Kaitlin: If Not for the Education, then for the Eggplant

Well folks, this week I think I found my absolute favorite thing about BU.

For a while I thought it was my state of the art room in StuVi2; then I considered it being the top notch instructors; of course, the convenience of being in one of the coolest cities in the country was a plus.

All of these features are incredible, and really add to the uniqueness and perfection that is Boston University, but no. The number one reason why I love my school is simple:  the Farmer’s Market.

Since I’ve been a student here for two years, I knew about the weekly Farmer’s Market for quite some time, but because I lived in a dorm, I saw no reason to visit it.  After luckily landing a spot in an apartment  I decided to check it out, since I had some space in my refrigerator to fill- And boyyy was my vegan, health conscious heart smiling.

As soon as I walked in front of the GSU this Thursday afternoon, the sight and smell of all of the fresh fruits, vegetables, and baked goods made me feel like I was in heaven.  Farmers with friendly faces stood by their locally grown and made foods, talking to students about their products and even giving away free samples.

Ward’s Berry Farm, one of the many small businesses at the Market,  give students the opportunity to purchase a box of deliciousness for $22 a week. This box is filled with a random assortment of fresh, locally grown fruits and vegetables and is more than enough to last you the week, if not two.

But if you’re not into the whole foods-from-the-earth thing, the Farmer’s Market definitely offers some choices that will satisfy your sweet tooth.

Taza Chocolate, which in my opinion is some of the best chocolate around, is represented, informing students about its delicious, rich product, and even giving away some samples of different favors.

The Market also features AKA Marvelicious, a vegan cookie company based in Jamaica Plain that has treats to die for. Seriously. Even if you’re not a vegan, you’ll fall in love with the Almond  Carrotoons or Orange Chocolate Chip cookies. I’m drooling just thinking of them.

You can also buy different flavored nuts, local honey, maple syrup, or yummy baked breads.

Be sure to catch the Farmer’s Market-whether you have a kitchen or not- every Thursday until October 25th from 11am- 3pm. I can almost guarantee you’ll see me there.

Visit http://www.bu.edu/dining/about-us/sustainability/farmers-market/ for more information.

Dany: The First Week

Well, it’s official. You guys are officially college students! I hope your first week has been going fantastic and you’re enjoying all your classes and meeting a ton of people and just having an awesome time.

I can’t believe I’ve only been back in Boston for a few days. So much has been going on that it feels like I’ve been back for weeks. Before I even got back to campus, I was already busy getting things ready for PC’s first events. I hope some of you were able to come out to our Drive-In Movie event on Saturday night! We played “The Avengers” and “Ferris Bueller’s Day Off” and it was a great success. I landed on Saturday morning, spent half of the afternoon semi-unpacking and then went straight to work on setting everything up. Time is definitely not wasted at BU!

Sunday was SPLASH and I had lovely chats with a lot of you at the PC table. As secretary, I now have a stack of sign-up sheets to go through and get our listserv going for the new year. It’s a lot of work but I’m so excited for our first general interest meeting coming up soon. Definitely hope to see some of you there!

We have so many awesome events this semester for you guys. Our next big one is of course Childish Gambino this Friday at Metcalf! It’s going to be an awesome show and it’s only $15 with your BU ID! Tickets are online and they’re going pretty fast which is good news for us. We always want to make sure that we’re giving students the best events we possibly can and when a response is so overwhelmingly positive, we know we’re doing the right thing!

Anyway, my schedule has been nonstop since I got here and I really wouldn’t have it any other way. Life has just been a blur of PC, COM, Admissions, classes, catching up with friends, completing my study abroad application, checking out the new dining hall, and revisiting my favorite Boston locales. It’s a miracle I have time to breathe, honestly. I hope you all have a chance to get involved with everything you signed up for at SPLASH. Take advantage this year and go to as many meetings as you can! Find out what really interests you and stick with it. There’s no reason to ever be bored in Boston. Trust me.

As always, feel free to reach out to me if you have questions about anything I’m involved in or just general classes, life, etc. Good luck these next few weeks! And have fun!

Alexa: First Day of School

I’ve come to realize that the first day of school will always have its similarities. However in college, I might prepare for my first day a little differently, since I’m living in a dorm room and not my house, oh also I am 3,000 miles away from home.

