Freshman year review

With two weeks left of the semester I’m almost done with my first year at The Ohio State University. This is the only school I ever wanted to go to and high school me would be so proud of everything I’ve accomplished. I came into college unsure of what I wanted to do and what my interests really were. Because of scholars I found so many people who have the same care for the environment like I do. It made me realize I have always cared and had a passion for sustainability and conservation. I’m planning on declaring an EEDS major and maybe an environmental engineering minor.

My first semester I pledged my service fraternity, Alpha Phi Omega. I joined because I had sophomore friends who told me to and I was unsure of my place within the fraternity until this past semester. Joining has brought me so many friends, memories,  and opportunities as well and I’m so glad to be a part of the organization. My scholars group has been another great part of my college experience so far. I love what we do and what we learn about in class and I can’t wait for next year. I also joined a dance club this past semester and I am so grateful I did. I missed dancing and being a part of a great group of girls who want to continue dancing is really awesome.

I have grown and learned so much throughout the past year, but something I learned in a class that impacted me a lot was in general just how badly this planet and the environment  needs our help. We live in a very ‘out of sight out of mind’ society and I really am passionate about helping out the future of the planet. Documentaries like racing extinction in our scholars class remind me why I care so much and why there is a need for people who care like me.

Something I learned outside of class was how trails are created and maintained in parks. I learned this on my Colorado trip that I took with my service frat. The whole week we were outside helping with upkeep and widening of some beautiful parks.

This year I definitely changed a lot as a person. I’m always trying to be open and accepting of change in my life and this year I really benefitted from it. Especially this past semester I’ve pushed myself out of my comfort zone with applying for a job I never thought I would ever be able to do (tour guide) and in general putting myself more out there in whatever I do. I’ve been rewarded with so many great opportunities, memories, and friendships. Mentally I used to be a very negative person and now I would say I see the good in everything and I really accept any failure as growth which is so important.

My favorite memory from this past year is definitely my Colorado trip. A week long trip of visiting amazing parks and being with some amazing people from my service frat is something I’m forever grateful for. Colorado is easily my favorite state and I cannot wait to go back.

Next year I’m looking forward to living closer to all my friends (go scott) and getting more involved in general. Along with APO, ENR Scholars, and Studio Dance, I’ll be joining the learning community SUSTAINS which is really exciting. I also get to start my major courses which I also cannot wait for. Football season is another thing I’m so excited for. Overall I love being here and I’m so excited to move back on campus already!! #gocollege #iloveosu #notnew2osuanymore 🙁

Spring Break 2019

This spring break I had the amazing opportunity to go to Colorado with my service fraternity Alpha Phi  Omega. We stayed in a BEAUTIFUL Airbnb and worked in multiple parks helping the trails everyday. Unfortunately there was a pretty bad snow storm while we were there and our service got cancelled for two days, but we had a lot of fun still. We stayed in Colorado Springs, which is about an hour and a half south of Denver.

The first place we volunteered at was Castlewood Canyon State Park which was so beautiful. We spent two days here widening the trails. Working outside with tools everyday seeing the incredible mountains was just insane for someone who has never been more west in the US than Chicago.

The place we were staying at happened to be about 10 minutes away from Garden of the Gods which was also so insane to see.

The last place we volunteered at was on Friday at Eldorado Canyon State Park which was the most insane experience. The guy we were helping out was the coolest guy. He grew up in Colorado, was working an office job in Manhattan after college and planned to retire at 50. After 9/11 happened he had a realization that he wanted more out of life so he moved back to Colorado and started rock climbing and working in the parks. At one point he had us climb this very thin and steep trail to get to this gorgeous view. It was terrifying because the slopes going each side would have killed us or at least hospitalized us. Definitely the scariest part of the trip but so worth it and learning about the history of the park.

One of my favorite parts of the trip was visiting Boulder. We met up with the APO CU Boulder chapter. The campus was so beautiful and I considered transferring but they don’t have many environment majors (sad). The city of Boulder is one of my favorite cities I have ever been to and I would LOVE to live there in my life. They are very green and their trash cans include compost and recycle which I love. They have a street called Pearl St. where the road is made to a sidewalk and it’s lined with a bunch of shops. They have as many local and small shops as they have chain stores which I also loved (Short North could NEVER). The people and energy there was so great and I am so sad I had to come back to Ohio after spending a week in Colorado.

We also visited downtown Denver and got good Mexican food, went to some book stores, their historic train station, and got ice cream. Another day we saw the older downtown Colorado Springs as well. This was a very cute place with a lot of older local shops.

