...because quite frankly, I still feel like I'm at orientation. In a sense, I am--this is fall orientation...but it hasn't exactly hit me that I'm really a college student now. I’m Dorothy, by the way, and I’m excited to be blogging for Rutgers this year! I do have to admit, last year’s blogs are a pretty hard act to follow… but I hope to survive and enjoy my first year here. I’m sure once classes start (tomorrow--ahhhhh I feel so unprepared!!) and I get into the routine of balancing school with activities I’ll be all right, but the whole idea of being a college student is still a little hard to take in at the moment.
So far I’ve been on campus for five days now, and I’ve realized that there is so much to do around Rutgers that it’s near impossible to be bored. According to the older students, there is ALWAYS something going on EVERYDAY at EACH of the different campuses. I’m actually not worried about being bored—my biggest concern is that I’ll accidentally bite off more than I can chew in the activities around campus (and beyond). Yesterday I visited the Involvement Fair on College Ave, where each of the 400-plus extracurricular groups set up booths and highlighted main events. There is definitely something for everyone. Some groups do community service around New Jersey, others offer more academic-oriented events, and still others are simply recreational. At Rutgers, you can do anything from playing sports to playing the French horn to playing board games. There are dozens of cultural groups, including Chinese, Puerto-Rican, Vietnamese, Pakistani, Latin American in general, Taiwanese, Indian, Cuban, Asian-American, Korean…the list goes on, and the best thing is you don’t have to belong to a specific nationality to join the groups. The most important thing is to go for something that interests you, and then make sure you remain an active participant!
Another thing I’ve noticed is that Rutgers is really, really, really diverse. I've met other students from other states, Kenya, Germany, Shanghai, New Jersey (of course), one of my old friends from 4th grade (she didn't believe it either), and someone who's lived in Canada and Singapore before coming back to the States (just like me!!). I also realized that I'm in a graduating class of 6,000. Gasp. 6,000. Coming from a graduating class of 38 at the international school I last attended, I still can't wrap my mind around the huge numbers. I do, however, hope to meet the entire Class of 2014 eventually.
So far, Rutgers is great! This school offers us students myriad opportunities. While attending a large university has its perks, I have to say that being a part of Douglass Residential College (DRC), a small, tight-knit community is pretty awesome, as the older students are really supportive and encouraging. With all these events to attend and friends to make, I am sure this year will be both exciting and interesting.
Location: SinglePost