My First Year at John Jay

Educating for Justice Gala

2010-10-22T05:45:00.000-07:00

Hey everyone! Ahh its been a while! I hope your semesters are all going great and your midterms are moving along well =)

I've been starting to get stressed myself with all the work! Balancing 6 classes and student council is not as "alright, I can do it all" as I thought at first.. Haha time management has definitely the key thing that's helping me out now. But I do tend to slack at times =( Not the time to do so, especially during midterms time!

Anyway ,the purpose of this blog post is to tell you about an extraordinary event I attended last Thursday night. John Jay College held an "Educating for Justice Gala" I was invited by Ms. Vielka Holness of the Pre-law Institute, and I was definitely glad that I attended! The event was held in honor of a phenomenal company and individual; IBM Smarter Cities Initiative and Frederick "Fritz" A.O. Schwartz, Jr. and inn celebration of the IBM smart classrooms. "We honor them because they share a commitment to improving the way government works to promote justice and improve the safety of New Yorkers and others around the country and the globe" (President Travis).

Last year, IBM launched a nation wide program called Smarter Cities which was desighned to assist cities incorporate intelligence into the way they go about their everyday life.
The night started with a brief meet-and-greet in the theater lobby of the T-Building. Students, faculty, government officials, honorary guests, members of the board of trustees and many more were in attendence to get to know each other and the networking opportunies were endless! After the meet-and-greet session among everyone, we all headed into the lobby where President Travis addressed all the guests and a powerpoint about IBM Smarter Cities was shown. There were a few honorary guests who spoke and introduced themselves to the audience. During the middle of his presentation, President Travis took a break and musician, Predro Pablo Marinez came on stage to perform with his band. From the reaction of the audience, it was clear that I wasn't the only one who enjoyed the performance and extremely impressed with them! After they performed, President Travis resumed with his remarks.

When he was done, everyone headed to the 4th floor gym for dinner. BELIEVE ME when I tell you, the 4th floor gym looked AMAZING. Haha and I mean amazing! I have never seen it like this. It looked completely transformed. The lights were dimmed to look like an actual restaurant, the table arrangements were beautiful and the food was phenomenal! The rest of the dinner was filled with great food, good conversation, amazing people. This night was such a beautiful night, and I cannot be more happy that I went! That was my night at the, Educating for Justice Gala and it was a great celebration for the IBM Smarter Cities program!

Also on a side note, there is a learning communities showcase on December 2nd. For all the freshmans/faculty/interested student that will be participating or attending this semester, I'll be stopping by for a little bit. I hope to meet some of you there! =)

Her Movement Against Injustice

2010-04-05T10:32:00.001-07:00

Hi again everyone! So in the last post- I touched briefly upon my new club, "Her Movement Against Injustice." In this post, I'm going to tell you all what it actually is. This club was started at the beginning of the school year and we've had 2 meetings since. Let me tell you- it has been crazyyy hectic trying to find a faculty advisor, talk to people who can help us get the club going, promoting, the budget, etc. The club is still in the process of getting certified, but we're making sure we make good use of the time while we wait. The founders of the club is Angela Ayed (president), Stephanie Colon (vice president), Jessica Cotto (treasurer) and me, Michelle Tsang (secretary). The group was founded through a massive amount of interest on very taboo topics. After learning that this there was no club about these topics... we created one! =]
"Her Movement Against Injustice" is an extremely powerful group. In this club- we focus on domestic violence, female genital mutilation and sex trafficking. The main goal of this club is to raise awareness. As I mentioned, these topics are very taboo and controversial and even though people may wonder.... they dont necessarily do anything to find out the facts. Our club is to raise awareness and talk about it to let people know that just because it is not talked about- it doesnt mean it doesnt exist. We will let you know what is really going on and what's happening. Some of the information that we discovered was just... wow... the girls and I were speechless at some of the facts and stories we found.
Throughout this semester- we have just been getting things together to get this club running. Sheesh.. I had no idea creating a club would be this much work! But come next semester- this club will be good to go. The girls and I have big plans for the club! We will be holding fundraisers, getting guest speakers, going to events together, etc. It's something that we are all excited about. The date of our next meeting is still uncertain- but keep an eye out for flyers around the school and check it out! I'll keep you all updated! Talk to you all soon! Byee =)

Teacher Assistant for ETH 125 =)

