Last year, the very idea of college made me excited and anxious at the same time. However, after this first quarter at Santa Clara University, my initial nervousness has faded.
I started college a week earlier than most incoming freshman due to my being a part of the LEAD Scholars Program, which is an on-campus organization dedicated to assisting first-generation college students. It has helped me establish a community on-campus with fellow students who share a similar background as I do. What I also appreciate about LEAD is that it has allowed me to gain access to the many resources at Santa Clara and to be familiar with the surrounding area. Aside from being a part of the LEAD program, I joined the black student union club called Igwe. During club meetings, we discuss national and global issues and how they impact African American culture. I’ve met so many people through this club and even though I may not see them for most of the week, I can always catch up with them every Wednesday evening.
The Santa Clara community is very welcoming and caring. The students, the professors, the residence hall members, basically everyone I encountered have been kind to me and I never felt like I was in a hostile environment. In terms of academics, the classes were challenging, but not impossible. For instance, Art History was my most difficult class this quarter because I had trouble comprehending everything the professor taught. Despite my challenging course load, my professors were an asset in helping me understand concepts from lectures or clarify the course material I had to understand for the test. Office hours were very important and it helped me get to know my professors as well. I highly recommend incoming-freshman to go to office hours next fall!
Honestly, I was scared. I was scared that I would stay alone in my room and the only time I would leave my room was to go to class or the cafeteria. I was scared that I would be overwhelmed by the all the changes that came with going to college. Fortunately, that has not been the case at all. There were times where I did need to study a lot, but I still made sure give myself time to relax, socialize, and of course keep in touch with my family when I could. Time management is still a struggle for me, but hopefully as this year continues, I will get better at it and have more time to engage in even more activities on and off campus.
