Final Reflection

My first semester of college has certainly been one that has taught me a lot about myself and my study habits!

  1. My biggest challenge this semester was my Honors Macroeconomics class. It was, by far, the most challenging class I have ever taken. I addressed this challenge by going to office hours a couple of times and simply putting in extra work so that I could end up with a grade in the class that would be respectable.
  2. The colleges I chose to explore through lecture attendance were Business, Arts and Sciences, Public Affairs, and Food, Agriculture, and Environmental Sciences. I chose these lectures to attend simply based on my strengths and interests. I was interested in each of these areas, and ended up being very impressed by Business, and have since decided to apply over break!
  3. Honestly, I am not considering different majors now than I was at the beginning of the semester. I was leaning toward something in business before the semester started, and this semester only confirmed that business was the way for me to go. However, this semester has taught me that Finance is most likely the best specialization for me in Fisher.
  4. Finance, a major that is very math-related, certainly goes with my strengths. I am a very good math student, and I can use these skills to be successful in finance. I am also very interested in business and the finance and analytical part of it, which finance encompasses. My goal is to be successful wherever I go and whatever I decide to do, and finance will help me do this. The major I want is definitely finance.
  5. The most beneficial thing about attending the college lectures was the fact that I was given an in-depth look into what each college was about and how they are structured. Each lecture showed the curriculum for the school, and also provided me with other helpful information such as post-graduation employment statistics. Overall, the college lectures certainly provided me with more insight into what each college could offer to me.
  6. There wasn’t anything that was not covered in the lectures that I wish would have been discussed. As I stated in question five, each lecture gave me an all-access look into just about everything the college had to offer, and I can not name one specific thing that I wish would have been covered.
  7. One goal I have for next semester is to determine exactly what kind of career I have the most interest in in the finance world. Another goal is that I want to also explore other majors just in case finance is not right for me. There are several resources that can help me with this, including the resource I can use that will tell me statistics about each major, and also simply contacting current OSU students online for help or advice on which major to go into.
  8. The advice I would give myself at the beginning of the semester would be to take good notes and study them daily, even though exams are so far spread out. Because if you constantly go over your notes, then you will always be on top of the ball and never miss a beat in terms of keeping pace with the class, in turn allowing for you to be prepared for each and every exam.

Informational Interview

Informational Interview

 

I interviewed Dave Pamer, my uncle, who is the vice president of sales at Kichler Lighting in Independence, Ohio.

 

  1. How important is choice of undergraduate major to your career field?

 

“It is extremely important because the basic underlying principles and techniques that are required in a career are often taught and used as examples in an undergraduate major that would support what your career path could look like.”

 

  1. What portion of your job involves interacting with others, such as co-workers and/or the public?

 

“My job involves interaction with others quite extensively. I work across multiple functions in my sales capacity. I work with the operations team, customer service, marketing, and engineering side of the company, which requires different skillsets to interact with those different functional areas, while teamwork is also important in order for it to work effectively. Also, outward facing, I work with customers and sales representatives, which is a different social and professional interaction than working internally with your co-workers.”

 

  1. Describe the process by which you arrived at your undergraduate major.

 

“I was not quite sure what I wanted to do when I went to college. However, one of the things that I did know was that I was very good at analyzing information, particularly numbers. Things just seemed to jump off the page at me when I would look at financial information. It was something that came easy to me. This led me to a path in a finance major where I really started to enjoy the classes and activities designed around that major.”

 

  1. What was your favorite course in college? Was it in your major? Why did you like it?

 

“I had two favorite courses in college. One was ‘Religions East and West.’ The reason I loved it was because it opened me up to a greater understanding of different religions and cultures, and made me step outside my comfort zone, making me more understanding and accepting. The other class was ‘International Conflict.’ Having grown up and not understanding the wars in the world, dating back to the 1940’s and forward, it was an opportunity for me to understand why conflicts occurred, what the outcomes were, and how they impacted the world going forward.”

 

 

 

 

 

  1. Is special certification, licensing, or an advanced degree required for your job? If so, what?

 

“For my job, it is not required. However, we always encourage those interested in a field of sales and finance to continue down a path of learning. In finance, that can result in self-initiative to earn your charter financial analyst, or in a sales capacity, it could involve going to public speaking consultation conferences where you learn how to connect better with your audience, understand how to listen closely, and formulate recommendations to help you close your business.”

 

Synthesis Questions

 

  1. How did you find this interviewee, and why did you choose to interview this person?

 

I found this interviewee because it was my uncle. I chose to interview him because he has a prestigious job title for the largest lighting company in North America, and he therefore is very professional and knows very much about the fields of business that I am interested in studying.

 

  1. How has this interview influenced your major and/or career exploration?

 

This interview certainly made me more interested in the areas of marketing and finance. Before this interview I knew that I was probably going to go into either finance or marketing, but after interviewing my uncle, I am sure that this is something I would like to do.

