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Adapting to college life, especially COVID college life, has not been the easiest. Truthfully, the biggest adaptation happened in the spring during my senior year when everything first switched to being virtual. I personally learn better when I’m in a classroom interacting with my teachers/professors and others around me, so having to stay away from others and learn on my own has been especially hard. I also found it really hard to motivate myself to do my homework because I felt like I had already done so much “work at home” after listening to lectures in the same place that I needed to do additional work. I learned to adapt to this difficulty by changing up the rooms that I worked in and trying to watch lectures in the rooms that I did not do my work in that day. I also adapted to just being away from family and from the life that I had known for 18 years by finding new friends and connecting with my family in new ways. All difficult and bad things aside, I really do love college. I love the independence that comes with college life and the new ability to make decisions on my own that I see best fitting for my life. I love getting to go out when I want to and not having to get permission, I love getting to eat whatever I want all day long, and I definitely love getting to be responsible for myself and making sure I get my work done. I’ve achieved tons of things over the last few months, many of them may seem little like improved communication skills, but I’d say that my biggest achievement is just getting through this first semester without totally losing my mind! This semester has been everything but easy and it has been extremely taxing for my mental health. I’ve dealt with family issues on top of all of my schoolwork and I still achieved great grades. It is definitely an achievement that I am proud of. My goal for the Spring semester is to continue to adapt with college life and the world. I need to continue to focus on improving my mental health and coping mechanisms so that I can continue to get good grades and set myself up for success in life after college. My goal is to adapt well so that I can be an example for those who struggle with such drastic changes. I want to be able to help other people be successful and I don’t want to watch anyone lose grip of their dreams because of things that are completely out of their control and completely unfair. I also don’t want to watch anyone elses mental health decline for these same reasons. Ohio State has done a fantastic job at connecting with their students and keeping their resources open so that there is an escape for students who feel that they are falling into any unhealthy mindset. Ohio State has done a wonderful job at communicating their efforts and making it possible for us to be on campus and helping us continue to succeed even when circumstances make it seem impossible. I love college and I am so proud to get to be a Buckeye!

Alumni Interview Reflection

For my alumni interview I chose to interview Katie Maloney. Katie is an ENR alumni who has a degree in zoology and psychology. She has worked as a zookeeper in a few different zoos and she currently works as a park ranger! Katie and I first talked about my major and what I wanted to do with it after finishing my undergrad with my bachelors of science. She helped me decide whether my major was best for me considering what I seem to be interested in and she gave me some classes that she enjoyed in the major that I should probably pursue. Katie also gave me some classes that are easy and super fun that she recommends to have a break from some of the seriousness of college. After we talked about some other career options from zoologists and canine trainers to careers in research, Katie gave me some advice using her own experience in the professional world. When I asked what one of the biggest lessons she’s learned from the professional world was, she immediately said “life is fluid!” She made sure that I understood that life is always changing and that nothing is ever truly set in stone. Because of this she let me know that it is always okay to change my mind and that I should pursue what I want to do.  As for other advice, she had a few very good points. She said to make sure that I know my boundaries and what I’m capable of and also to understand that I’m never going to love everyone that I work with, and that’s okay! Along with knowing my boundaries, she says that I need to learn how to tell a toxic environment from an environment that might just not be favorable because that will help me determine if it is somewhere I should be long-term or not. Katie then gave me a lot of really valuable advice for interviews. She spoke of how important it was to make eye contact in order to show that you are calm and comfortable. As for speaking she said that silence is better than “ummm’s” and that you should always do your research so that you can ask questions.

Talking with Katie was extremely beneficial for me because I was struggling with deciding what to do after college. She helped me find a few areas of interest and told me which majors I should pursue for those. She also helped me with some really great advice to succeed in a professional career after college. Everything Katie told me I can use to get a full experience in life and really take advantage of what OSU has to offer me, especially when it comes down to resources to help set me up for success. Her interview advice can help me with getting a job in the future and truly live the best life possible. Katie gave me a whole new perspective for getting through college and making sure that I do what I want and not to stick to something that I don’t feel fits me.

I’ve been sitting here trying to think of something interesting or off the wall that I’ve learned over the last month and I’m really struggling to come up with something. Don’t get me wrong, I’ve learned so much… but I can’t find something that sticks out to me. I know that I’ve learned an all knew French vocabulary, the things adored and detested about impressionism, and how our minds and bodie develop through our life, but I truly can’t think of something that really just strikes me as fascinating. If I had to pick something, I suppose I could say the most interesting thing I learned was that our minds never stop developing. Our minds are literally changing constantly until the day that we die.

