Freshman Seminar Fall 17 LC05

I attended an academic event. The NYC museum that I visited was called the New Museum. It is located in 235 Bowery, New York, NY 10002. The museum was a nice experience. I wished I knew about art because every time I look at a piece of art, I do not know the meaning or can be amaze by the piece. I visited six floors in the museum. The first exhibition I went to was called “Trigger: Gender as a Tool and a Weapon.” This exhibition took place in the C, 2nd, 3rd, and 4th floor. The artists described how each gender used their body to express their views on topics and how it affects society through their arts. There were many arts about naked people. The next exhibition was called “Pursuing the Unpredictable: The New Museum 1977-2017” which was in the 5th floor. This exhibition showed what important arts took place in that year. The last exhibition we visited was called “Helen Johnson: Ends” which took placed in the ground floor. This exhibition showed many pieces by Helen Johnson.

Every exhibition was cool to see. They were interesting because every piece of art has a meaning behind it. The artists must have put a lot of effort in creating each piece. My favorite piece of art was a disco ball in a room. The projector shows different clips and the disco ball reflected in the room. It was beautiful just like the picture above. Another good thing about the museum was that I did not have to pay for the ticket since people who are between the age of 14 to 18 get in for free. One bad thing about the museum was that I wanted to visit the “Sky Room” but it was only open on Saturdays and Sundays.

The New Museum was helpful as an academic event because I learn something new. The small summary next to each piece was interesting to read. It showed the message and meaning the artists wanted to sent to its audience. I found out that the museum is really close to our school. If anyone want to visit the New Museum, they can visit the museum during their free time. It only took me 20 minutes to get to the New Museum. Even though I did not really understand each piece of art, it was not a waste of time. Some pieces were weird in a good way. 

Being that our college is Baruch, and we didn’t have much to do during our break, Eli, Isaac and I visited the game room. I was not completely thrilled with the game room, knowing that other colleges, such as Lehigh has an ACTUAL game room. I figured that it would do because of the three main things they had in there: foosball, ping pong, and pool. The room was very small, but the people in there were pretty alive and cool. The music was not good, but the room was clean and somewhat decorated. Since I went with Eli and Isaac, I mainly talked with them, but I also met some other people that were enjoying themselves. To be honest, I actually enjoyed the experience a bit because of the atmosphere that I exposed myself to. It felt like the college experience that I should be getting.

So what happened was that I was playing against Isaac in pool, which was really hard to get a spot in, but we managed. And we ended up having lots of fun. I then played Eli, and unfortunately lost, but I really liked the experience. After playing pool, we went on to play foosball, which was also tons of fun. Baruch may not have the lit stuff, but with friends and a small and cozy room such as the game room, we can make it lit. Overall, this was a great way to get involved in student life, and next time, I won’t hesitate to join a club, or come have fun in the game room with my friends, or just with total strangers. I feel that because of places and events like these, my life here won’t be as boring. To meet new people will help me get comfortable in this school.

What’s up everyone. Been meaning to upload this much earlier but kept forgetting but I’m gonna dive straight into it. The club I went to was FES @ Baruch and I actually heard about it through an upperclassmen friend. When I went over to the club room, they were not actually holding an interest meeting that day but the club members were more than happy to talk to me about the club. They linked me to the FES @ Baruch Facebook page and also talked to me about some of their programs, most specifically their mentor program that matches you with a mentor in the finance field where you have weekly sessions with them whether it be about intricate details of finance or just general tips in job finding such as resumes. In general, FES @ Baruch was definitely a very interesting club, but I am not sure if I will be participating because of the high demand of time it imposes on my schedule.

Hey everyone! Last Thursday, I attended an ALPFA meeting, well workshop. It was one of their many workshops about career development and resume building. This first workshop’s main focus was resume building and how to stand out in a pool of applicants when applying to any job. At first, we just talked about the building blocks of any resume because as one of the workshop mentors, and probably lots of other people, said “A well written resume goes a long way.” Then, we discussed how to improve an existing resume and what skills should be added and which shouldn’t. After the resume portion, we moved on to discussing leadership and networking, two very important things in college and in life.