First, I will try going to bed at nine o’clock. Instead, I will stay up until midnight or more just laying in my bed thinking, “Why? Why is this happening?”

Next, I will continuously wake up through the night in a state of panic that I might have missed my alarm, only to be reassured that it’s 3:11 AM. I always wake up at something: 11, it’s strange but that’s a whole different conversation.

Finally, when I realize I can sleep in no more, I will put on the outfit that, I’ll admit, I have picked out weeks ahead of time. First impressions count! I will also try to straighten my hair. However, this will probably not work out as well as I would like since my hair has a mind of its own and will only look nice right before I get in the shower.

Next, I will gather all of my things hoping that I don’t forget anything important, more than likely I will. Last year it was my dorm key and I’m really sure my roommate enjoyed that.

Before college, right before I headed out the door, my dad would always give me a few words of encouragement. He has now shortened it down to a simple text stating, “It only matters if you win.” Obviously words to live by. Thanks dad.

I will try to take the BUS (the BU Shuttle) to class but since obviously everyone has the same idea that I have, it will be full unless you shove your way in, normally I like to avoid shoving people and convince myself that a walk is exactly what I need. After taking a nice fifteen minute stroll to class I will continuously debate in my head whether or not I should stop for Starbucks before class in Warren. While my heart says yes, my brain is begging me not to because no one wants to be the person that comes in late to class clutching an iced white mocha, trust me. The argument in my head will continue until I see the long line that is Starbucks and will suffice to getting to class a little early.

Once I get to class, I will again debate between myself and the voice in my head of where I should sit. Should I be attentive and sit and the front? Should I just blend in and sit in the back? Middle it is. Life is all about compromise people.

My point is, don’t take the first day of college too seriously. In all likelihood, you’re going to have a lot of first days and you should enjoy them, not stress about them.  With that being said, have fun in COM101!

 

Julianna: My Journey to Israel

An Open Letter to My Fellow Travel-Hungry BU COM Kids

Shalom BU COM Class of 2016!

Quick re-cap of my summer away from BU: I returned to my summer office job for two months, cranked out a story a week for the college news section of NextGen Journal, got hooked on HBO’s The Newsroom, warmed up to the new cast members on the Real Housewives of New York City and prepared for my trip to Israel.

Now I am Stateside again after participating in the Anti-Defamation League’s Campus Leaders Mission to Israel with 17 other college students from across the country. It was a whirlwind eight days of touring and learning first-hand about Israel’s domestic issues, the Arab-Israeli conflict and Israel’s relations with nations outside of the Middle East. I met journalists, political analysts, new immigrants at an absorption center, IDF soldiers, a world renown professor of Holocaust studies, university students, among others.

The mission to Israel was most definitely the best experience I’ve had in my 20 years of living. Dramatic? Totally. But, I really mean it. Since returning I’ve perused my 600+ photos countless times, daydreamed about zatar (the most delicious spice ever) on everything and reread my notes to further absorb everything that I learned. All this nostalgia and post-travel blues has me longing for another adventure. I want stamps on stamps on stamps in my passport book. I want more culture, another foreign language in my ears and new (or some more ancient) roads to conquer.

I know that I am one of many college students with an endless hunger for travel and adventure. If you find yourself with the very same desire, think about how that aligns with why you chose BU. Speaking for myself, I was completely won over by BU’s location in the heart of Boston. You’ll see that with living in Boston comes constant adventure, whether it be taking the T to the last stop of a particular line, exploring the quaint South End or meandering through the famers’ market at Haymarket. So get ready for the adventure that awaits you in Boston, and along your path to graduation you’re bound to make some stops in near and far places whether through educational or volunteer missions, study abroad or trips for pleasure. Check out www.bu.edu/abroad to begin mapping out your study abroad options for junior year or keep Alternative Spring Break in mind for spring 2013.

Lauren: Internships- Finish Strong!