Every time our group saw the mountains we were all in shock everything was so beautiful. I am so glad I went on this trip and learned about the places we went and got to explore Colorado a little bit. I cannot wait to go back and see the mountains and this beautiful state again!!

Columbus To-Do List pt. 2

This semester I ended up doing the coffee and tea list. I was pretty excited about this list because there were a few spots I knew of on the list that I had never tried before. The first place we went to was Mission Coffee Co. This spot had a very hipster vibe from the moment we entered. This place was mainly coffee and bagels or cereal were the only food options. The place was packed with people and didn’t have any seating room available, so we got coffee to go. The coffee was good (I had a chai with oat milk) and my friends enjoyed theirs as well. This would be a great place to meet new people or go to get work done. The staff was very friendly and the place overall had a good vibe. I probably would not go back simply because it screamed hipster from the workers to the people there. I don’t exactly fit in with the crowd as everyone there was probably 20-26 and all hipsters. There’s no problem with that- it just felt weird being out of place.

The next place we went was Fox in the Snow Café. This place was super cool and had a great atmosphere as well. There was that hipster vibe, but the customers were all different kinds of people. This place was also very busy, but we were able to find a table. We noticed they also had outside seating which is very nice. This location also offered many different food options, which were very good. I will definitely be back and can’t wait to try more stuff from this venue. I would highly recommended this to anybody.

My favorite experience from this semester would be Fox in the Snow Café. The atmosphere and food were great and overall my friends and I had a good time there. I definitely want to explore more in the city. I grew up around here so I have visited a lot, but I am interested in the food scene here. I would like to try a lot more local food places and also try foods I’ve never had before.
I would recommend someone who wants to explore Columbus to try a few of these places, but also look up more spots. Coffee shops won’t give you a lot of Columbus experience, but they can definitely add to it! I would recommend for anybody to just walk around the short north some day! There are tons of shops and different things too see and do there. Most of the places I visited were a walking distance away from the Short North. Overall I’m happy with the places I visited and am happy with this assignment 🙂

Career Exploration

Since this post is about career paths, I should mention I have no current career path. I truly don’t believe I will ever have a career planned out until I am actually doing it. Right now I am also undecided, which I’m not stressed about since most people switch majors anyways. I strongly anticipate myself going into environmental engineering with an environment, economy, development, and sustainability minor. Like I previously said, I have no career picked out for me. I do know that I want to work with helping our Earth live as long as it can. Whether that is working with water and air pollution, recycling, or waste disposal- I know I want to contribute to the technology that will help save humans and this planet. One of my goals with my career is to make sure I helped make a difference and have played my part in paying it forward to future generations. Another reason I like this path is because it requires working in different environments. Working a desk job is just not for me. Environmental engineering requires office work or on the field at a job. This is perfect for what I can see myself doing.

After looking at Environmental engineering on the U.S. Department of Labor website, environmental engineers only need a bachelor’s degree. I already expected this as many engineering jobs only require a bachelor’s degree. They listed that you need no work experience in a related occupation and there is no on the job training. I did not expect those statistics to be posted. While I guess I don’t need prior experience, I definitely plan on doing 2-3 internships and utilize resources here at Ohio State. The engineering career fair is something I plan on going to and meeting representatives from companies who come here. I honestly don’t know what environmental engineering companies advocate for and what their focus is on. If I find one that is big on sustainability that would be ideal. I also want to get involved with research here. I have not looked into much yet as I just decided on engineering but I plan to soon. I am also interested in joining clubs related to sustainability. There is a club called ‘Engineers for a Sustainable World’- which sounds exactly like what I want to do with my life. Basically, I want to get involved, do research, and make connections within the college.

If I didn’t get a job working as an engineer, I would try to find a job that advocates and works for change in sustainability practices. I probably would pick any job that works with helping the environment and protecting what is left of the Earth. I don’t know what career paths those would be called, but I do know of multiple companies that I am very interested in their work that I would love to be a part of (One of these companies is called Parley- check them out). And honestly, I love photography and I wouldn’t mind using that skill while working for a company being behind the scenes, working with their brand image, and advocating for their message.

The next steps for me here at Ohio State are to research more about opportunities with these interests and make more connections. I am currently in exploration so I have not talked to an academic advisor in engineering or even outside of the exploration program. I would say my next step is to sit down and discuss future goals and get guidance in general from an advisor.