2010-04-05T09:57:00.000-07:00

Hey everyone! I hope you've all had a restful, fun and hopefully (though unlikely) homework free Spring break! Im sure you all agree with me that this was a MUCH needed break... especially with the beautiful weather we've been having these past few days. Unfortunately I have 2 papers and a bunch of Math homework to do haha. After midterms, im sure all of you were like me and just wanted spring break to come and sit back and relax! Haha, but now that spring break is over... time to focus again! =) (And a side note- I hope you all did well on all your midterms!)
Let me just fill you all in on what I've been up to besides doing mad work trying to keep up with the reading haha. Well, one thing that I am super excited about is that I am now one of your Sophomore Representatives for next year! =) I look forward to helping you all. Another thing was that at the beginning of March, I went to Towson for another debate tournament. This tournament was really fun. Despite not winning any rounds- surprisingly I learned A LOT, more than I did the past 2 tournaments, which is awesome. We also have a John Jay Debate Tournament coming up towards the end of the month, which I am so stoked about! It is basically where all the debaters just go up against each other, so I cant wait for that! Another thing that's been going on is that my friends and I have been really getting the new club together and organizing meetings. I'm not sure if you all have seen flyers around the school, but my friends and I have started a new club called "Her Movement Against Injustice". This is an extremely powerful club and I'll touch more on it in my next post! =]
So today, I'm going to tell you about something I've been involved in. Since the semester started- I have had the opportunity to become a student assistant for an Ethnics 125 course with Professor Navarro. Let me start out by saying- this experience was something I definitely did not expect. It's such an amazing chance to really see things from a different view, and I'm totally serious haha. My job is to just help the professor if he needs help and be there for the students if they need help with anything as well. I think this is a wonderful experience because I am actually able to see the class from a "assistant" perspective, as well as the students themselves. Being a student assistant, I understand the professor's view more (in the sense of how they see things) and at the same time... I understand how the students view topics as well. Another thing that I enjoy is just being in the setting and hearing different opinions! Last semester- I took an Ethnics 125 course with Professor Hodges... so I think its really interesting to just compare and contrast in a way the views of the students and what they feel about certain topics. Another thing is that I am extremely interested in race and ethnicity in general. And for me to be able to help out and be there for the students is great. I have been a bit quiet in class, but when I get to know the students more, I'll get more adjusted and speak more. But I do feel a connection with them when we do group work which is great. On top of that- Being a teacher assistant is just fun and I do love helping people haha =) I am there to help the professor and share my opinion, but at the same time... the pressure of actually being graded academically is off my shoulders. I look forward to helping out more and just being there for Prof Navarro and my classmates if they need me! =) Until the next post everyone... take care!

The Second Semester @ JJAY

2010-03-26T08:35:00.000-07:00

Hey! It has been so long since I have been able to update on the blog! I have been so caught up in the world of John Jay (well, more of the work) that I barely have had time to take a breather. The workload is incredible! Like Michelle had said in her earlier blog, its the reading that takes up the most time. If even by one assignment you fall behind, you might never catch up again! haha. Currently, I have fallen behind on my reading for my Government 101 class, and let me tell you its no walk in the park! The professor sometimes will assign 100 pages on Tuesday night and that reading has to be done by Thursday afternoon, because we never know when we are going to be getting a pop quiz on the material for the reading. I try to stay ahead of myself in the readings, but that's more work than anything. I practically read on the train, bus, and sometimes even walking to class.

Classes overall aren't so bad. Not as much notes to be taken down if the reading is done. Some of my professors are awsome, then there are some I just feel like ripping my hair out when I go to their classes. As of right now, Spring break has began (whoo!), but its a relief for me so I can catch up on what I have fallen behind in the past few weeks.

I have also changed my major to forensic psychology. I have found that psychology has a lot of research and learning that can be done and I find that really fasinating. Criminal Justice, my original major, was also interesting but I found that I wasn't able to expand to my fullest potential. So you can guess what class I am going to be getting an A in this semester :) haha.

Well, that's all for now...I just thought I would update my fellow readers on the life as a second semester college freshman haha!

Until next time...enjoy Spring Break, if I don't get a chance to update later on!

"From Blogs to Blockbusters"

2010-02-27T15:37:00.000-08:00

Hey everyone!
This past Wednesday, I was invited to attend a very interesting event called, "From Blogs to Blockbusters". Ms. Jessica Wells Cantiello of FYE invited me and several other bloggers to this event at the JCC in Manhattan. "From Blogs to Blockbusters" is an interview that was conducted by Abigail Pogrebin. She had two special guests on the show in which she interviewed about how they went from simply blogging to big success later on that developed off the blogging. The two guest were Julie Powell and Gretchen Rubin.
In this series of interview, Powell and Rubin were able to tell the audience about their experience regarding their success. Ms. Powell spoke about her blogging and how that eventually led to her expedition towards cooking. She also spoke about her book, "Julie & Julia: My Year of Cooking Dangerously", which was eventually made into a movie back in 2009. Ms Rubin spoke about her quest to find happiness and how it all started while she was stuck in traffic one day! Haha I found that extremely interesting. Rubin also spoke briefly about her book and how she got where she is today.
I actually got a lot out of this interview series (even though I was only working off 3 hours of sleep and a lot of stress that day haha)! One thing that I got out of this is to blog often! Now, I knowww I am totally doing the opposite and I truly apologize for that =( I've just been so caught up with school work- I haven't had time, but I will definitely keep more posts from now on... or at least i'll try my best to do so =] The reason that Ms. Rubin said we should blog often is to keep the readers into the blog. By posting often, people will actually follow the blog and be interested in what is going on. I want you all to know about my experience as a first year student at John Jay so I will do my best to keep you all updated.
Another thing I got out of this interview is that what to just live life and be happy. When Julie Powell was telling the audience what happened to her and how people viewed her as a "skank" after her movie, she told us how she didn't care and simply continued to live life. I think this is extremely important. I'm sure all of you had heard this before... not to care what others think and its easier said than done. I know this myself. But if you all really think about it, its true. What others say is THEIR opinion... dont even bother listening to them because it is your life and if you let others get to you, it will hold you back. Powell is still probably more successful than any of those people who criticized her and she didn't let those comments get to her. She knows it's not true and she'll live her life as she would without them =)
Also, I learned that in life, we should just enjoy the fun of failure. Life is trying your best to accomplish what you set your mind on, but if you fail... embrace it and learn from it to pick yourself up and do better the next time. Don't give up. My corrections professor (Professor Kimora) bought up something that I go by day to day. "It's only a mistake if you don't learn anything", and I find that so true! This event was a very good experience and I'm definitely glad that I was a part of it! Until the next post everyone, have a good night! =]