With the end of summer comes the end of summer internships.  During your time at BU, you’re bound to complete an internship at one point or another.   While first impressions are very important, you should treat your last days at your internship just like you treated your first.  Here are five things you should do as your internship comes to a close:

  1. Ask for a recommendation letter.

About two weeks before your last day, approach your supervisor, or a person that you have worked with closely, and ask if they would write you a letter of recommendation and serve as a professional reference.  Specially tell them what you are looking for in the recommendation letter.  Suggest, for example, that they highlight your work ethic or comment on your writing skills.   If you have a LinkedIn account, you may also want to ask if they could recommend you on that social networking site.  In return, offer to write a little internship testimonial that the organization can use to promote their internship program.   Don’t be nervous to ask for a recommendation letter or reference- you’ve worked hard, and you deserve it!

2. Set up a meeting with your supervisor on your last day.

On your last day, ask your supervisor if you can sit down with them for a few minutes to get some feedback on your work.  Learning about your strengths and weaknesses can be helpful when you have other internships and jobs.  This can also teach you how to take constructive criticism, a skill that will be beneficial in the future.  Also, let your supervisor know what you thought of the internship program, but make sure you express how thankful you are to have had this opportunity.  After all, it’s hard to get an internship nowadays.

3. Give out hand-written thank you notes.

Writing a thank you note is the perfect way to express your gratitude at the end of your internship.  A hand-written note is much more thoughtful than simply sending a thank-you email.  You can visit this Her Campus article to find thank-you note templates!  Be specific in the note by thanking them for either helping you with a particular project or assigning you an exceptionally rewarding task.  I always sign professional thank you notes using “Sincerely” or “Best wishes.”  Last impressions really count, and writing a note is a great way to stand out and be remembered.

4. Update your Resume.

Internships are great professional experience and can help bulk up your resume.   Make sure when you add this experience to your resume that you list specific examples of assignments you completed.   Update your resume and LinkedIn page right when your internship is ending so your work is still fresh in your mind.  Also, ask for permission to use some of the work that you completed (like writing assignments, design work or video clips) in your portfolio.   It will look great when you apply for another internship or job!

5. Keep in touch.

Connect with your fellow interns, supervisors and other employees at your internship site.  Add them on LinkedIn and exchange contact information.  Make sure that you stay up-to-date with what’s going on with the company by following them on Twitter, LinkedIn, Facebook and other social media sites.  You may also want to email your supervisor every three months or so just to stay connected!  You never know- staying in touch may help you get a full time job with the company!

Follow these simple steps to make the most out of the last days at your internship!  Remember to start strong and end strong!

Dany: What to Leave Behind

Hey everyone! I hope you are all enjoying your last few weeks of summer before the semester finally starts! These last days can be pretty bittersweet: saying goodbye to all your friends, enjoying the last of your mom’s home-cooked meals, trying to decide what to bring with you and what will stay behind. Anyone remember that scene in Toy Story 3 when Andy can’t decide whether to bring Woody or Buzz Lightyear with him to college? A more accurate dilemma has never been portrayed.

That said, I’m sure many of you are now beginning the most daunting of tasks: packing your life away. I am here to bring you some advice. While mostly everything you read will be frantic reminders of things you absolutely must have in college, here are five things you definitely won’t need:

1. Your high school t-shirts

All those senior shirts, club t-shirts, spirit day shirts that have been accumulating in your drawer for the past four years - take it from me and leave them all behind. BU loves to give out free stuff, especially t-shirts. Within a few weeks, you’ll have a whole new set from all the clubs you joined and all the giveaways you took advantage of.

2. Old school notebooks

You thought you were clever saving your tenth grade world history notebook didn’t cha? Let’s be real: your upcoming courses will render your old notes useless. Chances are you’ll forget you even brought them and they’ll just sit in some dark corner of your desk collecting dust for a year. Your professors, classmates, and the Internet is all you need.

3. Candles

They’re not allowed. They’re dangerous in a dormitory setting. I know it sucks. I love candles and how they make a room smell so good and how relaxing they can be. But really, just don’t bring them. They’re banned, it’s a fire hazard, trust me, it’s not worth it. Those wall plug-ins and air fresheners will work perfectly in their place.

4. Surplus storage units

Here is the irony with storage units - they take up space. I’ve found that the most useful and necessary storage units are the ones that go under the bed. Anything else, I would suggest waiting until you get to your room and seeing how much space you have left and how much stuff you still actually need to store away. That way you can make sure you get one or two that will fit your needs, and not four or five that will take up the entire room.

