PA#4
PA#4: They Say . . . (part 2)
For your fourth paragraph, consider a single piece of advice or evaluation about college that somebody gave you before you came to college. State that advice and explain it briefly. Based on your very limited experience, comment that advice or evaluation. Was it true? Did it help as you started your college career?
Here's an example of a possible topic: My daddy told me that I was starting a new life. I could remake myself any way I wanted. I took that advice to heart. I had been a nerd, an awkward, anti-social geek. By the end of orientation, I was Mr. Popularity because I remade myself. In a paragraph I would explain all that in detail and then briefly tell the story of the single event that helped others to see me in that light.
As you write, consider using some of the transitional devices in TSIS. Their use will help you to construct a fully developed and well organized paragraph.
We'll review some of the paragraphs on Friday, 9/12, so please get them on the blog by Thursday, 9/11 at 5 PM.
David KreinSeptember 4, 2014 at 11:39 AM
ReplyDeleteDavid Krein PA#3
When my summer was coming to an end and I was getting ready to head off to college my mom told me that no matter what, I should always just be myself. What she meant by that was, going to college is a very exciting experience. There will be many new people in your life and she wanted me to make new friends by just being myself instead of trying to act like someone I’m not. This advice has worked so far in my two weeks of college because I have made new friends by just being myself instead of acting like someone I’m not.
Peter HamblettSeptember 4, 2014 at 8:57 AM
ReplyDeletePeter Hamblett –
I was told that there will always be another party. Hearing that, you understand right away what they are telling you to make sure you get your work done before you go out and have a good time. People don’t like to miss out on things that are going on, especially if it’s with your friends. I kept that in mind when I knew I had to complete an assignment instead of going out with my friends. Did I truly miss anything? No, not at all it was just another night I didn’t miss anything. Being told that was a plus because if I kept the mentality that I would miss out, then I would have to struggle and work harder to complete my work not to my full capability which was my personal goal.
RickySeptember 3, 2014 at 2:29 PM
ReplyDeleteBefore I came to campus, my uncle told me that do not be shy of hesitate in college, just do whatever you need whatever you want. I did not forget that word. So when I came to campus, I talk to others even though I am an international student and I have some language problems. Also I joined a lot of activities that I want, and made a lots friends here. Therefore, I start to love the college life, because I listen to my uncle's advice. I just behave the real me.
Mallory Torr
ReplyDeleteMy parents would tell me time after time again while I was preparing for college to always just be myself. They continually would say the same thing leading up to my departure. When I reflect upon that advice, I originally thought it was a bite clique. I look back now and I truly appreciate that advice they both gave me. I think that this is one of the most important piece advice my parents gave me. This statement really opened my eyes and made me realize that you shouldn’t have to act a certain way for people to like you. Just by being yourself you should be able to to find friends that have the same interests and hobbies as you. That has been just the case for me, I have met many people that have the same intrests as I do. It has happened just by following the advice my parents have given and I truly appreciate the advice they have given me.
Erin Fannin PA#4
ReplyDeleteBefore I left home my mom told me that college was where I would find out what I wanted to do with my life, and that since it was my life I should do what makes me happy, not what others expect of me. I nodded and listened, but I don’t think I truly took this advice to heart until halfway through my first week of physics and calculus classes. Never before had I ever been so miserable at the prospect of school. I had always been good at science and science was what my family was expecting me to major in, so I planned to be a physics major. Then I realized that I was going against the advice my mother gave to me, I was letting the expectations of others dictate my path in life. So I went to my advisor and transferred out of physics and calculus and into classes that I like. At this point I am planning to major in theatre and creative writing, my true passions.
Jon Griggs PA #4
ReplyDeleteWalking out of church one Sunday morning in the summer before I went to school, one man stopped me and offered these words of advice, “You need to make sure you stay focused at OWU, it is a party school.” I never really understood what a “party school” was because I thought that everyone in college went out and partied, regardless of where they went. But as I moved into my fraternity house this year I began to realize what that man’s words meant. I am met daily with the dilemma on whether to go out or stay in and study. It is pretty hard to decide when some of your friends want to go out on Monday and Wednesday nights. However I remember the advice that man gave me that day in church, and I concentrate on the main reasons for why I am here: to succeed in school and prepare myself for the rest of my life.
Before coming to Ohio Wesleyan, I had a lot of people in my telling me different things. My high school teachers told me that college is going to be a challenge, and as a student I will have to put all of my time and effort into my work. My parents told me to make school my first priority, but to have fun as well. Having no one in my family go to college made it hard for them to give me advice, but they did a great job encouraging me to do well. Overall since I have been here, I realize that there is more than just time management, but you have to really focus during class and can’t get distracted or you will have a hard time with the work. There for everyone was right about the advice they gave me, but there was just a little more to it.
ReplyDeleteBefore leaving for university, my sister sat me down to have a heart-to-heart. She said, be careful who you make as friends. Family always warns about the type of company one keeps, but, to be honest, I find it somewhat insulting. I may not look like it but I am an extraordinarily stubborn and strong-willed person. No one is going to pressure me into doing something I don’t want to do by simply calling me a ‘buzz kill’. If someone has so little respect for me that they would shame me for making my own decision, I certainly have enough sense to not want them as my friend. I can make my own decisions and respect the decisions of others. My sister’s advice is valid, but I have enough life experience and seen enough after-school specials to know how to stand up for myself and be friends with people who march to their own beat.
