Now that the semester is almost over, I can look back and reflect on the things I learned through University Exploration during my first three months at OSU!
My biggest challenge this semester has been the difference between homework assignments in high school and college. In high school, homework assignments were small and were almost always due the day after they were given. In college, homework assignments tend to be a bit longer, but they’re not due for longer periods of time. This was difficult for me because I had to plan how long an assignment would take me to complete and schedule time each day to complete the assignment. Because of this, it would seem as though one day I had no homework, and the next I had multiple hours in each class. Once I created a schedule of when I would typically do each type of assignment for each class, the workload became a lot more manageable, and I found myself not stressing over due dates and always completing assignments a day or two ahead of when I needed to turn them in.
Through lecture attendance, I explored the College of Arts and Sciences, the College of Food, Agriculture, and Environmental Sciences, and the College of Public Health. I attended all three of the College of Arts and Sciences lectures for the different types of majors offered in the college. I chose to attend these five lectures because I am interested in an Animal Sciences major, but I want to explore other possible options for minors outside of the College of Food, Agriculture, and Environmental Sciences to broaden my education. I know that I want to minor in another science-related field, and going to these lectures helped me narrow down my choices. I am also considering a foreign language minor, so I made sure that I went to the Arts and Humanities lecture for the College of Arts and Sciences.
At the beginning of the semester, I knew I wanted to find a major that could get me into a good veterinary school after graduating from Ohio State, but I wasn’t sure which major would best prepare me for this. I was debating between zoology, animal sciences, and biology. From attending lectures and exploring different majors and colleges, I eventually decided that the animal sciences major would be the best fit for me.
My ultimate goal is to become a veterinarian, and in order to do that I need to go to veterinary school. I’ve always loved animals as well as biological sciences, and I want to get as much experience with animal biology and anatomy as I can while I am an undergraduate. From doing research and attending lectures, I’ve discovered that the animal sciences major is the best fit for me in order to both gain practical experience with animals, as well as ensure that I am a strong candidate for veterinary school.
The most beneficial thing about attending lecture for me was learning about all of the possible majors and minors Ohio State has to offer. When I first came to OSU, I didn’t know about the animal sciences or zoology major, and I had no idea if I was interested in a minor. Through Exploration lectures, I now have a good understanding of all of the different paths I could take in order to get myself the best education possible.
I wish I could’ve learned a bit more about the study abroad opportunities at OSU, and the best way to find financial aid to finance these trips. I’m interested in doing study abroad at some point in my undergraduate career, but I don’t know where to start as far as finding a trip and financial resources.
One goal I have for the upcoming semester is to officially declare the animal sciences major, so that I can better plan the steps I need to take in order to graduate. I will declare my major with an advisor from the College of FAES, and then discuss the best path for me to take. I also want to find and declare a minor related to biology or ecology, which I hope to discuss with my advisor.
If I could go back and talk to myself at the start of the semester, I would tell myself to worry less about finding a major and meeting all of the requirements. University Exploration helped me immensely with this, and I found that finding my major was actually relatively easy!
I would also tell myself to worry less about the transition from high school exams to college exams, because, at least for me, it wasn’t much of a change. I found that the exams are roughly the same difficulty, and that the method I used to study in high school continued to work in college. I didn’t have to make any large changes to my studying routine.
Overall, this has been a great first semester. I learned so much about what OSU has to offer, and I am incredibly excited about what the future holds for me!