What do you want your December 2022 self to know?
Dear end-of-third-semester-of-college self,
I hope by this time, you have had a successful semester of learning and have accomplished most of the following goals:
- Stick to a solid work schedule. This is something that we know has proven to help staying on top of work, and at this point in the semester, is something we have already established. I know that with migraine attacks, unexpected illnesses, and a heavy course load that this can be tough, but we’ve built a schedule that keeps us busy and gives us some time to relax on the weekends. I hope that I have learned that sticking to the schedule will help us stay organized and on task and that this schedule has set us up for success.
- Get more out of our press job. We’ve been working at WUP for a year now, and although we have been able to dip our toes into so many different types of projects, the past half year, we haven’t been taking advantage of what this job truly has to offer. Yes, working on the permissions database has helped us to improve communication and organizational skills, but how can I intentionally apply this practice to future jobs? Also, talk more with Suzanna! She knows a lot about the publishing industry, and we should try to learn more from her. This may not be what we choose to do as a future career, but there is a lot more that we can do to create a good learning experience.
- Become acclimated to the lab. We’ve wanted to work in research for a LONG time, and that time is finally here! It definitely feels daunting right now to be starting tomorrow with no clue what to expect. Remember that this is a learning experience, and asking for help instead of worrying about my contribution to the lab will go a long way. The other lab members have a lot that we can learn from in so many ways, and I hope that by the end of the semester, we have become more comfortable and confident in our research abilities and in the lab.
- Speak up. We know that speaking up and asking the questions that we really want answers to has been hard. When asking for help or interviewing someone, it can be difficult for us to be direct. With this course, we will gain experience talking to people about what we want our future to look like (possibly one of the scariest conversation topics for us), and I hope that we will improve in our ability to speak efficiently and effectively in a professional setting.
- Figure out our future. Right now, we’re at a crossroads about what we really want to pursue in the future. Do I want to go into academics and research, become a headache specialist, lean into a writing/advocacy career? What does graduate school look like for me: BA/MA? MD? DO? PhD? MD/PhD? I know that we’re scared about how our chronic migraine will affect any career aspirations, and no matter how much we try to convince ourself that it will get better, it’s very hard to believe. But this course is giving us an opportunity to get to know what each of these career paths would realistically look like for us, and I hope that by the end of this course, we have a solid (if not at least more solid than right now) idea of how to use the rest of our time at Wesleyan to prepare for future school/career goals.
Well, five goals doesn’t seem like too much to try to accomplish (even though I know they’re pretty big ones). Although I may be wary of being able to accomplish all of this, first semester of sophomore year is a super important time for figuring out what I really want my future to hold, and I know that this process can only bring us closer to what we need to understand about ourself. I’m hoping that this letter will find me well in two month’s time, and I look forward to working on all of these goals in the meantime.
Best,
Ellie
10/2/2022
