After my first year of college, I felt that I had a couple of friends and I had a place within campus.

However, I didn’t feel like everyone else when they were sad about going home for the summer and leaving campus behind. My first year I really focused on my studies, scholars group and job, which meant that I didn’t branch out as much as I thought I should.

When I came back to campus in the fall, I had two goals: I wanted to get more involved on campus and to make stronger friendships. Looking back on this year, I think I achieved those goals. This year, not only did I take on a leadership role in the two things that I already did, I took on another job and joined another club.

Throughout the year, I moved into a manager role in my job. I learned a lot about how to be a better leader. At the beginning of the year, I didn’t feel prepared to lead people who were mostly older than me, and I felt like there were a lot of things I needed to learn.

But throughout the year, I was able to learn new things about the job, and I learned how to manage my time between work and school. I even got to strengthen the relationships I had at work, which made me feel even more like I had a place.

I’ve never been the type of person who immediately clicks with everyone else in a large group, and I always feel that people in groups have stronger connections than I do. When I got back to campus, I wanted to find new people and to become closer to the friends I had made from last year. I made sure to spend time with the people that I had been friends with last year and became friends with other people in my organizations and classes.

I’m the type of person who likes to do a lot and has a lot of different interests. One of the things that drew me to Ohio State was the number of different groups for so many different things, but there were still things that I thought that I wouldn’t be able to do. I got to join a theatre organization, which was something that I had missed doing last year. I also started writing for Odyssey. I love both writing and theatre, and I thought that I would never have time for in college.

Getting to write has been something that I’ve loved. It’s given me the opportunity to express my opinions and reflect on the things that I’ve been doing throughout the year.

Writing was something that I put off when I have other things that I need to do, even though writing is something that I love to do. Odyssey has given me a chance to express myself and kept me sane during the year. It’s been another community for me on campus and something that I can be proud of that I’ve done. This year, my classes were more focused on my majors and minors.

In my classes, I got to meet people with similar interests to me. I felt like in my classes I was able to talk about topics that I enjoyed and could see myself using in my future career. I only have one more GE to complete next semester, and then I am able to take classes that are directly related to my interests; classes that will help me reach my professional goals.

Going into this year, I knew that there was going to be a lot more expected of me and that it wouldn’t be the easiest year for me. I was worried about the combination of classes and having time for myself, but I wouldn’t change anything that I did. I forced myself to do more on campus and stop using my job as an excuse for why I couldn’t do new things.

Thinking back on when I chose my college, I knew I was excited to start school at one of the biggest universities in the state, but I didn’t know what to expect. I thought that I should love where I was going because everyone else loved it and I had to find my place immediately. I can’t imagine going to a different college. I love not only the people that I know and the things that I get to do, but I also love walking around campus and learning more about it.

When I toured Ohio State, I could see myself on the campus, but I never could've imagined where I am today. Sometimes, your university might not be the immediate home feeling. Sometimes, you need to grow into the place in order to have a perfect fit.

The past year at Ohio State has been tough, but it’s been good for me. I’ve gotten to do so much more than I ever thought I would, and I’ve learned a lot about myself. I got to achieve my goals and so much more. I’ve only been home for a couple of weeks, but I’m already ready to go back to campus and make more memories.