Year in Review: First Year
"To succeed, jump as quickly at opportunities as you do at conclusions."
- Benjamin Franklin "If someone offers you an amazing opportunity and you're not sure you can do it, say yes -- then learn how to do it later." - Richard Branson
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The one greatest gift that the University of Cincinnati has given to me in this, my first year as a Bearcat, is opportunity.
I have had the opportunity to explore my passions, and the opportunity to discover new ones. Doors which I had never even constructed were flung open as I was able to travel the globe, serve my fellow man, and explore the world around me. Experiences of which I had only dreamed became realities, as I developed on my path for the future through the many courses that I took, the organizations that I joined, and the friends that I made. My life was changed, and dramatically so, in ways I had not anticipated but which have ultimately contributed to my growth and development as a student and a person. Those rumors you heard about college were true. It is unequivocally one of the most trying, most rewarding, and most transformative places to spend your youth, and you will be better off for it. In just my first year as an undergraduate student, I have been exposed not only to new information in the classroom and new ideas outside of it, but to an entirely new way of thinking, of acting, and of being. I have learned that I am just a cog in the unfathomably infinite universal machine, but also that I am an individual--the single most powerful agent of change that this world can know. I have found myself surrounded by people who continually push me to do better, to work harder, and, perhaps most importantly, to consider what impact I want to leave upon this world when my light eventually flickers out. |
My year started in an uncertain and timid place. Excited by the transition, but frightened by the prospect of starting over, I was concurrently anticipatory and apprehensive about beginning life in college. Thankfully, the majority of my fears and concerns were assuaged even before I stepped foot inside of a classroom. At the Honors Welcome Retreat, I was able to meet many of the students with whom I will share my university for the next few years. Equally as nervous about what college would bring, these peers and I created a small community within the larger University of Cincinnati family. Together, we learned about the seemingly unlimited opportunities that our Honors Program had to offer us. We learned about the values and tenets of the program, and the reasoning behind the program's emphasis on reflection. More than anything, though, we learned that we would not be alone in our tumultuous journey through the ups and downs of a university experience. It was at the Honors Retreat, in fact, that I met some of my greatest friends, without whom I do not know where I would be. After only having spent a year getting to know the brilliant minds and massive hearts of these individuals, I already know that they are the kind of friends which will last me a lifetime. Whether it is because of the support that they provide, the good times that we have together, or the centering effect that they have upon me, these friends have been (and will hopefully continue to be) an exceptionally important and impactful part of my young adulthood.
After climbing the hump of transition, I have found that the University of Cincinnati has been a great home to me. Exhilarating football and basketball games, numerous fun campus events, and the hot cocoa machine in Center Court have more than made up for all of the stresses of schoolwork and my other responsibilities. Even more so, opportunities for involvement on and off of campus make the university a dynamic and engaging institution excites and inspires its students. By simply pursuing my interests through the Honors Program, for example, I have already completed eight honors experiences -- three more than the five which are required by the end of graduation. To think that I have already met this marker in my first year, and that I am still excited and anticipatory of many possibilities available to me through Honors next year and beyond, is astonishing.
As far as the future is concerned, I can see only further opportunities for the taking. I truly believe that even with as much as I have already done as a UC student, I have not even cracked the surface of this fantastic institution. Of course, there will be challenges along the way. (I must advise my future self to maintain physical, emotional, and spiritual health throughout the journey, as it is impossible to take care of others without first taking care of yourself.) But, such obstacles seem worth overcoming when considering how many more absolutely incredible experiences I might be witness to here in the next few years. In the next year, specifically, I look forward to pursuing more opportunities connecting to the campus and Cincinnati communities through involvements like ROAR Tour Guides, Honors Ambassadors, Student Government, and Bearcat Buddies. Complemented by the further study abroad trips, research endeavors, and new leadership positions in campus organizations, I know that these involvements and other opportunities that present themselves can provide me with the kind of holistic collegiate experience which I so desperately sought when choosing a university. |
College has also been an enormously metamorphic experience for me. On Orientation Day -- which for me fell two days after the day that I graduated from high school -- I was officially enrolled as a Biomedical Engineering student. At this point in time, I already knew that my eventual goal was to become a physician, and potentially also an academic researcher, but was also convinced that an undergraduate engineering education was the best way to pursue this goal. As may now be evident, this idea did not stand the test of time. With the help of amazing counseling and mentoring from academic advisers, research mentors, family, and friends, I eventually decided that a new undergraduate degree offered through the College of Medicine -- the Medical Sciences Major -- might be the best fit for me. A seemingly perfect major for any student interested in pursuing doctoral medicine, the program combined science fundamentals with practical lab experience and courses on the evolution and mindsets of doctors. As fate would have it, however, the major concentration had not yet been approved by the proper accreditation agencies due to its recent creation. Thus, while I waited to matriculate into the degree, I was enrolled as a student in Exploratory Studies.
It still boggles my mind that such a seemingly innocuous change could have so totally altered my future path in life. It seems that as soon as I enrolled in the Exploratory Studies Program, I began to do just that -- explore. With some free space in my schedule, I took an honors seminar on Global Religion and Politics to further my previously established interests in these two fields. I joined student groups like the Neuro Society and GlobeMed. I pursued further study in Spanish language and traveled on a service learning trip to Guatemala after the end of my first semester. With each experience, I learned more about the world, and about myself. Taking an honors seminar in political science opened my eyes to the fact that the time I had spent on the Debate Team in high school had made its mark on me, and that I wanted to continue learning more about this area of study. My experience in the Neuro Society -- and the psychobiology course that I took concurrent to my involvement -- reawakened the passion for neuroscience that I had previously explored through research endeavors. My involvement with GlobeMed, and later the Crossroad Health Center, completely changed the way that I viewed healthcare, and bulleted my interest in the field towards an all-out fascination with health disparities, medically underserved populations, barriers of access, and most importantly, how I might one day integrate public healthcare into my practice. Similarly, my trip abroad gave me perspective on the importance of cultural consciousness and the mutual respect needed in forming partnerships across cultures, which have both contributed to my interest in exploring these themes. Ultimately, these experiences, and others like them, have brought me to where I am today. My interest in political science has translated into a minor in the subject. A piqued curiosity in neuroscience has afforded me further research opportunities through the Biomedical Research and Mentoring Program and a Summer Undergraduate Research Fellowship, as well as a new Bachelor of Science degree in Neurobiology. To incorporate my newfound passion for public health with my interest in cultural consciousness, I have even designed my own liberal arts degree focused on better understanding access to mental healthcare among Hispanic populations here in the city of Cincinnati. With these many developments in mind, I feel that my time in this first year of college has truly transformed me. I have not only solidified the passions that I want to carry forward with me into the future, but have taken meaningful steps towards realizing the goals associated with these passions. The fact that my time at the University of Cincinnati has already given me the good fortune to grow so greatly in even just my first year means the world to me. With the many opportunities that I have already realized as a Bearcat, and the many more that I am sure are in store, I can truly, and without hesitation, say, "O Cincinnati, magic name, I proudly to the world proclaim; / No sweeter word ever charmed my ear, / None to my heart was e'er so dear." |