ReplyDeleteGopika Nair
ReplyDeleteBefore I came to college, my mother told me to adopt a more outgoing personality. Upon hearing that piece of advice, I stubbornly shook my head and insisted that being reserved is an inherent part of who I am as a person. Inevitably, however, I began mulling over my mother's words, and the more I thought about it, the more stressed I got because it meant having to remodel myself into a character that I wasn't comfortable playing. As a result, when I first got to Ohio Wesleyan University, I clammed up. I found myself unable to introduce myself to the person standing next to me during orientation out of fear that our conversation would just fizzle out once we'd gotten past the point of politely asking each other's hometowns and majors. It wasn't until other people initiated conversations with me that I realized that I wasn't socially inept after all. If I tried, I could actually keep a conversation going. At that point, I decided to stop fretting over the way I presented myself, and that was when I managed to gain some confidence. In the end, I wound up not following my mother's advice, but her words did help me realize that I didn't have to alter my entire personality just to be liked. I could still be shy, I could still be awkward, and I could still be reserved. All of those quirks were okay because I was bound to find at least one person who was willing to wait out my initial phase of self-consciousness so that they could get to the core of the person I am beneath the other qualities.
David Herbawi
ReplyDeleteI’ve lived in dorms far away from my family and was a full time community college student, so I wasn’t too worried about homesickness or the lack of academic hand-holding. What probably had me worried most about college life was the dreaded freshmen 15, the inevitable result of making poor and lazy choices with your diet which you have complete control over for the first time in your life. I’ve always been a thin guy and had an excellent diet back home, an easy thing for me since both my parents are very good at making meals that are both healthy and delicious. I was happy to learn that the healthy options at Ohio Wesleyan were, for the most part, not the bland tasteless “healthy” choices that I find in most cafeterias and restaurants. Despite the food exceeding my expectations, my diet is not what it used to be. I’m hoping increased physical activity will make up for it, but I’d say to anyone asking that 15 the is definitely real.
Pan Niyomthai
ReplyDeleteAs heart breaking as it was to receive the conditional rejection letter from Cornell back in 2013, I was fully aware that it was all my doing - the party, the sleep deprivation, and what not - that got me into a melancholic position. Everyone back home went to universities in the country, so frankly my lesson and advice came from this failure to maintain my grades for my last semester. It was an excruciating experience, but it was worth becoming a lesson. The pressure was felt from the moment I applied, till the waiting, and even till the conditional rejection - the up's and down's that had left me with a big scar. But a scar wasn't always bad, I realized that it actually symbolized my strength, the ability to cope and turn a failure into a lesson. When comparing the level of pressure and intensity, Ohio Wesleyan is rather a small community of friendly people, not competitive and lonesome as Cornell. Despite the fact that Ohio Wesleyan may be more "easy going" than Cornell, I still aim to accomplish my grades and take every knowledge I can gain, for I have already faced a major disappointment before and do not plan to let anymore of its kind bring me down so easily.
Ryan Ehrhardt
ReplyDeleteThrough the last few weeks of summer vacation, I spent a lot of quality time with my father. He is the man I have looked up to all of my life, while I still do today. During the course of the time that I had left at home, my dad threw some words my way that I have heard thousands of times before, but never really paid attention to. He told me, "Always be yourself, and never anyone else." It sounded kind of cliché, but I went along with it. After a month of living on my own, I can tell that his advice was really useful. Being myself instead of acting like a different person in order to gain relationships has helped my self esteem tremendously. Also, it has kept me less stressed than what I need to be. I have gained many friends through my first month of college by not acting like somebody I'm not. If my dad never gave me that advice, I would most likely have acted different to be noticed. Because of five simple words coming from my role model, it has had such a strong impact on the first month of school than I could ever imagine. There are many other people in the world, but there is only one "me". I have a special kind of light, just like anybody else, and I'm excited that I can use it as my own.
A major piece of advice that kept being offered to me before I started college was to enjoy every bit of it while it lasts. This advice was offered to me by both of my former band directors. They said that time in college will go by very fast and that it will be over with before I know it. While I like college so far, I'm here to get a degree so I can start a future career, so I don't really have any intentions of following this piece of advice. If college is over before I know it, that means that I'll get to start my future career before I know it, and I'm personally okay with that.
ReplyDelete"Do not give yourself a break or you will never finish what you took a break from." That's what my grandfather told as he cosigned on my college loan. He was indirectly referring to what happened to my father during his college experience. My dad took a quarter off from college his sixth year at OSU and never came back. My father is not a failure in any sense, but at that point in his life he had unintentionally given up on getting his masters degree. If I give up, my grandfather knows that I would have no chance of success in today's world. In terms of being true to life, that quote has been entirely effective at predicting my own success so far in class. Every time I start to slack or loosen my grip, I also start to fail and miss work. It is very difficult to catch myself after that chain of events starts to happen. Because of how realistic my grandfather's advice was, it is some of the best advice I have ever gotten.
ReplyDelete