A Term of Trying New Things

I was always told that high school was for experimenting and trying new things because college was when you were supposed to get “serious.” But let’s be honest, it’s so ridiculous to expect 16-year-olds to know what they want to do with their lives before their prefrontal cortexes have even finished developing.

I came to Oberlin intending to major in Sociology but still decided to spend my first term exploring. My strategy? Just register for any class that sounds interesting and that I have no background knowledge of. And that’s basically how I became a Politics major! Without realizing it, every single class I took last year based purely on interest (with the exception of my first-year seminar) was in the Politics department.

You’d think, since I’ve kind of discovered my niche and am now a second-year, that it’d be time to settle and focus on whatever it is I want to do in the future. This has not been the case! Ironically, the reason I’ve been able to keep exploring this year is because I did so much exploring last year. Since I’ve taken so many Politics classes, I’m nearly done with all my major requirements, leaving me plenty of time to keep branching out.

It’s not all been successful, and there have been more than a few late nights where I pull at my hair and wonder why I ever thought leaving my comfort zone was a good idea. But in retrospect, I’ve benefited so much from “putting myself out there” (as I’ve been calling it). And though it sounds cheesy, I’ve learned a lot from my less successful endeavors as well, even if the lesson is just “this sucks, and I’m never subjecting myself to this again.”

All in all, I’m proud of what I’ve accomplished this term. (But maybe ask me that again once final grades are out.) Here are some of my highlights:

1. I finally declared a major.

My first-year advisor told me last spring that I should declare a Politics major then, since I was halfway done with the requirements at that point. I put it off for months because I had no idea who to choose as an advisor, and I was honestly a little embarrassed to approach my current advisor, Professor Freedman, since I felt I didn’t do well in his class in the fall.

But as the title of this section implies, I got over my irrational fear and finally declared. I was maaaaajorly overthinking it (pun not intended), as I tend to do. All I really had to do was fill out a form with some basic information, send two emails asking for signatures, and then send it to the Registrar. And with that, I officially became a Politics major!

2. I’ll be studying abroad for the first time!

I only applied to study abroad after meeting with the director of the International Affairs concentration, Professor Zeinab Abul-Magd, and I wouldn’t have declared a concentration had I not taken International Politics last year, so really, I have my 17-year-old self who picked classes on a whim to thank for all of this.

Part of the concentration requires an “experiential component,” which could be an internship, volunteer work, or, as Zeinab suggested, studying abroad! She encouraged me to apply for an Egypt study abroad Winter Term program that she was hosting, and though I haven’t taken any MENA classes (Middle East and North Africa Studies), I decided to go for it. The worst that could happen is that I don’t get accepted, and honestly? I could probably use some rejection therapy anyway.

Later, I visited the Winter Term fair on my own to ask Zeinab for application advice (and going on my own was, admittedly, already out of my comfort zone). But a few days after we talked, I got an email saying I’d already been approved by the program director and just had to commit to the project—I guess it goes to show how far a face-to-face conversation can get you!

3. I’m struggling through ECON 101, but it’s so rewarding.

One of the IA concentration requirements is a 200-level economics class, which means I need to take ECON 101 as a prerequisite. (Yikes, because I wasn’t even good at econ in high school!)

I started the term thinking I’d be content with a B+ and very pleased with an A-, if I were keeping things realistic. But the class hasn’t been nearly as bad as I thought it would be, in large part because I have the best econ teacher ever, Professor Cheung. (Fantastic lecturer, very engaging, and I will be giving him a glowing course evaluation rating.)

But, like I said, not all of my endeavors this term have been successful. I got a 96 on my first exam but a 72 on my second (it was during my “Week of Hell,” so cut me some slack), and for a bit I was thinking of going Pass/No Pass. I decided against it in the end, after my advisor suggested I ask Professor Cheung directly about my grade and explain my situation.

Communicating with professors and asking for things has never been a strong suit of mine—I’m aware of that and working on it—but I’m so glad I asked this time, because Professor Cheung agreed that if I got an A on the final, I could probably get an A- in the class overall. Now that finals are creeping closer, I’m definitely feeling the pressure, but taking econ this term has at least been a good lesson in study strategies, stress management, and self-advocacy.

4. I tried my hand at law! (I don’t think it’s for me…)

Growing up, my parents were definitely “doctor or lawyer only” people. They were absolutely ecstatic when I joined Moot Court this year and decided to take a Judicial Simulation class. Let me tell you, those two things have caused me more stress than all of my econ assignments have combined.

I wasn’t planning on pursuing law (and I honestly don’t think I will), but as part of my goal to try new things this year, I decided to try out for the Moot Court team—once again, it could be good rejection therapy. I really wasn’t expecting much. I never did Mock Trial and I’ve never taken a law class. And while preparing legal defenses for a fake guy accused of involuntary manslaughter isn’t a particularly cheery or relaxing activity, Moot Court has actually been a highlight of my term. 

Sure, there were multiple ocasions where I went back to my room and despaired to my roommate at how much I had “totally humiliated” myself in front of all these very smart and experienced people, but now, many of those very smart and experienced people are my friends. One of my favorite days this term was actually when we went to Ann Arbor for an invitational—and by we, I mean 15 people in suits shoved into a van driving past endless fields of soy eating Dunkin Donuts breakfasts at sunrise.

Overall, Moot Court has been a great, if not majority-of-the-time terrifying, experience for me, and I’m glad I took Judicial Sim, because now I know that I do not want to be a lawyer. I will definitely be doing Moot Court again, and will definitely not be going to law school.

Thanks for sticking with me as I recapped four months into one blog post. In short, college is not too late to explore, and allowing myself a full year to see where my interests would take me has made me more confident and optimistic about the next few years of college and my future. Good luck with finals, and take a crazy class next term!