Days, weeks, and months have passed and I survived my first college quarter. College life is so different from how movies make it seem. In movies, all they show is that college is just to party and do all the crazy things you never could because you were under your parents’ rules. Ever since I started college, I realized that it is nothing how I imagined it to be. To me, college has been amazing, it is so easy to make new friends and do different things. I still remember my first week as a college student, I was nervous to talk to other people. But all the students at Santa Cruz are generous and so kind to each other, that made it easy for me to began creating new friendships not just inside my classrooms but also outside of class. In the building where I live, we have two students who are older than us, and what they basically do is look after us. They are like our mentors, and our security guards. Their names are Abel and Eva, coolest persons I have ever met! Their responsibilities are to make sure that each student living in the building is comfortable with the people around, especially with your roommates. Abel and Eva makes us go to “Block Meetings” which are meetings that take place in the living room from the building. When we have meetings we talk about things that are happening in campus, or giving us tips on how to study, how to schedule our times, but mainly for the rules in the building. Not so long ago, we had a Block Party, it wasn’t exactly a party, it was more like a competition event because we were competing against each building from the university. I am affiliated with, Oakes College (UC Santa Cruz is divided into ten colleges, those “colleges” are where the students live). Anyhow, block party was so fun! Even though my college lost, I still enjoyed it and I made connections with students who are thinking on studying the same major as I am. It is a bit crazy how so many things can happen in such a short time.
When I was in High School, I never truly knew what “studying” meant, until college midterms came along. Studying super late in my dorm or in the library is just painful. However, hard work pays off at the end. My first quarter did not went so well, because I didn’t exactly knew who to talk or who to ask for help. I heard some students in my math course about a tutoring program called “ACE” which helps students with math and science courses. I decided to give it a shot, and I am now doing better than before.
Something that I learned about myself throughout my first quarter of college is that I am a strong women. Before Christmas break, a tragedy occurred within my family. The news hit me hard, my family and I had to travel to Mexico. As break/vacations where almost over, I did not know wether to return to Santa Cruz or stay with my family for a while, you could say I was somewhat depressed. But my parents and mentors pushed me to go on with the dreams I had before. To maintain those dreams alive, because they have gotten me to where I am standing right now. One of my college mentors has been helping me along on internships for the summer. She helped me with the application process, and right now I am just waiting for answers. One of the internships that got my attention was a Pre-Health summer internship at the University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA). Hopefully I get at least one, because that would help me so much on deciding what I really want to study.
Furthermore, my college experience has been good. I’ve faced some obstacles, but I am still here, I am still giving it all I can to achieve my goals. Though, I still need some years to obtain a bachelor’s degree, I will take advantage of all the open opportunities there are available in campus to continue helping me with my academics. That way I can achieve things I was not able to accomplish in my first college quarter. I am not afraid of what might come, I am ready for whatever comes along, but more ready to deal with it and continue my college life as a UCSC student.
