Back to the Books

Well I am now officially a grad student. It's a little odd being back in a classroom setting and attempting homework again for the first time in four years is kind of a joke! But here I am, over a week into my first semester at Appalachian State University where I am going to get my MA in College Student Development. For those of you who have zero idea on what that is or why there is even a Masters Program for it. The program is training me to be a Student Affairs Professional. On any college campus there are certain students needs outside of the classroom that need to be met, people in my field take care of these things. We can hold many different jobs on campus, whether it is working in the Residence Halls like I am currently, putting on campus events, advising student groups such as athletic clubs, Greek life or musical groups.You can also work in financial aid or admissions and all the way up to being the Dean of Students on campus. So while all these things have very different job functions, they all are focusing on developing students and engaging them in their college experience. That is what I'm wanting to do. Ok, so now you got the background on things. Let me tell you how nervous I was to go to my first day of class. I was asking my friends ridiculous questions like "do grad students carry a backpack?" "what kind of things do I need to bring?" and most importantly "what should I wear?" Well I've made it through the first week and I am starting to feel a little more comfortable, at least attire wise. However, I am finding that in grad school...they make you read a ton. And reading takes a lot of time. And time is something that I don't really have. I have to schedule time to see friends. Even when I do that, I will have to go deal with a weed incident in my building which takes up an hour of my time that was supposed to be dedicated to something else! But even with the craziness of my life and the constant feeling of being overwhelmed and 5 steps behind, I really love being back at school. I love the college setting so much! I feel at home here and I think that's a great feeling to have, especially since home is 20 hours away! Well I have spent enough time here. Must get back to the books!