Biological Sciences Scholar Event: Corn Maze

On October 6th, we visited the corn maze. It was a great bonding experience! I got to meet some new fellow biological sciences scholars, visit a new place and participate in fun activities. Some of the highlights included petting bunnies, feeding goats, jumping on a giant trampoline, and of course, solving the corn maze! I feel like I gained a better sense of community from this activity. I was able to connect with more people and discover some new interests.

Year in Review

~ November, 2018 ~

Before I joined Ohio State University and the Biological Sciences Scholars program, I was slightly shy, scared and introverted. I never really talked to people much or took initiatives myself. I chose to remain isolated. But after joining this program, I have changed. I am able to talk to people, and take initiatives myself. I have become (a bit!) extroverted. The events I participated in through the bio sci scholars helped me with that. I was able to meet new people, experience new things and grow as a person.

This personal growth was crucial to my schoolwork as well. I am now able to talk to professors (who I would have been intimidated by, previously), and network. My social and academic connections have increased, and I now have many people I can talk to about a various number of things.

Overall, my first semester at the Ohio State University has been a time of immense growth. I have been able to change greatly as a person, and I am proud of the impact I have made on the community and my place in it. I look forward to continuing this journey as a Buckeye, and to growing as a person.

~ May, 2019 ~

I have officially completed two full years at the Ohio State University. While the idea of being halfway through my undergraduate degree is terrifying, it is also relieving. I’ve learnt so much in the past two years, about myself, about psychology and about the world. As a leader, I’ve been able to progress noticeably. I’ve taken point on planning events for the Stigma Reduction Committee and engaged constructively with my mentees within my Morrill Scholars Holistic Well-Being Team.

As a researcher, I am proud of my progress in understanding and applying social psychology concepts. By designing my own study and studying the results, I have been able to learn a tremendous amount about the field of psychology itself and how research within it is conducted. I have been able to rule out topics I do not want to have a career in, and more importantly, form a plan for graduate school.

I intend to continue with this momentum in the semesters to come, and finish strong. My intention for the next two years is to prepare for graduate school, to earn a PhD in psychology.

G.O.A.L.S.

Global Awareness: I believe that I already have a well developed sense of global development, as I spent exactly half of my life in one place, then the other half in the other side of the world. I have met people of many different cultures, and accepted that differences in lifestyle and culture comes with different settings. In terms of future developments, I plan to advance this awareness further by attending the Indian Association meetings, and taking up specific coursework.

Original Inquiry: I have begun to understand the research process by engaging in psychology research in Dr. Petty’s social psychology research lab. It has helped me develop my sense of time-management, responsibility and understanding of psychology research.

Academic Enrichment: I am taking 18 credit hours this semester, and I plan to continue taking full course loads for the rest of my time here at OSU.

Leadership Development: I am part of Disney club, Stigma Reduction Committee and the Morrill Scholars Holistic Well-Being team, where I am making connections and learning how to lead.

Service Engagement: I am participating in various service activities, which will help my community.

Artifacts

My Artifact is my Biology IA. IA stands for Internal Assessment. I conducted research for this project all through 11th and 12th grades; recording data, designing the experiment and interpreting the results, among other tasks. It is included below:

Biology IA

It was created in my last two years of high school, to fulfill a course requirement for the IB program. Through the process of creating this work, I learnt about research methods within the subject of biology, and how to implement them effectively. I selected this artifact because it was integral to my learning process. Rather than simply reading about research that has been conducted in the past, I was able to create my own experiment and conduct my own research. Furthermore, I got to implement research techniques that I had only read about, augmenting my understanding of the subject.

I believe that this information will be useful in the future, as I continue to study biology and understand how to conduct research in the field. This IA also taught me how to record information effectively, which is a skill I can use in every field of study.

About Me

Arhana Kolli is a second year undergraduate student, majoring in psychology, with a minor in english. She is supported by the Morrill Scholarship. Arhana’s goal is to reduce stigma around mental health and work towards developing psychological treatments. She graduated (with an IB diploma) from Indus International School, which is in Bangalore, India. However, she is originally from Michigan!

Before she came to the Ohio State University, Arhana had difficulty finding a place where she belonged. The culture and lifestyle differences between the USA and India are massive, so much so that she felt a divide in her own personality. However, she feels at home at OSU. The enormous amount of diversity of the students on campus makes the university a perfect middle ground – it provides a balance.

The Biological Sciences Scholars Program was a stroke of luck. Arhana did not intend to apply for this program specifically, but when she got in, she realized that she had access to an entire community of people with shared interests. It will help her foster her love for science and research, and provide a platform to connect with others like her. She is also a part of the Stigma Reduction Committee and the Morrill Scholars Holistic Well-Being Team.

Arhana plans to take part in many service-related extracurricular activities, involving psychology and its use in helping the community. She also enjoys baking, dancing and singing, although it only sounds good to her. She is a proud member of the Disney Club. Feel free to contact her whenever you’d like to talk about Ohio State, being an international student, or anything else!