Honors Seminar 100

Fulfilled: Goal 1 & Honors Course

After all of the orientations, I thought that I had little else to learn before settling in to the next chapter of my life. However, the Honors Longwood Seminar was my introduction to real college living. The class gave me one of my first opportunities to make friends, and gave a little direction to all the free time I had to use up those first few weeks. Then I had to figure out how to speak to, email and even text my professors. It was not like high school and many professors my first semester had Doctorates on top of their other qualifications. I was nervous abut making a good first impression and trying to get the most out of my classes. They were different than in high school and required me to ask deeper more thought provoking questions.

LSEM calmed all my anxieties. We spent time on the dos and do nots of emailing a professor. We adjusted to writing college level essays through the small, generally low-pressure assignments and were able to explore different areas of campus through some of the topics. I especially liked finding volunteer opportunities which allowed me to fill some of that overwhelming free time. Volunteering was also a large part of my life back home, so finding opportunities at college gave me a chance to use my skills in a meaningful way that eased my homesickness enough to continue through the first few weeks. Then there was the campus-as-text essay where we each explored different areas of campus so that we could at least feel like we were beginning to know our way around.

My favorite essay was the one on opinions and what they mean to us. It gave me the chance for needed reflection. My summer and senior year of high school were so hectic and crazy that I hardly had time to breathe. Once at Longwood, There were a lot of pieces to my life that I needed to evaluate. By slowing down and asking questions about time management, health, and self presentation, I was able to assess and make adjustments to college life much easier.

Personal Fact or Opinion by Taylor Bauer was created on September 25th, 2016. This journal entry contains my thoughts and reflections on opinions and their power. The analysis provided insight into the formation and maintenance of opinions simultaneously  placing me in the correct mindset to evaluate my own values and preconceptions allowing me a fresh start to my college experience.