While learning anything and everything in my general education I’ve also been learning multitudes about myself. I’m learning how much I need to work on managing stress. I’m learning more about how I can be more independent and how I have to stay on top of my schedule. The biggest thing that I learned about myself is that if I let someone else be a small piece of my motivation, I really can make new healthy habits! I could also count this breakthrough as something that I struggled with. Everyone knows about the “freshman 15” and I know that I’m terrible at making good food choices, so my only other option is to make healthier habits…like running! However, I’m awful at making habits, so, I let someone else hold me accountable. Through this struggle I achieved a higher thinking of myself. I feel proud of myself for being able to do something for me. On a lesser note, I’m proud that I’m dropping my terrbily slow 2 mile time down closer to my 2 mile time in my cross country days!

Year in Review

[ “Year in Review”  is where you should reflect on the past year and show how you have evolved as a person and as a student.  You may want to focus on your growth in a particular area (as a leader, scholar, researcher, etc.) or you may want to talk about your overall experience over the past year.  For more guidance on using your ePortfolio, including questions and prompts that will help you get started, please visit the Honors & Scholars ePortfolio course in Carmen. To get answers to specific questions, please email eportfolio@osu.edu. Delete these instructions and add your own post.]

G.O.A.L.S.

[ “G.O.A.L.S.” is a place where students write about how their planned, current, and future activities may fit into the Honors & Scholars G.O.A.L.S.: Global Awareness, Original Inquiry, Academic Enrichment, Leadership Development, and Service Engagement. For more guidance on using your ePortfolio, including questions and prompts that will help you get started, please visit the Honors & Scholars ePortfolio course in Carmen. To get answers to specific questions, please email eportfolio@osu.edu. Delete these instructions and add your own post.

  • Global Awareness: Students cultivate and develop their appreciation for diversity and each individual’s unique differences. For example, consider course work, study abroad, involvement in cultural organizations or activities, etc.
  • Original Inquiry: Honors & Scholars students understand the research process by engaging in experiences ranging from in-class scholarly endeavors to creative inquiry projects to independent experiences with top researchers across campus and in the global community. For example, consider research, creative productions or performances, advanced course work, etc.
  • Academic Enrichment: Honors & Scholars students pursue academic excellence through rigorous curricular experiences beyond the university norm both in and out of the classroom.
  • Leadership Development: Honors & Scholars students develop leadership skills that can be demonstrated in the classroom, in the community, in their co-curricular activities, and in their future roles in society.
  • Service Engagement: Honors & Scholars students commit to service to the community.]

Career

[“Career” is where you can collect information about your experiences and skills that will apply to your future career.  Like your resume, this is information that will evolve over time and should be continually updated.  For more guidance on using your ePortfolio, including questions and prompts that will help you get started, please visit the Honors & Scholars ePortfolio course in Carmen. To get answers to specific questions, please email eportfolio@osu.edu. Delete these instructions and add your own post.]

Artifacts

The first month or so of college has been very interesting, especially this year. Having hybrid classes for my first year experience is definitely…well…an experience that I’ll never forget. I’m taking many great classes that are required to graduate, but honestly only a few really stick out to me as enjoyable. Psychology is one of the classes that I find to have the most entertaining content this semester. Something that I find interesting that we covered in this class is the stages of sleep and how not getting enough sleep can really affect your health and academic abilities. I think its extremely interesting and important to know that pulling a single all-nighter can mess up your sleep for about a whole week! Honestly, through this college experience, I’m learning more about myself than I am learning about the class content. I’ve learned that I am strong and truly capable of being on my own. I don’t need to ask for help with everything. I can make decisions on my own! I’ve also learned that those decisions that I get to make come down to more than the big life changing ones — they include things as little as deciding when and what I should eat. I have really struggled with making healthy decisions for myself like eating when I’m supposed to and not settling for junk food that I made sure to stock up on. I’ve realized that healthy food choices are important for academic performance as well as just a healthy lifestyle all around. Through everything that I’ve learned during the short time being here at OSU I’ve been able to grow as a person and achieve a new confidence in who I am. Through this new confidence I have achieved good grades that will help me achieve bigger and better goals and new friends that will always stand by my side.

About Me

Hi! My name is Chloe Hill and I am from Rayland which is a small town in Ohio across the river from Wheeling, WV. I am a first year Zoology and Pre-Veterinary Medicine major and I plan to continue my education after undergraduate school to receive my Doctorate of Veterinary Medicine. I have a lot of passions that have played a prominent role in who I have become. I have danced for 15 years, I have run  for the last 6 years as a member of my school’s Cross Country and Track teams, and I have sang from the day that I could open my mouth.

 

In just about everything I do, I learn best through writing and repetition. I can be described as both a solitary person and a solitary learner — peace and quiet are my best friends. I find most of my peace and quiet by sitting in the stillness of the outdoors, no matter the day or time. Something about the tranquility and beauty of God’s creation allows me to forget the chaos of the world around me. Taking care of what God has created for us is extremely important to me because we aren’t only protecting the environment for our sake, but also for the sake of future generations. It’s not fair for us to be the reason that the future may not get to enjoy the same nature that we enjoy today. Preserving what was made so divinely for us to enjoy for the span of Earth’s lifetime should be of utmost importance.