Freshman student enjoys his lunch from the cafeteria
Freshman orientation can fall anywhere from exciting to nerve-wracking. Freshmen across campus have shared with us how their perspective of Northwestern has changed since their first visit until now.
Girls talked about dorm life, guys talked about activities, homework was hardly discussed and yet cafeteria food was mentioned by nearly everyone.
Julia Lantz of Fern was surprised by how nice the professors are. She expected them to send her straight to their assistant whenever she needed help. “But actually,” she noted, “they were so eager to answer questions they told us to contact them anytime!”
Although Micah Czirr of Coly has little free time between homework and getting in shape for track, he described his first few weeks to be a time of “relaxed busyness.” He’s observed how everyone around him stays occupied but the atmosphere on his wing is relatively laid back.
Soccer player Katrina Chord of Hospers feels most at home because of the people. She said, “I was able to become a part of an amazing team right from the start and God has blessed me through those girls.”
Her teammate Carly Farrington of Fern, agrees with her. “Friends are everywhere,” she said. “It’s sometimes hard to stay focused on my homework because I’m always surrounded by people I want to hang out with.”
Jordan Whitsell of Coly has had opposite experiences when it comes to friends and homework. “Just three weeks in and people are already ditching you to do homework,” he said with a smirk.
Although the caf food was described as being “repetitious,” the Hub food got high ratings across the board. “I love the options the Hub offers!” exclaimed Lantz.
Of his professors, Zach Wittenberg on the West Wing said, “I like the fact that the professors challenge you.” One way he can already tell they challenge students is by teaching them to “apply facts to the real world.”
The adjustments made and the lessons learned from May until now – or even over the past three years – can be applied to the real world in just the same way.
People are usually more willing to help than we expect them to be. Ask questions; seek answers. Time management is important in all aspects of life so don’t let yourself get stressed out; the wrinkles won’t be worth the worry. Invest in relationships – plain and simple. Take the time to get to know people and deepen your understanding of what’s around you.
Northwestern is a “whole education for your whole life,” but who knew we could be learning about life by the way we learned about life and lived it out?
