Throughout the semester, I have been asked over and over again what my major is and what I want to do after finishing undergraduate school. In my Scholars class, I was asked to reflect on what I wanted in life, what are my current strengths and weaknesses, and what path I need to take to reach my dream of being a dentist. I have basically spent all semester thinking about my career interest and evaluating and re-evaluating my future plans. Because of all these factors and the resources that surround me at Ohio State, I now have a clearer understanding of the path that I have chosen to take.
I know that first and foremost, I must have good grades to even consider applying to dental schools. However, the application process takes a holistic review of the applicant, so schools want to see involvement outside of academics, such as volunteering, shadowing hours, leadership roles, and involvement in extracurricular activities. To be able to balance all these things, I have learned the importance of good time management. I find that scheduling out my day is essential, and writing out what I want to accomplish for the day is helpful. I have learned that I need to have a certain amount of time dedicated to studying for certain classes every day (namely, chemistry) in order to do well.
However, I still have a long way to grow and improve. Time management has always been a struggle, especially sticking to my schedule. I also hope to learn more about myself next semester by figuring out what times of the day that I am most productive and which study methods work best for me. If I can maximize my time and use time effectively, I know that I will be able to succeed and reach my full potential.
This is a picture of my family at a wedding. My younger brother, Austin, is at the top left; My dad is at the top right; My mother is sitting next to me on the bottom right. They are some of the most important people in my life and I would not be where I am today without them helping me along the way.
I took this photo of a plush tooth at Target when I bought it because I thought that it was cute. It serves as a reminder to what I want to do in the future. Also, it reminded me of when I lost my first tooth and stuck it into a smiley-faced tooth shaped jar with a face similar to the one on this plush.
Here, I am wearing my graduation robes and sitting in front of my high school (go Crimsons!). I hope that I will once again be in this position in four years as a college graduate entering dental school.