Sophomore year a 'humbling experience'
Alycia Bucheir '10
Issue date: 9/19/07 Section: Commentary
I don't know about other sophomores on campus, but for me, coming back to Wheaton for my second year has been a really humbling experience thus far. It's nice to see familiar faces and people I haven't seen all summer, say hi and/or hug, catch up over lunch or dinner, and actually feel comfortable returning to a familiar environment instead of petrified of being in an unknown environment.
It's great getting to know people this year that were only acquaintances last year and appreciating the changes on campus, like the recent paint job that Chase Square underwent (that surprisingly does a lot to brighten up the room). When I think back to how scared and lost I was at this time last year, I am so grateful to be in the position I am today.
I am now a college sophomore. When people ask me what year I am, I am still used to saying that I am a freshman. As much as it is a welcome change, it is a still an adjustment nonetheless. However, this year has not been nearly as much of an adjustment as coming to campus was for my freshmen year.
Wheaton was not my first choice by any means, but once I got to campus, I almost immediately fell in love with the school. Coming from a public high school in basically the sticks of Maine, Wheaton was a step up for me, to say the least. Once I started classes, I knew Wheaton was going to be challenging and would be the perfect fit for me academically.
The school tested me in other ways, like getting stuffed in a room with two complete strangers and having to share that space, adapting to the blandness of Emerson/Chase food, awkwardly introducing myself to people, and of course, walking in circles trying to find where my classes were….only to ask someone and find out that the classroom was right behind me.
Today I don't have to partake in any of those uncomfortable moments. Instead, I get to silently chuckle as I watch the freshmen (who look so young!) go through the same process I went through last fall. I only chuckle because it's a rite of passage, as anyone who is not a freshman can attest to.
My favorite is the expression all the freshmen have on their faces at some point or another. It's like this lost, yet determined, look as they not only try to figure out where they are, but also where they are going. It's all too familiar to me.
Unfortunately, just because I'm a sophomore doesn't mean I've got everything figured out. As much as freshmen year was an awkward time, sophomore year can be equally as emotionally straining. It's a period of being in limbo because we're not technically upper classmen yet, but we're expected to declare our major and start thinking about our future career.
Such pressure tends to be expressed through a kind of a lull and a continuation of that feeling of being lost. The only thing we can do is to continue to socially and academically explore what we established freshmen year. I'll be the first to raise my glass (of a non-alcoholic beverage of course) to the Class of 2010 having an amazing second year!
It's great getting to know people this year that were only acquaintances last year and appreciating the changes on campus, like the recent paint job that Chase Square underwent (that surprisingly does a lot to brighten up the room). When I think back to how scared and lost I was at this time last year, I am so grateful to be in the position I am today.
I am now a college sophomore. When people ask me what year I am, I am still used to saying that I am a freshman. As much as it is a welcome change, it is a still an adjustment nonetheless. However, this year has not been nearly as much of an adjustment as coming to campus was for my freshmen year.
Wheaton was not my first choice by any means, but once I got to campus, I almost immediately fell in love with the school. Coming from a public high school in basically the sticks of Maine, Wheaton was a step up for me, to say the least. Once I started classes, I knew Wheaton was going to be challenging and would be the perfect fit for me academically.
The school tested me in other ways, like getting stuffed in a room with two complete strangers and having to share that space, adapting to the blandness of Emerson/Chase food, awkwardly introducing myself to people, and of course, walking in circles trying to find where my classes were….only to ask someone and find out that the classroom was right behind me.
Today I don't have to partake in any of those uncomfortable moments. Instead, I get to silently chuckle as I watch the freshmen (who look so young!) go through the same process I went through last fall. I only chuckle because it's a rite of passage, as anyone who is not a freshman can attest to.
My favorite is the expression all the freshmen have on their faces at some point or another. It's like this lost, yet determined, look as they not only try to figure out where they are, but also where they are going. It's all too familiar to me.
Unfortunately, just because I'm a sophomore doesn't mean I've got everything figured out. As much as freshmen year was an awkward time, sophomore year can be equally as emotionally straining. It's a period of being in limbo because we're not technically upper classmen yet, but we're expected to declare our major and start thinking about our future career.
Such pressure tends to be expressed through a kind of a lull and a continuation of that feeling of being lost. The only thing we can do is to continue to socially and academically explore what we established freshmen year. I'll be the first to raise my glass (of a non-alcoholic beverage of course) to the Class of 2010 having an amazing second year!
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