Done Already?

Hi everyone!

I can’t believe that classes are actually over! This semester seems like it started just a couple of weeks ago. But it’s already been 16! Time has just flown by. This semester has seemed the quickest of any. This semester was a blast. Classes, friends, football- everything was just great. Here’s a picture of my mom and I at a football game:

Looking back over the fall, it was really a great few weeks. I can’t believe how much I learned and how embedded in my mind some of my class material is. This semester, I took 4 ISE courses and 1 ITP course, which counted as my tech elective. It’s crazy to think that almost all of my upper division major courses have now been completed. I had anticipated being pretty stressed out with all of these classes this semester, but I ended up liking my classes so much that doing homework and studying wasn’t too bad. I am definitely convinced that the only way to really learn something is to let yourself truly be interested in it. If you study just for the sake of studying, you won’t ever internalize anything. This semester, I really cared about the material in all of my classes. As a result, studying became easier and more interesting, and for the first time in my life, I feel like I pretty much remember everything I’ve learned this semester, even without looking back into my notes. That being said, finals are in just a few days, and yes, I definitely still need to study! Luckily, my finals are spaced out pretty evenly over finals week, so I’m hoping I will do okay.

I also met a ton of new people this semester! I attended several information sessions for companies and networked with real industry professionals. This was the first semester I really made an effort to go out and meet professionals. Today, I was fortunate enough to attend a kickoff meeting for a new initiative for a collaboration between the USC University Park Campus and the Health Science Campus. I met a ton of professionals (and some other students) who are involved with and interested in the medical field. It was really awesome to network with so many professionals in such an intimate setting.

I also made lot of new friends. As an ISE, many of my classes require team projects. If you’ve ever had a team project, you know that you’ll end up developing pretty strong relationships with your team members….particularly when you’re still working on your project/paper the night before it’s due! We’re all guilty of procrastination. Also, a lot of my new friends are new members in the Helenes, Phi Alpha Delta, water polo, and my other orgs. We had some great involvement this year, and I can’t wait to see more people coming out next semester! I had a blast with all of these organizations this semester.

Looking ahead, I’ve pretty much finalized my schedule for next semester. I won’t be taking any ISE classes, because I’ve taken almost all of my upper divisions, and I want to mix it up a little. So next semester, I’ll be taking EE 326, Essentials of Electrical Engineering, ACCT 410, Accounting for Non-Majors, Classical Mythology (a GE), and Women and Antiquity (A class for my minor). I might also take a class just for fun- PE, music, film, etc.-, but I haven’t decided yet. Winter break should be nice and relaxing. I’m probably going to be researching internships I want to apply for for next summer. I’m also going to New York City for a week. So stoked to celebrate New Years in Times Square! We also have tickets for a Nets game, which I’m really looking forward to. Here’s a picture of me chowin’ down on some NY pizza when I went there last winter: