A recent Centre College alum posted a picture of said person who stole the seal, and the caption from the stealer: "to all those who felt as if centre took something from u... got you beeotch!!!!" The alumnus then talked about how she didn't feel like Centre took anything from her (minus tuition), and how it was a very rewarding 4 years of her life. Other alumni left comments agreeing or disagreeing. So, instead of making it facebook wide, I decided to blog about my time at Centre, and what I achieved from attending from 2006-2010.
Now: this is only my personal opinion about the time I spent at Centre. Each person is obviously entitled to their opinion, and may not have felt the same way about Centre that I do. That's great, each person gets something different out of school and their surroundings. I want you, readers, to remember to be open to other people's opinions, because that's what makes the world a great place.
The first time I ever visited Centre, I felt at home. I loved campus, the energy; I could see myself going there. It was going to be a financial struggle to get me there, but with the help of my loving parents, the generosity of the College (and the alumni giving money), and some student loans, my want to go to Centre became a reality. I was going to start off getting my chemistry degree and playing basketball for Centre. Coming out of high school, basketball was what my main focus was. In school, chemistry was my favorite subject. So it only made sense to continue in both of those things once college started.
I remember meeting Dr. Jeff Fieberg during my campus visit, and that's what really sold me on studying chemistry. The next four years at Centre studying chemistry were by no means easy, but I loved every second of it. I know I didn't give my education my all, and to that day it still haunts me. However, I feel like my time at Centre helped shape me into the person I am today. Sure, I still have a lot of growing left to do, but I'm looking forward to it.
As a freshman, I perhaps tried to overachieve with the classes I chose to take, while trying to have a social life I never had the opportunity to obtain in high school. I could suddenly do whatever I wanted to. No one was breathing down my neck, no one was forcing me to do something. It was all up to me. I ended up getting mono from not taking care of myself, which lead to me quitting basketball right after conditioning. My grades by the end of the year were the worst I had ever seen. But I had made great friends that I wouldn't give up for the world.
Sophomore year came around, and I was determined to raise my grades. However, my class schedule wasn't helping that much either. Organic chemistry, Physics, Calculus... not a great GPA booster schedule. I did alright, but more importantly made new friendships and got to form relationships with certain professors I still keep in contact with today. I found a love for organic chemistry, and have continued to let that love grow for the subject.
Junior year was another tough year, but I was getting the hang of classes, and started to think about my future after Centre. I had some of the best friends I could ever ask for, and had a ton of fun. Classes were still hard, but not unbearable.
Senior year, obviously the best year. I got the best grades of my whole career (which still weren't the best, but that's okay), had a ton of fun with my real friends, and researched with a biochemistry professor. The main event that transformed me to be "ready for the real world" was going to New Zealand for Centre Term. There's nothing more beautiful than being at the top of a volcano looking out and seeing ocean. I definitely found myself there, and used that for motivation to finish out strong.
I had applied to grad schools for the following fall semester, but didn't get in anywhere. My grades were DEFINTIELY not up to par to get into a PhD program, but that's my own fault. I put my social life before my "education", and it showed. However, after a year of working, I reapplied to a master's program, and am currently studying at the University of Cincinnati. I'm on the cusp of switching over to the PhD program, and worked really hard, and got the grades I should have gotten in undergrad.
It makes me think really hard about what an education is really about. Is it all about what we are supposed to learn in a field of study? Or is gaining an education more than that? Is it about making connections with other people, in and out of your field? Is it about finding out what really interests you? Is it about making friendships that last a lifetime? Is it about getting the best grades you can to continue your studies post-grad?
Or is it really a combination of all of these? Is the real meaning of education to discover our own ignorance, all facets of it? Social, intellectual, physical, emotional, mental... all our boundaries stretched to the limit with what we can learn.
We know that schools are looking for talent, intelligence, ambition, etc. They're not prone to let in potential students that haven't shown promise in their previous studies. However, a lot of students at Centre have complained that their grades have kept them out of specific programs/internships they have applied for. They say that at a state school, it'd be easier to get better grades for transcripts. I've seen some of the state school programs, and their classes were harder than the ones I took in undergrad. So is that really an excuse? Or is the real reason we didn't get into what we want was that we were too busy with other things? Having fun with friends, sleeping, social clubs.
There's still hope for those people that still want to get into programs after undergrad: exhibit A, me. It may not happen the year after you get out of undergrad, but you made sacrifices in school that allowed you to have fun but did not allow for the "learning" part as well. But we all make choices every day, it just depends on when we make those choices that need to be made.
So: if you regret your time in undergrad, that's on you. If you regret not making the grades you wanted to make, think back: did you do everything in your power to study and prepare for the class? If so, then you did the best you can, and you should be proud. However, you might need to reevaluate some future decisions. But I know for a fact that I didn't focus on my grades as much as I should have. Yet, I don't regret ANYTHING from my time in undergrad.
While the school aspect of education is very important, I tend to think building relationships, networking, friendships, can be just as useful. And for that, I thank you Centre. You helped me make the best friends I've ever known, and I can't wait to continue to grow in our friendships.
I have a lot to thank Centre for: preparing me for graduate school, helping me to discover who I truly am and what my goals in life are, and for giving me a ton of memories from the 4 years I attended there. I will continue to give money to the school as an alumnus, so that other high school graduates have the opportunity to study there.
Life is what you make of it, and I'm glad that Centre helped to build that part of my life.
"Education is all a matter of building bridges." - Ralph Ellison
Let's continue to build bridges, regardless of where you are from, what school you went to, what you "got your education in". That's what life is about.
