Top 5 Things To Do Before Graduation Day

Now, keep in mind that I am not a professional when it comes to giving advice, but one thing I do have is five years at Cabrini College. Yes, there may be people who have more years in than I do, but they aren’t writing this perspective piece, now are they? So, with that in mind, I want to appeal not only to freshmen, but to sophomores, juniors and soon-to-be-seniors next fall when I give the top five things that I think a student should do before they leave this college.     As I will be graduating on May 16, I wish I could have done a few things differently with my time. I also wish I had someone tell me such things to make my years more enjoyable and valuable with the tuition dollars spent.     1. Take the professors that challenge, not those who make you want to stay home from class.         Instead of taking those professors that make you wonder what the point of that class was, take those make you think and think outside of the box. I know there are days that you just may want to stay under those covers and not walk to Founder’s, but these professors won’t allow it. Their teaching methods and one-on-one help will make you think twice about sending them an e-mail stating that you are sick. Take a Dr. Hedtke, Dr. Zurek, Dr. Yungmann, Dr. Wright or Dr. Owen class. Just because they give you work and make you earn your grade doesn’t mean that they should be avoided. Why did you come to college in the first place? To EARN your degree. I can kick myself for not looking into the reputable teachers earlier because I am leaving here and did not have the opportunity to take a Dr. Terlecki, Dr. Brown, Dr. Cordes or Dr. Mace class. Honestly, I cannot judge all of the professors on campus; there was no chance I would have been able to take all of them, but spend your time in classes that matter to you and with professors that want to matter in your life.     2. Play an organized sport.         You may feel intimidated by a college level sport, but there is no reason to. I wanted to try-out for the women’s basketball team my sophomore year of college, but thought I was already “out of loop” with the girls that were playing together for a year. It was just my excuse for not putting my heart into the chance to play at the college level. If you push yourself hard enough, you will be able to balance a sport with your studies. Even if you don’t want to play at the NCAA level, there are plenty of intramurals that may spark your interest. Even though I did not play basketball, I played once a week with my roommate on a flag football team and you know what? I have a championship shirt to show for it. Ok, so we may not have been the pivotal people leading our team to victory, but we got to interact with other students that we may not have otherwise.     3. Even if you are not a communication major, take a class within those parameters.         There is absolutely nothing better I did on this campus than declaring as a communication major. That is one decision that I do not regret. But, simply because you are not declared as a communication student does not mean that you should not dabble in these hands-on classes. There is journalism where you can start out as a staff writer and can later be promoted to newspaper editor or web content editor. Even if you do not like writing, why not try a video class where you can be even more hands-on with camera equipment, teleprompters, and audio and switcher boards? Maybe you would like hearing yourself on the air waves of 89.1 WYBF, and hosting your own radio show. These environments prepare you for what lies ahead in the real world of communications. There are many things to get involved in and they are waiting in a wing of Founder’s that you may not have even been to.     4. Take a service trip over your winter or spring break.        I am definitely not a traveler; will not fly if my life depends on it, but if you put me on a bus full of friends, I will go anywhere. My winter break of sophomore year was that time to make a difference in peoples’ lives and in mine as well; I traveled with a few girls from Cabrini to New Orleans to help build homes for the victims of Hurricane Katrina. Now, I mean a real service trip; Not a trip that is required of you through a class of a study-abroad class. That may be fun and all, but this type of trip is on a different measure. This opened up a whole new world for me and that does not mean in the positive way. I realized what people were suffering from and how lucky I am to have what I take for granted everyday. I believe all people need to be put in a situation like this to see some of the injustices happening in their own United States and not just in another country.    5. Follow your heart and never let someone tell you cannot be an achiever.       NEVER and I mean NEVER lower your standards of yourself for any reason.  If you believe you can get an A in a course or win a scholarship or award, more power to you. Don’t ever be scared to be looked at as an over-achiever because those that are looking at you in that way just wish they could be in your shoes. In your heart you will know if you are deserving of a special recognition so don’t push a project, paper or award application to the back burner because other people do not want to put their time and effort into it. Go find those people that care about the same things as you do and surround yourself with that. The only way to prove to yourself that you are a standout student is to achieve those goals that you set-out for yourself. I know I am happy that I followed my heart because it paid off in the end, and now I will be leaving this college with a feather in my cap.