We all remember the dreadful months of high school senior year with our parents bugging us to fill out college applications, the neverending meetings with our guidance counselors, the numerous college visits and then trying to make one of the biggest decisions of our lives; what school should I say yes to?
I always knew that I wanted to pursue higher education after I graduated high school, but I was not one of those students who knew exactly where they wanted to go. I honestly would have been very content with staying at home for two years and going up the street to my community college.
Every weekend my family and I would take road trips to different colleges and universities, but every school was exactly the same to me; I was getting tired of the countless drives.
After sending in more than 10 applications to various schools, someone mentioned Cabrini College to me. All I kept thinking was, I have never heard of it, it’s probably not a rah-rah school and it didn’t have football.
Yes, I know you are all probably thinking, so what if Cabrini doesn’t have football, but I came from a high school with an undefeated team for four years and I hated to know the day would come when I could no longer attend Friday night football games.
I finally decided to do some research on Cabrini and as I researched more and more, I really liked everything I found and decided to send the application in. Come on now, what shopaholic wouldn’t want to be at a school 10 minutes from the largest mall on the East Coast?
I heard back from Cabrini three weeks after I had submitted my application and knew that Cabrini was where I was going to end up for the next four years. My mom and I took the hour and half drive out to Radnor and once we pulled into the school, I felt right at home. I went on my tour around the school and unlike any other school I visited, I had a good feeling. On the way I home told my mom, send the deposit in!
The first year and a half here at Cabrini I had my doubts. I kept thinking I made the worst decision ever. I quickly put my applications into larger schools, like Clemson University, Rutgers University and University of Maryland, because I was in the mindset that I had to graduate from a brand name school.
When I received notice of my acceptances, I was the happiest person. I was finally going to have a fresh start but paused and decided to not go for the switch.
I knew in the back of my mind that I had opportunities at my fingertips at Cabrini, and I just needed to go for them.
My second semester of sophomore year I decided to run for vice president of the sophomore class board. Once I got involved with one activity, I felt as if I was on a roll and decided to get more involved.
The opportunities here at Cabrini have changed my whole perspective on the school and my outlook on life. If I were to attend a larger school, I might not have had the opportunity to become a student ambassador for the admissions office. Getting involved with different clubs and organizations has filled up my agenda book, Monday through Friday.
One of the greatest aspects here at Cabrini is the teacher-student ratio. Having your professor know who you are in class and not just being a student ID number to them helps immensely in succeeding in your studies. I love being able to walk around the campus and having a professor acknowledge me. It means a lot to me. It shows how much they care about their students.
If I ended up going to a university the size of Rutgers, I feel as if I would have been very intimidated by the size of the classes. Knowing that I am signing up for class with, at most, 20 students is comforting.
Due to the size of the classes, I am able to verbally communicate with the professor during class, the teacher is able to have the students interact with each other for class projects and I personally feel I take a lot from the classes when I’m not surrounded by more than 300 pupils.
Aside from the wonderful classes, the intelligent professors and the opportunities here at Cabrini, I have made some lasting friendships here.If you think about it, the friends you have here and your roommates are your family for the time being. Being at a fairly smaller school, everyone knows one another.
It may be annoying at some times, but being able to acknowledge and be acknowledged by your fellow classmates while walking around campus is something I will always remember. I would never trade my friends here for anything. We are always here for one another. Even if they are a year below you, age doesn’t matter.
Tom Petty once said, “You have four years to be irresponsible here. Relax. Work is for people with jobs. You’ll never remember class time, but you’ll remember time you spent wasted hanging out with your friends. So, stay out late. Go out on a Tuesday with your friends when you have a paper due Wednesday. Spend money you don’t have. Drink ’til sunrise. The work never ends, but college does…”
I’m not insinuating that you all go out on a Tuesday night and completely forget about the papers and tests you have the next day, but you are only in college for four years. They are supposed to be the best four years of our lives. Take advantage of the activities and clubs here on campus.
Make a good relationship with your professor, you are going to need their guidance through the times here at school. Challenge yourself to take a class you never thought you would be interested in.
If I never started taking business courses, I would have never of known that’s where I belonged. Every day you wake up and get ready for the day, think about Cabrini’s motto, “Do Something Extraordinary.”