Columbus To-Do List

This semester I have chosen the Clintonville list to explore some of Columbus. Since I grew up in a suburb of Columbus I have seen and done a lot in Columbus. Clintonville is an area I haven’t been to a lot so I am excited to explore the area. I am most excited to go to the park of roses, Studio 35, and Portia’s Diner. The park of roses is something I have wanted to visit for a long time and I had no idea it was in Clintonville so this assignment is the perfect excuse to go. By the end of this semester I hope to have more locations I can recommend to friends. I have generally only been to the same parts of Columbus multiple times so I also hope to gain more knowledge of the different areas of Columbus by the end of the semester.
One experience I’ve had so far this semester is the Columbus Museum of Art. I really enjoyed visiting the museum and seeing the art. My favorite section of the museum was the contemporary art pieces. One of my favorite things they did was ask people questions in the museum. These questions could be something like describe what you see in a piece, or they were controversial like asking whether or not art pieces that were stolen, illicitly traded, or removed by colonizers should be returned. I did not get to see even half of the museum and I would love to go back another day and see more! I would highly recommend this place for everybody to go to!

Mentor Meeting

For this interview, I spoke with my mentor Kevin Berghoff who is a second year majoring in construction systems management. I asked him a few questions regarding his major and ENR scholars. Some of the things I learned about him were how he got to his major, what he wants to do later in life, and what this scholars program has done for him. These are the questions I asked:
● How did you decide on the major you have chosen?
● How have you chosen to get involved on campus?
● What ENR Scholars opportunities are you glad you participated in?
● What is your dream job and why?
● What advice do you wish someone gave you your freshman year?
Kevin replied to the first question saying he chose his major because he has always had an interest in construction and the building of cities. Civil engineering was his original major idea, but he didn’t like the heavy math aspect of engineering so he found the construction systems management major. His freshman year he joined water polo and is still friends with a lot of the guys he became friends with last year. He really enjoys being a mentor for the scholars program as well and wants to help people open up to doing more activities outside. The yearly camping trip is something he looks forward to in ENR and is glad he participated in it the past two years. He doesn’t exactly know what his dream job is, but he would like for it to be something outdoors like field work. Not being at a desk all day is preferable for him, just like me, and would like to have a job that he doesn’t consider work. Some advice he gave me that he wish he would have gotten is to not be afraid to fail. Whether it’s a class, test, or a new activity, don’t be afraid to fail because that is where learning happens is what we discussed. He also emphasized not beating yourself up when you do fail because it will happen.
Since I am undecided, I always like discussing other people’s majors and their goals because I feel like it helps guide me towards what I want to do. Kevin talked about how he changed his major based on courses required which is something I feel like I have done as well. I was interested in food engineering but once I realized how much chemistry is required, I decided against it. Environmental engineering is another path I am considering, but it is very similar to civil engineering which is something I’m not interested in. Something that always relates to me and I find helpful is his advice to not be afraid to fail. I find myself always wanting to be ahead so I never get behind. Even though I don’t know my major, I feel like I should continue with engineering because I don’t want to fall behind by exploring other majors. In reality, I could go a different route with my major but I don’t want to be behind in whatever I chose. I always appreciate the reminders people give about not being afraid to fail and I feel like our conversation helped remind me that I have time to figure things out. Our conversation also made me excited for future involvement with ENR. I have really enjoyed having a mentor and after hearing him talk about it more I want to become a mentor next year. Just being involved with the freshman next year, going on the camping trip, and being someone freshman can look up to is something I am looking forward to.

 

About Me

Hey my name is Natalie Ruth and I am a freshman here at Ohio State. My home town is a smaller suburb of Columbus called Canal Winchester. I grew up in a family of five and have two brothers. My older brother attends OSU and I also have two more family members here right now as well. I grew up playing volleyball for about five years and dancing competitively for about seven years. I have also had a few jobs which include working at my local pool and also being a part of a company called Brewdog. Along with those jobs I was also a teacher and assistant teacher at my dance studio. These jobs and sports taught me many things about myself and my strengths that helped me in getting to where I am today. In my free time you could catch me going to a concert (I’ve been to almost 50) or taking photos!

My major is Environment, Economy, Development, and Sustainability. I really want to work with conservation when I’m older. Here at Ohio State I am a part of the Environment and Natural Resources Scholars and I couldn’t be more excited for the next two years. I love being outside hiking, camping, kayaking, and just about any other outdoor activity. Along with that I am interested in environmental conservation and Earth science in general. ENR is a great way to get involved with that and learn more about my interests. I can’t wait for a good freshman year at the Ohio State University!

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.]