And the Workload Starts to Build Up...

2010-02-26T17:41:00.000-08:00

Hey everyone! Ahh its been a while. I'm soo sorry about that!
But, I'm sure all of you know what the workload is starting to build up. Even though it's the second semester of college- it still takes some adjusting to. My main problem right now isn't even the papers surprisingly... it's the readings. There is just so much reading to do and it's hard to keep up! All your professors expect you to read read and read at least a chapter for next class... and it makes me think.. "ughh how many pages is this chapter?!" =( Haha i'm sure you all can relate though.
Also, I have my first exam of the semester next week! I have a math test and I dont know about you all- but math has NEVER been a strong point for me haha. All the numbers and everything... GAHH! Wish me luck!
Haha but other than that... my courses are going well so far. I did learn from last semester to keep up with the school work, focus in class and keep on top of everything going on. This semester, i'm just nerding it up 2x! Haha I find myself always in the library, or reading or doing some type of work for school.. but it's all good =] I'm determined to bring my GPA up and work my hardest to get into law school in 3 years. It's a long stretch of time, but success takes time. Good luck to you all trying to keep up with your work as well! And comment if anything to let me know what's going on with you guys. Until the next post, take care everyone!

Second Semester of College?! =]

2010-01-27T19:36:00.000-08:00

Hey again everyone! Ahh can you all believe that the second semester of college has started?! First semester was a bit hectic with the transition from high school to John Jay, but now that we all kind of got into the hang of things... there is definitely much more to look forward to from my perspective! I'm also so hyped that I actually finished my first semester of college! Ahh! =]
My first day of class was on Thursday and I thought that it was quite successful! I had math and english and it seems like I'll get a lot of these courses.
Also, no offense to any of my professors last semester... but let me say, I am so grateful for ratemyprofessor.com. This was my first time using it and SO FAR- it seems effective. Haha even though certain professors I had last semester were okay (as professors in general)... I just didn't quite grasp their teaching method and I didn't learn much from them. Don't get me wrong- they were all really nice people... but I just did not understand from their method of teaching. This semester, hopefully things will get better.
With this new semester quickly approaching... I am both as excited as can be and as nervous as can be! I am extremely excited because it is the start of a brand new semester.. I'm sure this happened to you one way or another last semester. But at first... I was on top of all the reading and assignments. But eventually- I fell behind and I was stressing to catch up, but that only added to more stress and falling behind even more because I wasn't grasping the concepts. With this new semester- I'm determined to stay on top of my work and work hard to succeed. I'm also excited because who isn't excited to start something new (a new semester I mean). Now that I finally got into the hang of "college" - I am more comfortable with things and I've adjusted. So time to go back, work hard and focus! =]
I'm also crazy nervous about this semester as well. One reason is because of some of the courses I'm taking. I know some of these classes require A LOTT of reading and the reading is what I have to keep up with in order to know what's going on in class. So I'm a bit scared about that =/ I'm also nervous because it's that bittersweet feeling again. As I mentioned in my excited part because of a new semester.. I'm also nervous because I don't know what to really expect. Also, I want to get my GPA up this semester, so I'm stressing myself to do the best that I can.
Coming back to school after a month break- I'm excited to see everyone again and just be back into "school mode" haha. This is soo different from high school! Winter break and having no work was nice- but personally... I feel its good to just get back into the swing of things and go back to school and have classes and all that- after being on break for so long. Not so much the workload, but you get what I mean =) I'm a bit of a nerd, as you can tell haha. But I like school and I'm really looking forward to working hard this semester. Anyway.. I wish you all the best of luck with the new semester and I'll keep blogging throughout =)

Prelaw Bootcamp I

2010-01-20T15:22:00.000-08:00

Hey everyone! I hope you're all having a relaxing and easy going break =)
I've been busy since finals week, but I'm loving every minute of it. After finals, I went to Hong Kong to visit my grandma. She's 98! But she's adorable haha. I came back on New Years Eve, and a few days after... I started Pre-Law Bootcamp I. That lasted for a week, then I had a Debate retreat in which I was able to improve and learn more about the skills and strategies of Debate. And now this week- I am just going to school to do some work. I must say, from bootcamp to the debate retreat... It was an intense and hardworking 2 weeks!
But after all of that, I dont regret it. There was not a minute I thought, "What was I thinking?" Haha so anyway... the point of this post is to talk to you all about Prelaw bootcamp.
First of all, It was an amazing experience and I was so happy I was able to be a part of it. Walking in on the first day- I had no idea what to expect. The day before I left for Hong Kong (the 22nd), we had to go to the Prelaw Institute to pick up the required reading. After having read One L, written by Scott Turow and doing a vocabulary assignment, I walked in extremely stressed. I wasn't only stressed because I now questioned whether I reallly want to go to law school, but I was stressed about the massive amount of work I knew I had ahead of me. The first day went by quick and wasn't as bad as I was afraid it would be. We started off with introductions, then a newspaper exercise (in which we had to find words we didn't know the meaning to), then we worked with our tables and did an assignment about One L. After that, we had lunch in which Mr. David Stoll of Princeton Review spoke to us about the LSAT and the law school application process. After lunch, we worked on another assignment and started talking about personal statements until the day ended. The next three days revolved around the same general idea, but with different speakers during lunch, more sentence structuring methods and much more helpful tips on how to write and perfect a personal statement. The students of Prelaw bootcamp I had the honor of having President Travis, Provost Jane Bowers, Professor Jodie Roure (of the Ronald H. Brown Summer Law School Prep Program), a bunch of law students, alumni, and attorneys who took the time to come in to speak to us. Each day was tiring, but I can honestly say that it was all worth it.
Before I started, one of my friend's told me about a tshirt she got while she was doing prelaw bootcamp last year. It said "I survived Prelaw Bootcamp" (or somewhere along the lines of that haha) But after she told me... I thought, "oh it cant be thatt bad." Thinking back now... wow. Haha even though it wasnt crazy crazy, each day was extremely packed and intense with work. I sat through 7 hours each day of straight work. Even though it was mad work, I'm still happy I was a part of it! I did learn a lot about better sentence structuring, vocabulary buildup and ESPECIALLY about personal statements! This experience was truly great and I met some amazing people. I learned MUCH more than I did before walking into bootcamp. I would definitely recommend anyone wanting to become a lawyer to apply to bootcamp during the Summer or during the next winter intercession. Also, I would like to take the opportunity to thank all the professors and advisors who were able to help us make Prelaw bootcamp such a success. Ms. Vielka Holness, Professor Nair, Professor Scott, Professor Tung and Professor Ulrich. It truly meant a lot for them to dedicate their time.

Learning Communities Showcase

2009-12-18T20:31:00.000-08:00

Hii! =) At the beginning of the semester, during registration, I registered for 2 linked communities courses. I'm sure most of you know what I am talking about, but for those of you who dont... It is basically two classes back to back with the same people in both classes. My linked course that I chose was Criminal Justice 101 with Professor Kimora and English 101 with Prof. Jacques. I thought that this was such an amazing program because I was able to meet some great friends and really get close with them (because we had two classes together, the classes werent as big, and we were just able to connect better)
Towards the end of the semester, the learning communities classes had final projects. The project the Professor Kimora present was, "In a perfect world, one aspect of criminal justice is..." For my presentation, I did that, In a perfect world, one aspect of criminal justice is that there would be complete trust in the criminal justice system and respect among the people. When my professor first told us about the projects, she also told us about a showcase at the end of the semester presenting for President Travis, the Provost Jane Bowers, and other professors and guests of the John Jay community. When I first heard about this opportunity, I wasnt sure if I necessarily wanted to sign up because I'm horrible at presenting and I get nervous easily. But I figured, why not? I'll just write up a speech and prepare prepare prepare, so i'll know the stuff with the snap of a finger haha. I presented for the class and I thought that it went well. Even though I did feel my voice breaking a little during my speech, I was still able to get my point across.
On the day of the actual showcase, I was so nervous and I even had a little stressful moment because my partner had my poster board and she was running late. But eventually she showed up and the program started. When the first person came up to us, I was extremely nervous... but as more and more people came up to us... I became less tense because it actually wasnt so bad. I knew my stuff and their was nothing to worry about. I also realized that my eye contact had gotten better as the program went on because I started feeling more and more confident about my speech.
The program took place in the multipurpose room. I thought that this was a great opportunity for all the learning community classes to really show off what they have learned throughout the semester. I saw some amazing projects and I am so happy that I was a part of this whole experience and the presenting!
I met some great friends in learning communities and I look forward to continuing the friendships throughout the next 4 years of college!

P.S. Sorry about this sudden load of five posts in a row! Haha I typed them all on MS Word earlier this evening, so I just proofread, copied and pasted them all at one time. But hope you all enjoyed =) Have a good weekend!

