My First Day of School at UCSD - Essay Example

Confessions of a UCSD Newbie Descriptive Essay It was my first day of school in UCSD, and a certain feeling of apprehension was already attacking meas I walk towards the lecture hall for the first time. I did not see anyone staring at me as if I came from another planet but I could not help entertaining the idea. I thought that this was how it feels when an Asian from a small community college suddenly finds himself mingling with local students in a big university. As soon as I stepped inside the lecture hall, the apprehension was no longer based on my being Asian but on my being a student. Compared to the classrooms that I had in community college, the lecture hall was much bigger. When my classmates began filling up the hall, I saw that the class itself was a big one. The professor had to speak loudly so that everyone can hear but I knew that those further back could no longer hear some of the points being discussed. I could hear the professor lower his voice gradually midway through the class. This was probably because he knew he should not waste his voice just for this class, especially since it was only ten o’clock in the morning. I had to turn my head often to the back because I get easily disturbed to the unnecessary noise and the small talk that some of my classmates where making. I saw that the professor seemed oblivious to the noise though. It was either because he simply could not hear from where he is standing or he just chose not to mind it. At this point, I began to remember the learning experience I had during classes in community college. As a result, my mind began to wander far, leaving the campus in San Diego and finding its way back to east LA. It was funny because I was right in front of the professor but I could not seem to hear every word he said. I was in school but my mind was in another campus. Narrative Essay There is always a certain sense of pride that I feel when I tell my neighbors and friends in LA that I am taking an art major course in UCSD. Every time I do so, I cannot help showing what may be mistaken as a conceited smile. My parents, who were most adamant in sending me to UCSD, are worse. They simply could not lower their voice as soon as they get the chance of telling anyone, especially fellow Asians, where their child is studying. Every time this happens and I am around, I have to smile back to them and to people they are talking to although I do feel a bit embarrassed. I took a visual art media major course in a community college right after I graduated high school in 2004. The community college was small and it was hard to take classes. What I liked about it though is that its classes were small. There were a few students for each class, enabling the professor to attend to the academic needs and questions of the students on an individual basis. I could easily approach the professor for help. This type of atmosphere aided me a lot in learning the course in a fast and easy manner. I later decided to pursue a degree in animation major at Cal State Fullerton. However, my parents insist that I should continue my college studies in a more prestigious school such as UCSD. I knew right away that it was not a very good idea. UCSD is about a three-hour drive from our place. That would mean that I have to take up residence there for practical reasons. Consequently, I would have to leave my friends and family behind and enter a totally unfamiliar terrain. I knew that this would create challenges which I never got to experience in community college or would ever meet if I had the chance of studying in Cal State Fullerton. Nevertheless, I trusted my parents’ wisdom and my adaptive capabilities. That is why I decided to give UCSD a try. Exposition Essay Being in a new place without anyone familiar can be a very difficult experience for someone who also looks quite unfamiliar to others. I wear the same types of clothes like others do and I try as hard as I can to fit in. However, I still believe I stand out different from the rest because I can never shed off my Asian looks. The more I see fellow UCSD students who are obviously Asian or other foreign race though, the more I get convinced that the emphasis I place on my being different is actually wrong. I live and grew up in LA but my parents decided to send me here in UCSD. Just like many Asian families, my family is closely knit. We often spend our most enjoyable moments together and not as individuals going with respective friends. However, it is being Asians too that probably firmed up my parents’ decision to send me to UCSD. They like the thought of having a child striving for a college diploma in prestigious university. This makes them think that they are no different from the rest of the Americans. In fact, this also feeds their fancy of hearing others admire the fact that they are sending their child to a good school. Therefore, I actually am beset with pressure on three fronts; on academics, on being with other students, and on being a part of an Asian family. Although, I have nothing against the course I am taking. In fact, if my studies have been in an environment more suitable for me, I think it is absolutely fun. It is just I can always feel the pressure of being like the others although this has been decreasing as time passes by. What bothers me most, however, is the thought that I have to excel or, at least, make good in my studies and live up to my parents expectations. Nutshell Paragraph The hardest part of being a student in UCSD happens only during the early months of being a newbie in school. This experience is certainly not exclusive to me or to students who belong to other non-Caucasian races. However, what makes my case different is that I was already apprehensive about going to UCSD in the first place. This apprehension naturally reduced or eradicated any sign of excitement that is normally felt by students who enroll in a prestigious university. My parents’ expectations only added more pressure one me as I dealt with the change of environment and the challenges of my academics. In such disposition, it was easy for me to make a big deal out of the negative but minor aspects of the school. Tension The challenges of studying away from home, meeting people’s expectations, and adapting to a new school at one point drove me to consider transferring to another educational institution in LA. However, as I soon began to gain friends from among the students in UCSD, I learned that such challenges are quite normal and all I have to do is to strengthen my resolve in finishing my course so that I can weather it all. Justification I am about to graduate this spring and this fact tells me that I have, in fact, weather the challenges. Looking back at the difficulties that I had to face as a newbie, I now realized that if I have to prepare myself for the real world then I must know what living in it is. The real world does not revolve around my family only, not even around the entire LA. The challenges I faced in UCSD as a newbie taught me that people show their best when in the midst of difficulties in and unfamiliar environment. Read More