Sunday, January 23, 2011

From a Cal Bear

To the new ILC students, you guys are awesome for taking the initiative of learning what is out there and what college will be best suited for you. Through the ILC I was able to participate in a Women's Leadership Institute at Brown as well as a Biological Conservation class at Columbia. Currently I just finished my first semester at UC Berkeley and I am looking into architecture as my major.

My first word of advice would be to pace yourself and manage your time. College has so much to offer especially in terms of extracurriculars and clubs. I definitely tried to sign up for at least 10 different clubs and sports but ended up having time for only a couple. The amount of time you have really depends on the classes you take, therefore asking around and figuring out which classes match your schedule is very important.

I am also a commuter student, therefore I often must leave campus earlier in order to catch the bus back home; however, I still get the "campus" life because I am taking a studio course, which requires me to be in my Studio room for quite some time. Therefore instead of a dorm, I have made a lot of new friends through the same major. (Or if you know someone in the dorms, sometimes they will let you stay over, which is very helpful when you need to stay on campus for a long time.) If you are not sure what major you are interested in though, do not worry because hundreds of other students know exactly how you feel. College is the place for you to explore all your interests. Do not think that it is bad to "take it easy" for your first semester. There is definitely a change of atmosphere from high school to college, which some people just need to get used to.

Hope you all are having a great break!

I am also willing to answer any questions if there are any.

-Jessica Tran

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