FYE Focus Group

2009-12-18T20:11:00.000-08:00

Hey again! Haha. A couple of weeks ago, I participated in an FYE Focus Group session. This group was ran by Ms. Cornelia Preda of First Year Experience. Basically, this was a 2 hour session consisting of about 8 people and we just talked about our first semester of college.
I thought that this session was extremely helpful because I didnt feel as out of place. During the conversations that took place, I realized that many of the other freshmans like myself were going through the same things. I honestly felt that I was the only one who felt like we couldnt keep up with the work, or that making friends is not as easy as we thought.. etc.
I went in feeling nervous because I didnt necessarily know that people I was going to be talking to and I'm not really good at opening up so quick. Even though this session was being videotaped, I eventually let loose and starting talking about my opinions of college because I saw that I am not alone. We are all stressing about all the work, nervous to make new friends because all of John Jay is "in their own little world", going crazy about all the reading, etc.
After the session, I realized yes, college may be hard at first.. but over time, it will get easier. We are all just coming out of high school, but eventually.... We will all get use to this work and we will learn about time management much better. Wish you all the best of success for next semester! =)

John Jay Career Fair

2009-12-18T19:57:00.001-08:00

Hey again! Haha so this third post is about the career fair that John Jay held a couple of weeks ago in the gymnasium at the T Building. After class, I went to check it out. I thought that it was extremely helpful.
I was able to talk to many representatives for different jobs and hear the actual inputs of what employers really look for. Aside from that, many of the jobs were ones that I was extremely interested in because they all had some aspect of the government or criminal justice involved in it. This is perfect for John Jay because we all came here to study a part of criminal justice, and it is perfect for me... because more than half those jobs caught my eye.
I also found some of the jobs interesting as well... by that, I mean that I've never heard of it. One of the tables I talked to was JC Penny. At this table, the man was telling me about the JC Penny Lost Prevention job position. What this job does is that it investigates crimes and thefts that occur in JC Pennies. I never really took the time to think that this was even a part of the company. So this Career Fair made me realize that Criminal Justice is a part of everything and that actually fascinates me because I truly never really thought of it that way.
Even though I wasn't a Junior or Senior (which was the requirement for many of the jobs), I was still able to speak to the representative and ask about some internship opportunities. I applied for the Civilain Complaint Review Board (CCRB) Internship program and I am currently working on my essay for the Criminal Law Internship Program which will take place in Washington D.C. if I get chosen. Wish me luck! This career fair, I can tell, provides many great opportunities for everyone and I wish them all the best in their job search!
I'm not sure when the next one will be, but I do know that John Jay will be holding another career fair in the Spring Semester (in April I think)... So if you all have a chance, make sure you dress up in interview attire and check it out! Hope to see you all there!

Debate Tournament at Westconn =)

2009-12-18T19:36:00.000-08:00

Hey everyone, as I said in the post before, I will be posting four posts in a row to catch you up on everything that's been going on! =)
Remember a while ago, I was talking about going to my second debate tournament? Well... On the weekend of the 14th of November, I went to Westconn with the debaters. Like the first one, this tournament was so much and I learned a lot as well! I had to switch partners because the partnership with my first partner was terrible basically...
But anyway.. I won my first round in this tournament! I came into this tournament knowing the evidence much better. Looking back at it now, I was extremely happy about this tournament because even though I only won one round, I learned a lot about the policies of debate. Also, my partner and I had a lot of opportunities to win as well. We had five rounds. The first round, we could've won, but we lost because we didn't realize we had answers to their arguments. The second round, we could've won also but we lost on timeframe (the time in between which our plan compared to theres will happen) We lost the third and fourth, but won the fifth one! =) Haha you're probably thinking, "but you still lost..." Yes, that is true, but thinking back and comparing this tournament to the first tournament, I realized that my debating skills has actually gotten better and I could've actually won more rounds =]
Over the winter sesssion, I will be going to school on mondays- thursdays for a Debate winter session. I am actually looking forward to improving my debating and learning more about the evidence. I am determined to be a better debater by next semester and win more =) Haha when my partner and I first heard the judge say, "Im going to have to vote for the affirmative"... I almost jumped out of my seat. But I stayed calmed. But hearing that made my day! It is the greatest feeling to know that youre just a novice debater and winning your first round is simply amazing =) haha I am looking forward to more tournaments next semester and hopefully... feeling that same feeling of winning more rounds!

Ending of the First Semester of College! =]