I thought this workshop was very interesting and am glad I attended it because it was beneficial and educational. Throughout my high school years, I’ve worked in many places and been a part of many programs and all I would do is ignorantly cram them all into my resume but now I know better than just throwing different things on there. I think ALPFA is going to be a great tool in building my career throughout my college years and in the future. 

 

Hello guys, so for this blog post I decided to get to know some of the student life over at Baruch by visiting a club. The club I decided to visit, most relevant to my major(Finance) as well, was the Finance & Economics Society Club, also known as FES. Overall, I found the club to an amazing one in doing what it sets out to do. During this club meeting the administrators were giving examples of how we could get involved. They gave examples of how to get involved and receive all the clubs’ benefits although you may be extremely busy as well as explain how you can give the club all  your efforts and be a truly dedicated member, as some of the administrators were. Right from the beginning I was able to tell how serious the club was and how much time a member would have to put aside to be involved in it. They explained how there would be weekly workshops that, no matter which type of member you were, you would have to attend at least 6. In addition to these workshops we would have to do assignments as well and possibly participate in competitions and so on.

After the presenters had gone over what was to be expected and required by each club member, they then told us about some of their experiences in the club, I personally found this part to be the most informative and it unfortunately dissuaded me from joining the club. Since they talked about what they had done in their history with the club I was able to see that this club was more focused on building each one of its members up for a professional career rather than teaching you specific topics that regard finance such as real-estate investments, markets, the economy, etc. This would definitely be more of an interest to me because it would be something that I can apply to my future and I would then, most definitely, be dedicated to this club.

As I presented to our class in Communication, I am working to become an airline pilot after graduating from Baruch and majoring in finance as a backup for having knowledge of how I should invest my money. With these goals that I have in mind, a professional career at Goldman Sachs for example, wouldn’t help me too much.

Although I probably will not be joining this club because of busy schedule which includes academics as well as piloting lessons, I definitely do not think others should shoot it down right away. I was surprised as to how friendly and close everyone in this club was despite the size if the club and the professional environment that the members are placed in much of the time. I can definitely see how joining this club could be a great way to settle into college as a freshman, meet new people, and make connections that can last and guide you to a professional career. In conclusion, I wouldn’t consider my visit to check out this club as a waste of time, it was definitely educational and made me think more of where I want to go after college and if this would fit my goals. Moreover, I think this club would be a great experience for so many people despite its requirements and my decision not to look further into it.

Last Thursday, my (new) friend Sarita and I went to the Latina Heritage club. At first I didn’t know what club I wanted to join for two reasons. The first reason why was because I was nervous about finding a group of people I could blend in with. When it came to clubs I couldn’t shake the thought of how awkward it would be if I walked into any random club that I had no direct connection to. It’s that same feeling you get when you walk into a new school, full of kids that you do not know, or when you find yourself in a new country where they speak a foreign language (this ,although, is an exaggeration). In high school, I was always very outgoing and was friends with all the people in my grade, so joining a club was never intimidating. Regardless of the club I joined, I knew that I had some friends in it. College is completely different. You have to put yourself out there and create relationships with new people. Secondly I wanted to choose the right club to go to. Coming into Baruch I didn’t really know what my interests and hobbies were. Growing up I never really had any unique talents or hobbies but that is something I wanted to change when I came to college. I think that college is the time for a person to find out what they really like and what really interests them.

Going to the Latina Heritage club wasn’t a planned decision. I was following my daily Thursday routine and when I went up to the second floor, I saw a big group of people and heard loud music. I figured I might as well have stopped by to see what was going on and it seemed pretty cool. I peaked my head in and they seemed to be having a ton of fun. They were listening to music that sounded like modern hip-hip, my favorite genre, but I became even more intrigued because when I could hear the lyrics were in spanish. After walking in I noticed myself enjoying the atmosphere and presence of people I had just joined. The fact that the music was in a different language made it even more fun to listen too, and I found it much easier to loosen up to and dance to like everyone was already doing. I admittedly didn’t stay for a long time but for the time I did I had a great time.

