Emotions Front and Center
As I prepare to graduate from the University of Wisconsin - Eau Claire (UWEC), I am overwhelmed by many emotions–sadness, gratitude, and anxiety. These emotions have taken center stage as I think about moving on to the next chapter of my life. My time in Eau Claire has been filled with support, love, and community. These are things that make a place feel like home; it fills me with sadness as I think about the friends and community that I will leave behind after graduating. Despite this sadness, I am also so grateful for the positive influences I surrounded myself with during my undergraduate experience.
I spend time reminiscing about my favorite memories, the professors, staff, and friends who have supported me through college. I would not have been able to succeed without them; they’ve helped me change the way I see myself. Before, I genuinely believed that I was an average person, with average interests and average aspirations. Now, I realize that I am not average. My experiences and ambitions are what make me unique, and I need to leverage that as much as possible to advocate for myself. I’m excited to be able to leverage this as I write graduate school applications and apply for jobs. Although this chapter of my life is concluding, that means another one is beginning. I’m anxious and excited to experience the unknown that comes after graduating college. I ask myself if I am ready to pursue a full-time job. I ask myself if I am ready to pursue a graduate degree. I’m excited to see where life takes me and all of the cool opportunities that lay ahead, but anxious for the unique challenges that accompany them. Education is all I’ve known for the last 18 years. I’m not entirely sure what to expect upon graduating. The unknown is waiting for me, and I know I must step into it head on. Graduating from college is a complex collage of emotions. I could write pages upon pages of the different emotions I feel, but I think these three are the most salient.
Academics Endeavors
Despite these emotions, I remain busy, and I intend to finish strong. I have been quite busy in recent weeks. I’ve started a few graduate school applications to Stanford, the University of Wisconsin - Madison, and to the University of Maryland - College Park. Specifically, I am looking at their International Education graduate degrees as they align best with my interests. I am very excited to get these applications turned in. The earliest due date is December 1st. All of my applications require a writing sample that is at least ten pages in length related to my career and/or research interests. My McNair research paper will serve that purpose.
Recent weeks have been full of writing, presentations, and work. I’ve made McIntyre Library, the library at UWEC, my second home as I am usually locked in a study room between three and six hours three or four times a week. This gives me a quiet and boring environment to focus on my assignments. Each day I have made the effort to nail down a few paragraphs and ideas into my research paper, or my personal statements, or another assignment for one of my classes. I think this week was the busiest week of this semester. On Monday, I was writing essays for the Critical Language Scholarship (CLS) program which were due on Tuesday.
I applied specifically to the Portuguese language program located in Brazil. I am interested in the CLS Portuguese program because it offers the opportunity to learn more about Brazil while learning Portuguese. My degree is in Spanish liberal arts and Latin American & Latine Studies, so much of my undergraduate coursework focused primarily on Spanish-speaking Latin America. Courses related to Portuguese and Brazil were not offered because there is not a high enough demand for courses related to those topics. In a way, I feel the CLS program will be a valuable complement to my degree because Brazil has the largest population and economy of Latin America. I believe it will enhance my academic experience and provide me with a broader understanding of Latin America. I am hopeful that I will receive this opportunity because I plan to use this cultural exchange to help me enter an international education graduate program with a fuller picture of the world. On Tuesday, I finished those essays, and then hosted an event for returned study abroad students for my job as a study abroad intern in UWEC’s Center for International Education. Wednesday, I spend time analyzing my research interviews for common themes. Thursday, I met with my research advisor, and we discussed how to pull numerical data summaries on R-Studio. Finally, Friday came around and I was exhausted from the workload, but I persisted to finish this week strong. I worked independently at home and pulled the data summaries from R-Studio and I look forward to analyzing these summaries. I also revised my personal statements for my graduate school essays. This weekend will be spent in the library as I need to work diligently to finish this semester strong.
Finishing Strong
Despite hectic schedules, looming deadlines, and a substantial amount of work to be done, I enter my final weeks of my undergraduate career with enthusiasm and motivation. While it is tempting to slack off and let the senioritis take hold of me, I recognize the importance of finding balance between the rigorous academic responsibilities I have and my own self-care. I am mindful that every moment counts, and I aim to work hard to have a strong finish to my undergraduate career.