2009-12-18T19:20:00.000-08:00

Hey everyone! Wow.. It's been a while. Sorry about that! I've been soo caught up with school work, which I know you all know what I mean =/
But this is the first of my five posts in a row =]
But anyway... I hope all is going well with your finals =) Some of you are even done, which is awesome because you can finally enjoy a month off, unlike the 2 weeks in high school!! haha. I still have 2 more finals, but I cant wait to finish and say that I've officially completed my first semester of college! =D
There are soo many emotions I'm feeling at the moment. I'm sure you have all been feeling this lately or have felt this already. But wow.. I feel stressed, happy, joy, excitement, scared, etc. From the nerves of how you did on your finals, to the excitement you feel about finally finishing your first semester, to realizing... wow.. I'm growing up.
This first semester of college flewww by for me! Even though the work load was crazy and at times, it felt like time was just dragging itself... looking back at it now... It really did go by quick! The first semester was amazing. I have made so many great friends, met some amazing professors and just experienced what it is really like to be a college student and on my own without a teacher to "baby" me like in high school.
Honestly... words cant even describe how I'm feeling right now. I remember it like it was just yesterday when I was freaking out about my first day of school! And now, I'm taking finals and realizing, wow... I'm done with a whole semester! Haha.
I have learned a few important lessons though throughout this semester though that'll help us all achieve better in the spring...
1) as my English 101 professor said, "The best way to fall behind in college is doing the work as it comes along" -Prof Jacques. This is extremely true because the work load REALLY builds up. At the beginning of the semester, we each get a syllabus. Do the work for next week ahead of time. This is effective because in class, we will know what is going on (instead of relying on the homework THAT night to clarify) and... we will be able to ask questions about what we don't understand, instead of having to ask the professor the next class and get confused with everything that's going on.
2) KEEP UP WITH THE READING! And don't necessarily read ALL the words in the text. This takes way too much time. Instead, read a few sentences in each paragraph and skim the rest of the paragraph (or until you get the idea of what the paragraph is talking about). Trust me... It really does help.
3) If a professor gives an opportunity for extra credit, TAKE IT! Don't think that you're doing fine, so you dont need to do the extra credit. In college, every little bit helps
=]

Once again, CONGRATULATIONS TO ALL OF YOU FOR COMPLETING YOUR FIRST SEMESTER! =) and Good luck with all your finals!

Stress/Outside Drama/Schoolwork = CONFUSION

2009-11-09T18:54:00.000-08:00

Hey everyone! Its been a while since I posted! Ahh i've just been so caught up with school work and other drama going on in my life =/ But I'm back now haha
In this post, I'm going to get a bit personal. These past two weeks, I have been going through a lot of stuff with my friends and outside stuff that wasn't pleasant to deal with, to say the least. These past two weeks, I've had to deal with an ex boyfriend, my cousins coming over (Which just caused stressed because I didn't have much time to do work), and just other drama with my friends. For some reason, everything was happening all at once and it was NOT fun to deal with at all. I had trouble concentrating in school because all this "outside" stuff was just taking my attention away. I finally realized this weekend that it wasnt worth it. I had a bunch of work to do and I shouldve been focusing on this instead of worrying about my ex or having all this other useless drama come around.
Haha ANYWAY... the purpose of this post is to tell you all that even though outside stress and drama may come your way, (as hard as it seems) find a way to look on the positive side. The work your professors give, dont stop. They dont know about this stuff going on. The work just keeps coming and you shouldnt let something like useless drama get to you because it's not worth it. You are just stressing yourself out, and possibly ruining your mood. While all at the same time, work is just building up. If drama comes your way that you dont want... drop it. Dont bother with it anymore and do what I did this weekend, block it out and focus on your school work. I learned the hard way these past two weeks by constantly getting upset (thinking about stuff) and I realized, and said to myself "why the hell does this even matter? Just drop it."
This post probably seems random and out of nowhere (haha) but the point I'm trying to emphasize is, dont let small things get to you. Its never too late to learn about yourself and realize that you live your life for you. Life's what you make it, right? Dont let anyone change your life or tell you otherwise. So in conclusion, dont stress over useless stuff. You need to live your life for you and make the best of it. There's no point in working yourself up over something that DOESN'T matter, when you should be focusing on something else that does (school work--> your future). So take it easy everyone... and just drop all the unwanted drama =]

Oh yeah, remember a while back... I told you all about my experience at my first debate tournament in University of Richmond? Well, this friday... I'm leaving for Westconn for my second tournament! I'm actually REALLLLY excited because I understand the evidence more this time and I just feel more prepared. So we'll see how this tournament goes =) Until the next post, take care everyone!

Advisement Sessions/Change of Majors

2009-11-02T15:32:00.000-08:00

Wow! It's been a while since I have updated last. College has become so hectic with homework, assignments and keeping up with reading. Things have started to get tough, and extremely tiring! The workload sometimes is more than I can handle =/

However, Spring Registration has started for those who have attended an advisement session (how time flies!). So as a reminder to all freshman, there is a block on all accounts and you will not be able to register for classes unless you attend a session. The benefit of sitting and going through with this hour and 50 minute session? Get first dibs on the classes you want at the times you want before registration opens up for the entire college on November 9th (no more complaining!). You can set up an appointment at the Advisement Office in the lobby of the N building. The sessions help to clear up a lot of questions about what classes to take next or required courses you need in order to graduate.

In the past week, I have been trying to figure out how to change my major from criminal justice to forensic psychology. After many failed attempts of standing in the long lines at One Stop or online, I was told that as an entering freshman majors can not be changed until grades come in December! Why? No idea! haha. However, if you are thinking about changing majors and want to go see an overview of classes you would be required to take you can refer to the Degree Audit on CUNY Portal. Its extremely helpful!! All you need to do is log onto http://www.cuny.edu/, log into the CUNY Portal and when the homepage opens up click on "Student Advisment/DegreeAudit (DegreeWorks)". You can view your current degree process by clicking on "View Audit" or if you would like to see what classes would be needed for different majors you can do that by clicking the "What if" button. And I say this again-its so simple and so helpful in helping you understand your degree process!