5. School supplies

You need something to write on and you need something write with. Anything else (rulers, glue, markers, etc.) is totally unnecessary. And I would just wait and pick up a few notebooks once you’re here instead of bringing stuff from home. Each class is different. For some, you’ll get by with taking notes on your laptop. Others you might need a binder for all the handouts and papers. Wait until the first day and your syllabus will tell you everything you need to know. Same goes for textbooks!
I hope this helps as you begin the packing process and saves you at least a little space in your suitcases and boxes! I know it’s hard to leave but it’s important to remember the amazing journey you’re about to start and how many incredible moments you have ahead. You all have so much to be proud of and it only gets better from here! See you all in a few weeks!

Tiffany: Document Everything

I hope you’re all enjoying your last weeks of summer before school begins in just a few short weeks!

As my senior year is quickly approaching (yikes!), I’ve found myself having many talks with friends about how great the past 3 years were and trying to relive the memories through photos, Facebook wall-to-walls, old blog posts, and anything we could get our hands on to remember those days.

I’ve decided that for my last leg of college I’d document the adventures, hoorahs, good times, lessons learned, mistakes (let’s hope there aren’t too many of these), and all the beauty that comes with being in college by starting a new personal blog. While revisiting some of my old blogs I found it rather fun to be able to meet my younger self and wished that I had been more consistent with posting throughout the years. But thankfully, for those times I wasn’t so active in writing about my life, I had plenty of photos to fill in the gaps.

Many of you are about to start a whole new chapter in your lives that we like to call college.

Take it from me, someone who is unfortunately on her way out, document everything! I’m choosing to do it through a new blog, but any way you can or prefer will do!  Write about it, photograph it, save mementos from special events, anything! Take advantage of the fact that we live and breathe in the digital world, so what we write online is written in something more permanent than Sharpie and will always be there (assuming the internet stays alive forever!) for us to stumble upon whenever we want to take a stroll down memory lane.

You should all be so excited because there really is no other time quite like college. It’s full of fun, adventure, friends, and so much more. So take my advice and DOCUMENT EVERYTHING!

See you all very soon and shout to #district7! Let the #COMGames begin!

Kaitlin: 5 Things To Do Before You Leave For Boston University

Hey everyone! I hope your last few weeks of summer are some of the best you’ve ever had. As the countdown for the first day of school begins, I can’t help but think of some things I wish I had done before trekking to Beantown.  Take a look at my list! Hopefully it inspires you to take advantage of my suggestions, or even think of some last minute to-dos before you go!

1. Start a Facebook group with your friends from high school.

Losing touch with your childhood buddies is inevitable.  Everyone is off at different schools, doing his or her own thing, making it super easy to lose touch with one another. I suggest creating a Facebook group with your peeps to share new stories or talk about some good memories.  This way, even though you won’t see each other face-to-face everyday, you’ll still have some idea what is going on.

2. Have your mom make you your favorite meal.

Don’t get me wrong- Boston University’s dining halls kick ass.  But there’s nothing better than your grandma’s famous mac and cheese or your dad’s veggie burgers (my pops makes the best around). So before you go, ask to have your favorite dish for dinner, and invite the whole family to join.  It’ll be a good chance for you to appreciate what you’ll be missing while being around the people you love.

3. Make goals for your freshman year.

Take a while to think about the awesome year you have ahead of you, and try to come up for somethings you want to achieve.  No one wants to fail a class, or gain the freshman 15 or lose her BU ID for the millionth time, but try to come up with a small bucket list that will inspire you throughout the year.  Maybe that means starting a new club or charity or visiting all of the special museum exhibits or having lunch with Dean Elmore.  Stay hungry and motivated!

4. Get yourself a journal.

I know you’ll have plenty of papers to write throughout the semesters ahead, but nothing compares to sitting down and recording what’s going on in your head.  Write it all down, brothers and sisters. You’ll appreciate it when you want to look back on your first few months of college and remember what you were up to.

5. Buy a bunch of disposable film cameras.

Even better than a written recollection of your year are some photos to go along with it.  And I’m  not talking about low quality pictures that you tag on Facebook.  I’m talking hard copy, raw film that you can stick in a physical photo album and look at.  There’s nothing greater than developing your rolls months later and seeing what shenanigans you were up to at the time it was used.