Like I stated earlier I didn’t want to walk into a club and feel obligated to continue through with showing up to the club, and I stand by that statement. I can’t say that I will ever return but I am surely glad that I joined for the day. It was a good experience in doing things outside of my comfort zone, and who is to say that I wont try it again one day. This was overall a great experience!

     How many of you guys have asked yourselves “Why do we have blocks and what is the point of them?” these were the questions I would ask myself my first few days at Baruch. Why are we going to every single class together with the same exact people? Are we in middle school? However, on Labor Day weekend when I went on a trip to Pennsylvania with my team, Baruch Women’s Volleyball team, to the Desales tournament, I finally understood the point of these blocks. The point is not to force us into liking each other, but to enable us to become friends and build connections with others that we never would have thought we would have in the first place.

     That Labor Day weekend was filled a bundle of emotions: joy, defeat, and frustration. We left the tournament with a record of 3:1, losses to win. On Friday, we played Rutgers-Camden and Washington College, which we lost both. But the Washington game was a major improvement from our first game against Rutgers. The next day we played Gwynedd Mercy and won and Desales and lost. Even though we had 3 losses, we were able to learn and progress from them and it showed through every game we played next. Being able to go through these experiences together has brought everyone on the team closer together. We were also able to bond outside of the tournament like in the van ride to there and back, staying overnight at the hotel room, and grabbing something to eat. We were able to get to know each other outside volleyball.

     There are a lot of different types of personalities on my team, from shy and soft spoken to loud and aggressive, but we are all brought together by this one common interest, volleyball. During this trip, I was able to learn who the jokesters were, what people’s food preferences are, and who eats a lot or a little. My teammates were also able to learn a little bit about me. I became closer with people I didn’t expect.

     Like volleyball, the people on our block were put together for something that we have in common, whether that is the level of classes, or other reasons. From my first few days at Baruch, I have definitely witnessed a change, from people expressing their opinions on not being able to make friends outside of our block to people starting to get more comfortable with each other, some relationships stronger than others. We are experiencing what I believe is why we were put into these blocks in the first place to make these connections and bonds with others that we would not gotten to know if it were not for these blocks.

Last Thursday, I attended UCLA’s first general interest meeting. During convocation day, I thought UCLA was a club about kids trying to apply to UCLA. On the first day of school, my friend Nicole Pung introduced me to the whole USG Marketing Team in which I joined. Inside the marketing team, a few of the members introduced me to UCLA. They told me it stood for “United Chinese Language Association.” I am a person who loves to make friend, eat food, and respect my culture; so I thought to myself ‘this club seems right for me’. My friends from UCLA told me I can hang out at their club room ever since before the first GIM happened. Everyday after class or in-between classes, I would go to the third floor of the Newman Vertical Campus and chill with the rest of the club members. It has been a really enjoyable experience. On the first GIM, there was a surprising around 50-60 kids that showed up. The room was so packed and I had to sit on the floor closer to the front. The club leaders and board members all introduced themselves and their role in the club. While looking at this, I compared this experience to my past experiences in high school. From the clubs I go to in high school, it wasn’t really organized. Everything seemed really out of place; basically a huge mess. The club leaders were able to keep all 50-60 of us interested in the club. They have an agenda and a series of ice breakers and games that some of the club participated in. As you can see in the picture above, I played a game called ‘Questions’ which is basically two teams battling against each other about a topic. In order to win, you have to keep asking relevant questions. If you hesitate or don’t know what to ask, you are out. After the series of games, there were huge boxes and plates of food that they bought from a nearby Chinese restaurant. All 50-60 of us lined up and got food. There was beef, chicken, lo mein, chow fun, and white rice. Like the brown FRO guy that filled in for Aitsana said the week before, all the ‘free food’ are technically not ‘free’. It comes from our $250 student activities fee. In my mind I have to take advantage of all the ‘free’ things that come available to me. UCLA isn’t just a club, it feels like a family. There is a Chinese Learning Program coming up this Tuesday at 12:30-2:30. Unfortunately I won’t be able to attend because of FRO, but there are things I still look forward to in this club.

Other Clubs I joined: USG, ESA, Lexicon