Well, until next time with some more helpful advice :)

Take care,
Farah

Major/ Minor Fair

2009-10-16T21:14:00.000-07:00

Hey everyone! I just wanted to post a quick blog telling you all about the Major/Minor fair next week! Credit to Mrs. Louise Freymann of the academic advisement department for reminding me =)
Some of you might've seen the desk in the North Hall lobby with information on it. Basically, what it is, is a fair with different departmental tables and representative for each one. You will have the opportunity to go to the tables and talk to the faculty representatives about certain majors or minors that you may be interested in or have questions about. It will be held in the North Hall cafeteria on Monday Oct 19th from 11-2:00 and on Tuesday Oct 20th from 2-5:00.
Aside from the departmental tables, there will be a special panel for John Jay peer advisors also! They will be there to answer questions students may have on certain majors as well as their own experiences to "discuss how and why they chose their major, what they enjoy about their major, what advice they would give to younger students still unsure of their major, etc." This peer advisor panel however, will be held in the Multi Purpose Room im room 2200N which is just outside the cafeteria. The panels would be run on Monday Oct 19th from 12:30-1:45 and on Tuesday Oct 20th from 3:35-4:50. It'll be a good opportunity to check it out and hear some opinions from actual students as well =]
I know this major/minor fair will really help me because as I've said... Ive been having some problems trying to figure out what my major should be. And Im sure it'll help a lot of you too! =) Hope to see you all there!

Remember, its Monday October 19th from 11-2 and Tuesday October 20th from 2-5 in the North Hall cafeteria.

Debate Society =)

2009-10-16T11:54:00.000-07:00

Hey everyone! It's been a while! Sorry about that, all the work has just been piling up. But I'm back now! =)
The post that I'm about to write is about getting involved. I'm going to share my experience from this past weekend when I really got involved... and I loved it!
At the beginning of the school year, I joined the Debate Society. From the very beginning, when the coaches were going over the different speeches and the different parts to debate.... I was COMPLETELY lost. I had NOO idea what was going on and I was more confused than ever. However, a couple of weeks ago, I signed up to attend a tournament at the University of Richmond. I honestly did not know what I was thinking at the time, but I told myself, "ehh why not? could be fun" I was still confused about the speeches and the parts. The words, Kritique, Perm, Framework, Topicality, etc" all swermed in my head... "what does this even mean?!!" I thought to myself. The nervousness started building up as the tournament date got closer and closer. And on top of that... I lost 3 partners! My original partner dropped out because she was just as confused as I am and was too afraid to go because she didnt understand it. My second partner wasnt able to go because someone in his family had passed away. And my third partner cancelled on the day before because she was behind on her school work, and needed to spend the weekend catching up.
I met my partner right before we got onto the bus the next day... We arrived at Richmond around 11:00 at night and went straight to our rooms to sleep...
The next day, I was nervous as ever. I never got the opportunity to have a practice round, so I was pretty much going in blind. The round started, my partner and I was against Cornell. Two hours later, the round finally ended and I took a deep breath. We lost, however... it wasnt as bad as I thought it would be. In the next few rounds, we had the weirdest evidence that was run against us! We had some schools that used intergalactics and another school that used depleted uranium. I was thinking to myself... "what the hell evidence do we use against this argument?!" But we were able to manage through the round. The next two days, the teams were debating 8 rounds (my partner and I only debated 7 because we got a BYE for a round). Even though my partner and I didnt win any rounds, (not to sound corny) but I do feel like I won also in a way. I now have a better understanding of what some of the terms mean. There are still some concepts that are fuzzy to me, but I know MUCH more than I did before I even came here!
Overall, It was an amazingg experience. I became good friends with my roommates and I got close with all the other John Jay debaters! On top of that, I learned much more about debating and what I can do to succeed. The idea of getting involved is really essential. I made some great friends after joining the debate team AND I gained much more knowledge about debating and some experiencing IN debating that'll help make me a better lawyer later on because I now (somewhat) know how to argue! =)
I signed up for the Westconn tournament next month, so I'll keep you all updated on that!
Till the next post, have a good weekend everyone!

Let the sleepless nights begin!

2009-10-06T18:56:00.000-07:00

Hey everyone! Happy Tuesday! :)

Sorry that I have not been able to write in the past couple of weeks. School work has taken over my life, litterally speaking! The past few weeks have been extremely tiring and I have not even had time for myself.

Midterms have started this week and I really should be studying for some of my classes, but I know I'm up to par with what I need to know for all my classes. However, the past few days I have been facing one battle...sleep! Lately, with all the studying and homework I have become extremely tired...where all I want to do is sleep. If I were to go to sleep during the day, I would not get up for almost 5-6 hours. Sometimes I end up falling asleep on my way to my 9:40 class on the 7 train. My mom says its the effects of late evening classes on Monday and Wednesday and that is the reason why I am becoming so tired. I hope it goes away soon.