Let me know if you have any other off-to-school must-dos! See you all in a few weeks!

XOXO Kaitlin

Richie: Finding the Right Professor

Summer’s nearing its end and soon you’ll all be in Boston, enjoying the company of new friends and starting an incredible four year long adventure. The start of college is no doubt, exciting. Yet, I know some of you might have your small fears or may be even experiencing minor panic attacks. I promise you it’s a lot easier to adapt to than you think.

Starting off new classes was one of my personal fears. First off, its definitely wise to look up what building your class will be in before the first day. The majority of your classes your first semester are general education requirements, and for that reason, will be very spread out across the campus. Get familiar with the names and acronyms of the different buildings. Don’t be afraid to ask someone for directions.

Having a good sense of where your classes are located will also help you better understand where you’ll be able to stop for lunch in between your classes. Will you have time to make it to this dining hall, or even go back to your dorm for a bit?

It’s also good to know that all professors always go through the syllabus on the first day of classes. A break down of the grade percentage, tests, upcoming projects, will be will be explained to you right away. That way you’ll have a good sense of what’s expected of you and you won’t have to worry about being thrown to the wolves. If you realize the class you signed up for wasn’t exactly what you thought it was, don’t hesitate to talk to an academic advisor to switch out of a class.

My main bit of advice is on professors though. I know I was worried about trying to build connections with my professors.  I left high school with a lot of friends in the faculty. Recommendations and help from teachers were easy to come by, and I worried it might not be the same in college. In your smaller classes you’ll be able to stand apart and establish a good relationship by just speaking up, but your larger classes will require a bit more of you.

I’d definitely recommend finding out a professor’s office hours and making an effort to show up. They’ll admire your desire to receive extra help and will also appreciate the company. Trust me, this will be very helpful later on if you need a recommendation later on in an extracurricular, and, for many COM professors, it’ll be very helpful when your looking for that internship during the summer.

BU really has some incredible professors and I really do suggest you shape your classes around them. I always schedule my classes according to recommendations from other students, and sometimes even the website ratemyprofessor. Obviously, the reviews on the site have to be taken with a grain of salt since most people writing reviews are going to be either irrationally angry at the professor, or madly in love with them. Either way, it does help a bit. A great professor really does make all the difference in your experience at college. Not just one that will give you an easy grade, but will engage you, interest you, challenge you, and then be able to help you in after you leave their class.

Ask upperclassmen (and obviously your COM Ambassadors!) what professors they must absolutely recommend and I’m sure they’ll give you a huge list.  I definitely know the film professors that are top in my head.

Enjoy the last few weeks of summer, and get excited for Boston. I’m already excited and it’s not even my freshman year.

Steph: Clubs, Clubs, and More Clubs

Hey guys, guess what? SCHOOL STARTS SO SOON! While I’m pretty sad that summer is coming to an end, I also can’t wait to get back to Boston in just about 20 days!

The first few weeks as a college student were definitely a tough adjustment. It seems like everyone is wearing their favorite band T-shirts, desperate for someone to walk up and say, “Hey, you like the Jonas Brothers too?! So do I! LET’S BE BFFS!!” But, just remember that you aren’t the only person feeling a tad lonely—everyone is starting out the same way, hoping that someone likes the Jonas Brothers just as much as they do. Everyone is looking to make friends, so don’t be afraid to step out of your comfort zone and introduce yourself. The best way to do this is to join a club! Think about it: by joining a club, half the work is already done—you know that the people who signed up for the same club have to have something in common with you!

At the beginning of the school year, BU holds an even called SPLASH, which is an enormous club fair held on Nickerson Field. As a freshman, I was totally overwhelmed. There are just SO many clubs and organizations to get involved in; you might feel a bit lost. I did, and I ended up waiting until second semester to really commit to anything. When I finally joined BUTV in the spring as a production assistant for the soap opera Bay State, I totally regretted my decision of not starting earlier. It was clear that it’s the best and most fun way to meet people.

My advice to you is to do your research. Before you get to Boston, visit this website for a list of all the student organizations at BU so you can go into SPLASH with a better idea of what you want to sign up for: http://bu.collegiatelink.net/organizations

So do some research, sign up for anything that seems fun, and stick with one or two things. Don’t waste time like I did! See you all so soon!