I take the elevator up to the Israel, Iran, Central Asia, and Turkey exhibit, one of my favorites because I am in love with the silk road and its history. Persian rugs, Ottoman chairs, scrolls, manuscripts, an old Torah from Judea, Quranic text, a Turkish fountain, and so many other Middle Eastern art. I swear I spend a good 30 minutes just walking in circles taking in the art because this is one of the least visited exhibitions in the museum, so all of the tourists and camera flashes and extra noise is absent, augmenting my experience.

So I spend like maybe 5 minutes rushing through a pack of tourists with flashy cameras to get to the India, Nepal, and Tibet exhibit and I absolutely cannot get over the fact that they have Kama Sutra statues of people making love. I by reading the small plaquards that people disregard that Asoka (some Buddhist Indian ruler) encouraged sex and promiscuity as virtuous due to the reincarnation that stemmed from it, and I was like I have to take a selfie so I did. I always think of how much momey the Met had to pay local chiefs and local politicians in order to transport beautiful pergolas and decorated spaces, many of which are ornate by the way, and I think to myself, “Gosh, maybe when I’m older, I’ll hop on a plane instead of the train and see these places and these artifacts with my own eyes, in the places that they come from by the descendants of the people who made them.”

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Underrepresented Majors Meeting

On Tuesday, me and Nat went into the meeting organized for students at Baruch who are majoring in majors that are not popular or well known at Baruch. I thought that the meeting was going to be crowded, but as the name suggested, only a few showed up and me and Nat were perplexed. The meeting started out with the students introducing themselves, their majors and their school. It was a small open discussion and I met some people with really quirky majors that I wouldn’t have expected to meet– like a sophomore in Biology and another in Environmental sciences. My major of political science is the biggest minority major at Baruch. In this day and age, I think college campuses should be more politically engaged because the millenial generation has potential to swing elections (mainly toward the Dem side). Political science opens up jobs in government, and my aspirations to draft drug policy could be augmented with a science minor (that will probably be underrepresented at Baruch). Baruch’s curriculum helps students like me enter a public sector job in many ways. I had mentioned at the meeting that it was noteworthy that companies like EY, MetLife, and other companies recruit directly on campus here. It is important to build new connections with other students in my freshman class because it will be mutually beneficial as we can help each other out professionally after we graduate. The meeting also touched on the topic of being more represented at Baruch. I had said that the Undergraduate Student Government was a good method on the democratic process and having a say in the running of our school. My major is not only good for government but also helps with going into Law School and being part of the New York State Bar Association. Meeting with people with underrepresented majors helps expose students to other potential majors besides business that one would not have thought of in the first place.

“USA” United Sikh Association

Just the other day, I attended USA’s (United Sikh Association) second General Interest Meeting. Founded in order to support other Punjabi Indian students, the club was restarted under new leadership and expanded exponentially. Originally, I did not plan on joining this club but after a friend convinced me, I was quite content to have attended. Upon arrival, it was hard to find a place to sit. Despite how crowded it was, the President himself came to me and introduced himself, and gave a brief overview of the club’s goals and initiatives. After they introduced the members of the board, they had games ready that would involve the entire room. One of the games, like an ice breaker, required us to give an answer that would sum up our first weeks at Baruch. This game allowed us to be more open and social with the people around us by making us work together.At the end, they served food such as fried Indian snacks and brownies. During this time we were able to interact with other South Asian students that are also interested in this club. It allowed me to meet many different people that were also freshman. I learned about where they came from, what they planned on majoring in, and how they felt about Baruch. The gathering was a time to have fun and socialize with others, and get to develop connections with the upperclassmen. Being given a tremendously long break in between classes for clubs gives me an opportunity that I would otherwise not have had. I guess since we’re not NYU or Columbia, we might have some space issues, however, the vibe of the clubs here surpasses those at the other top-tier schools, but in the end, the school is as energetic, and as great, as the people.

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