 

  1. Did you learn anything unexpected from the interview? If so, what? If not, which ideas did the interview reinforce?

 

Honestly, I did not learn anything unexpected from the interview. I knew what to expect from a job in the sales division. There is a lot of interaction with other people. These people can be within the company, or they can be customers or retailers who the company works with to sell their product. The interview reinforced the ideas of how important communication is, as well as the fact that undergraduate major classes are important for implementing the underlying principles and ideas for any given major.

 

  1. What do you feel you still need to learn about this major/career before being able to make a confident decision?

 

I feel as if I know a strong amount of information about both the marketing and finance majors. However, I certainly could still learn a bit more about both areas. For example, the day-to-day work that these majors require, and the impact that these jobs have on businesses. Also, the broadness of each of these two majors is not something that I am totally familiar with. So, there is still a bit more information that I could definitely learn before being able to make a confident decision on a major.

 

 

  1. Which major exploration tools/activities/resources that you utilized this semester were most helpful to you and why?

 

The exploration tools/activities/resources that I utilized this semester that helped me most were definitely the college overview videos and the “What can I do With a Major in…?” resource. These two resources were especially helpful because they helped me finalize my decision on what college I wanted to go into, and then what major I wanted to choose. The college overview videos helped me select the Fisher School of Business, while the “What can I do With a Major in…?” helped me decide to apply for either the marketing or finance major.

 

 

 

 

 

 

College Transition Lecture Reflection

Michael Pamer

Exploration Survey

3 September 2017

 

College Transition Lecture Reflection

 

     College is supposed to be “the best four years of your life.” However, many college kids would beg to differ, especially those who are still struggling to transition from high school to college. The butterflies and excitement can quickly turn into a tough, lonely time for young freshmen in their first couple of weeks. However, there are many ways that these students can make the transition from high school to college much smoother.

     Personally, the first couple of weeks of college have treated me well so far. However, there are certainly still some worries that I have as I progress further into my college career. What I am most worried about as I start college are my grades, and how I will study a sufficient amount to meet my expectations as a student. So far, I have learned that it is very easy to become distracted from studying. From going out with friends to get food, to simply hanging out with guys and girls in the common room, becoming distracted is incredibly too easy. However, I have decided to come up with a study plan where I can get the most out of my time. While I came in to school with many worries, I also came in with many things to be excited about. For one, I was excited to meet a whole bunch of new people, and so far it has worked out very well. I also was excited to start taking classes that would shape the career I would have for the rest of my life. Meeting new people, coupled with the prospect of having my future being determined in the next four years, allowed for me to be extremely excited about my matriculation to Ohio State.

     I believe that I bring in several academic strengths from high school. First off, my difficult course load in high school built the work ethic that I have today. I work very hard to achieve what I think of as successful, and I will stop at nothing to do so. One of the worst feelings I can have is knowing that I could have studied harder on an exam that I did not perform well on. I also bring in the academic strength of being able to work in a group well. I collaborate and get along with others so that a group project can run smoothly and in an orderly fashion. However, I still need to carry these strengths over from high school to college, as I cannot simply expect for these traits to continue without any hard work. I am interested in several co-curricular activities as well. I am trying out for club basketball, and I also plan on attending several of the bible study groups that occur on Wednesday nights. I also plan on rushing in the spring, which will be an exciting yet busy time for me. I also joined the “Mountaineers Club” at the student involvement fair. This club takes hikes in the area, as well as taking trips around the country to explore the nature and what the country has to offer. Not only am I interested in playing club and/or intramural sports, but I also wish to be involved in other areas such as religious activities and greek life.

     There were many pieces of advice from the student panel that resonated with me at the transition lecture. However, the area that most stuck with me was the time management aspect of college, as well as possibly keeping a journal to plan out my week. I am not a very organized person, so anything that can help me balance my workload with extracurricular activities will serve me well. So, when someone from the panel pointed out that time management and keeping a journal to plan out my week was key, I took it to heart. Since then, I have focused on making specific times for me to study throughout the week, as well as keeping a journal with all the work that I have due in the upcoming days/weeks. It is crucial that I am able to be organized and complete all of my work to the best of my abilities, and taking time to be more organized and managing my time will certainly help me be successful in college. The college transition panel was something that really made me think about what I need to do in order for me to prosper in school, and I hope that the other lectures are just as helpful!

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 information, go to: http://honors-scholars.osu.edu/e-portfolio. 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 information, go to: http://honors-scholars.osu.edu/e-portfolio. 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 information, go to: http://honors-scholars.osu.edu/e-portfolio. Delete these instructions and add your own post.]

Artifacts

[Artifacts are the items you consider to be representative of your academic interests and achievements. For each entry, include both an artifact and a detailed annotation.  An annotation is a reflective description of the artifact that attempts to communicate its significance.  For more information, go to: http://honors-scholars.osu.edu/e-portfolio. Delete these instructions and add your own post.]

About Me

[Your “About Me” is an introduction and should provide insight into who you are as a person and a learner.  This should include a picture of you that is appropriate in a professional/academic context. This information should be continually updated.  For more information, go to: http://honors-scholars.osu.edu/e-portfolio.  Delete these instructions and add your own post.]