My First Week of my College Experience

My first week of college experience was great. I enjoy my class, and my teacher Mrs. Fountain. It’s a very free and unstructured class. It’s very different just because there isn't really a lesson plan to follow. Practically the students of the class have the floor. If we don't really engage in the conversation then the class goes nowhere. I also enjoy College 101. Although we have done many of the things that we are doing in College 101 at my school, it’s still great to update everything that I know. I was kind of disappointed on the first day of College 101. When everyone was talking about what they wanted to do in the future I was kind of displease by some of the answers. I mean I understand that people want to do whatever they want to do in the future, but some of the things were kind of ridiculous. People were saying they would achieve 4.7 grade point averages? Is that even possible without losing your social life? I mean I would understand 4.0 or a more reasonable 3.7 but 4.7 seems a bit too out of reach.

Some of the stuff that we are doing in English is really beneficial to my writing and reading skills. Honestly, I really didn't have to read the book, and then i wouldn't. Yet, Dreams About my Father is a really interesting book because you wouldn't really picture our president saying or doing any of these things just because he is the president. Also writing all those autobiographical essays is a really fun. It makes you rethink about the past and about all those memories that I had when I was a kid. Also, last year in my English class, I didn't really do that well. My teacher was really strict on directions and didn't really let students express themselves unless it’s something that is followed by his instructions. With Mrs. Fountain's class, it’s so free willed and self-explained that its practically just free verse on how you feel about stuff. It’s more of the deeper meaning stuff then the details.

Everything else about the university is pretty awesome, except parking. Parking is probably the biggest pain the butt throughout this whole college experience. Every time I leave my house about 8:20 in the morning. I reach the actual UNO campus about 8:40. Yet to my understanding, there are absolutely no parking spots available anywhere. I always have to park at the church across from dodge, and by the time I get there it’s about 8:50. Walking to College 101 or Study Groups usually takes about 8 minutes depending on if the crosswalk is with in my favor. All in all I guess that is college life.

Residential Life with Summer Scholars

On June 4, 2010 I had the chance to experience something many students wouldn't have the opportunity to have. I was able to stay over at UNO's Scott Residence Hall for one week. Driving down there, I had many different thoughts that ran through my mind. All i could think about was the fact that I was going to be separated from my friends, and would have roommates that I wouldn't know anything about. Although i unpacked and settled in my room, I didn't really get to meet my roommates at all because we were all shipped on a bus to Ashland, Nebraska. All those courses were really fun. They really pushed some of my buttons considering i am scared of heights. The best part about it was the fact that during the team challenge course, we didn't know any of our group members. We didn’t really have a chance to socialize because we were put on the bus right after we signed in. You practically had to trust your group members to help lead you through the course.

Living in the dorms can truly give a small sample of what college could be like. Sure we had some rules, but we are high school students just learning the basics of college life. The dorm rooms were nice and spacious. They were very clean. I especially loved the fact that we had some privacy because we each had our own bed rooms. One thing that I thought about while driving down here was sharing my room with another person. The food in the cafeteria was unbelievably good. Sure they tried to sneak some leftovers from the day before, but hey, who can argue with free food. Sleeping in the dorm rooms for a week was really fun and i enjoyed it a lot. I love that we had access to all the rooms that regular college students had like the game room, the lounge, and also the Hyper building. It was practically a steal because we were able to use each of these all for free.

On that Wednesday morning when we were all packing up, it felt like none of us were going to see each other again. None of us wanted to leave, and we all wished that the program would be longer. Yet, all in all, it was really nice of UNO for giving us a chance to experience the college life because not everyone has that opportunity. My recommendation would be to extend this program for future reference. It may cost a little more, but for the ultimate college experience, it would greatly benefit the student body.