Changes In College free essay sample

Have you changed since you started college? â€Å"Does Coming to College Mean Becoming Someone New? † by Kevin Davis talks about his journey through college and how the school system made him hate what he thought he loved. The question arose in his article: do you become someone different when you arrive at college? Through my experience here at SUNY Oswego for the first year, I would say you definitely learn to think differently when it comes to your major. This is not always a bad thing, in fact, it’s a positive benefit. Thinking differently and more critically about things helps you grow as a person. Myself being a broadcasting major, watching TV is very hard for me now. Coming to college changes your outlook on your major or field, yourself and even life in general. Before I started taking video production classes, I never realized all the work that goes into even just one thirty-second commercial. This class has drastically changed my perception of the broadcasting field and has gotten me more excited to graduate and find a job. Davis states that his teachers made him think a certain way as an English major, â€Å"When I became an English major, I didn’t just learn certain understandings of what I read; I also had to learn a particular way of reading and writing. † (Davis 115). Some people like this new way of reading and writing, and some people believe that their way is better and refuse to change their ways. If you are going to learn and advance in your college field, you are going to have to change your outlook to some degree in order to get a job in the real world. For example: the industries right now are using a program called Avid Mediacomposer to edit their projects. If I decided I didn’t want to learn that program because I was already sufficient in Finalcut Pro, then no one would hire me. You have to mold yourself to what the industry is looking for at the time. If you truly love your field, than this should not be a problem and you will do it without question. If this makes you question why you are studying your major then you probably shouldn’t be studying it. Davis states, â€Å"Literary studies expected me to become somebody new, somebody I was unwilling to become. I was willing to become a business manager and, later, a rhetorician. † (Davis 120). Since he was willing to become those things, he succeeded. Another way college has changed my outlook on my major is by looking at the process of finishing products. I am always constantly asking myself, â€Å"I wonder how they edited that? Or, how long did that take? †. I also over analyze every TV show and movie looking for discontinuances in the production, trying to find every little thing they did wrong. Before studying broadcasting I never questioned television productions but now I have learned to question everything. Yes, coming to college does change your outlook on your major which should make you into a better student and person. Ever get that, â€Å"You’ve changed†¦Ã¢â‚¬  speech from a friend? While personality changes are usually negatively connotated, positive change does exist. When one first arrives at college, they want to take the whole college experience in. They probably join a few clubs, find new friends, talk to a lot of people, etc. During this process you may change your outlook on yourself as a person. I know when I first arrived at college I became a lot more outgoing than in high school simply because no one knew me and I felt I wasn’t being labeled anymore as something I’m not. Davis talks about how he would have had to change his writing style in order to become a successful student. I can see how this is aggravating since writing is like your own voice, yourself as a person. Being asked to change that is like them asking you to change yourself. Sure, there are ways you can change for the worst. Making bad decisions in college has seemed to be a large trend here it just depends on how you spend your time. Here in college you might also learn some skills that you never knew you had. It’s the one place where you still have little responsibility and can learn and grow as a person. You can find a long lost love with organic chemistry for all you know; changing is a part of life and finding out who you are or who you want to be. College is the perfect place to figure those answers out. Before my quest to SUNY Oswego in the fall, my outlook on life was very negative. I didn’t have trust in people, I didn’t like even being in the same room as a lot of people I knew from back at home. Moving away from all the drama and negativity has really changed the way I look at life. When you are a child, you think of college as some holy trinity where you become amazing in what you want to do in life and they get a job for you. This dream quickly goes away when you realize the reality of college. You are not going to become amazing in your field unless you go above and beyond what teachers ask you. You also have to take advantage of every opportunity that comes your way. And also, many people can’t even afford to come here, that dream may be too far stretched. College has definitely altered my overall outlook on life to the harsh realities, but also it opened my eyes to a different world than the one I knew at home. People here are much more welcome and all around better people than the students I went to high school with. This probably has something to do with maturity and that they’re actually paying for their schooling so everyone is taking it more seriously, but it ultimately has changed my outlook on life for the better. Moving away is something that every person should experience at one time in their life because it makes you think about things differently than you normally would. Students in college (for the most part) have motivation, and that motivation drives them to success. Motivation is something that I definitely lacked in high school, and coming here has helped spark the flames and pushed me towards a better outlook on my future. College changes your view of your major, yourself, and the world for the better. College is a transitional period of time between childhood and adult hood. It’s where a lot of people find out things about themselves, their major and the world. It’s a very educational experience inside the classroom and out. It helps people better themselves and preps them for the world they’re about to enter. Davis eventually found his niche in the higher education world although it started out a bit disastrous. As long as you’re passionate and enjoy what you’re doing, you will be successful in college.