The work load is getting extremely tougher. I feel sometimes I'm still behind in my work even though I might understand and read all the material that I need to for the class. Maybe its just anxiety of doing well in my first semester of college. Yesterday, in English I recieved my first A- on my english paper that I worked so hard on. Honestly, I thought I might have gotten lower than a B since I felt it was not college material, but whatever it is, I am extremely happy!! :) I'm gonna do my best to keep with the good work and aim higher!

Anyways, back to studying for midterms! Will post soon :)

Until next time, take care.

Studying for Midterms + Facebook = Procrastination

2009-10-04T14:42:00.000-07:00

Hey everyone! I hope youre having a good weekend =)
In this post, I'm going to talk about midterms. Tomorrow, I have my very first midterm for my government class and to say the least, I'm freaking out! This isnt like high school where we have a bunch of tests and quizzes to make up our grade.... these midterms are serious. I'm stressing out because I have 3 chapters to review/study and know! This is the thing about me, I can know my material.. but when it comes to exams.. I get sooo nervous and I just go blank! So Im doing my best to study and stay on top of it all.
Ive been doing so for 2 hours already, mainly rereading everything I highlighted. But the hard thing about studying? FACEBOOK! I'm sure many of you can relate to what I'm going through now. Im sitting in front of the computer trying to review... meanwhile, facebook is just sooo addicting that I keep going on it! And it distracts me for a good 5-10 minutes each time!! Haha this is not good! In a few minutes, Im probably just going to study farrr away from my computer and really focus.
Alright, back to studying (with no facebook) haha. Good luck on all your midterms everyone! =)
Till the next post, take care!

The Workload! =(

2009-09-28T13:24:00.000-07:00

Hey everyone! I hope you all had a good weekend =)
I just wanted to start off by saying we have officially been in college for a MONTH! How exciting is that?!
The purpose of this blog post is to talk about the workload which I'm sure all of you know about very well. Haha it seems like the work just never ends! From the studying, to the reading to the essays. It just doesn't seem to have an ending point.
The work has been insane! When all this work first started piling up, I thought to myself... how am I still going to have a life? I'll have no time! =( But then I thought to myself, "oh okay... I'll just have to manage my time." Trust me, it was NOT easy at first, procrastination and random stuff coming up did not help me one bit! But as time progressed, I made time for school work and time for a social life. I got more and more use to this idea of working around a schedule... Not an intense one, but still something to follow to help me stay organized. I've been trying my best to keep to it too.
College is no joke, which Im sure all of you have realized. I started to realize that as soon as all the work started coming. This is the complete opposite of being a "second semester senior" in high school and I realized that I needed to focus and set my mind to doing my best.
Last week, my english professor gave us some tips on how to be successful in college. "Take advantage of every vacation day. The best way to fall behind is to do the work as it comes along" (Jacques). I thought about that when I got home and it's SOOO true! At the beginning of the semester, your professor gives you a syllabus. Follow the syllabus and do each assignment ahead of time. If I do the work ahead of time, I'll know what's going on in class (instead of relying on the homework that night for clarity) and the days before the work is due, I'll have some time to myself. Another thing I realized is that the work never ends. We might as well NOT procrastinate, figure out our daily schedules and make time for homework everyday. Cramming does not help, so it's better to get ahead than just being clueless and relying on yourself the night before a test to study everything. I am so grateful to have these past few days off due to bed bugs/ Yom Kippur (ps. Happy Holiday!). These past few days have really given me an opportunity to catch up with some of the work that I have been behind on and also, some time to just relax.
Even before college started, I knew that I would have A LOT of reading/writing to do... but I wasn't prepared for this much! It's crazy! Now that it has officially been a month of school, I am finally getting into the hang of things, focusing on my work, but at the same time... having a social life. I know the idea of "managing your time" is easier said than done, especially for us with everything going on. But we just have to try. I did and it actually helped me out A LOT. Making a schedule/managing your time socially and academically is the best to do (even though that may sound corny) and procrastinating/cramming is the worse. Haha trust me, I learned the hard way within the first 3 weeks and being sooo behind in my chapters for textbook readings =/ So focus everyone! And stay on top of your work instead of partying/pushing everything to the side for "later" =)
Till the next post! Have a good week!

What to do...?

2009-09-27T19:27:00.000-07:00

Hey everyone! Hope all is well with everyone :]

Lately, I have been facing a mental challenge when it comes to what I want to pursue in my career. The past few years I wanted to graduate John Jay and make my way into law school to become a prosecutor in New York City. However, as I discover and am more exposed to the field of Criminal Justice, my mind keeps shifting and I feel more confused everyday.

I have come across several different fields of study. One of them is criminology (study of criminal behavior), which would lead me into a career with the FBI. I love sociology and psychology and criminology is made up most of these type of classes. I love analzying people and understanding why people do what they do. Another field is addiction studies (study of people's addictions), which would then lead me into medical school. I would become a doctor and help individuals who are trying to break their drug and alcohol abuse. I love to help people and understand what drives them to rely on alcohol and drugs.

I know that I have only started at John Jay and its hard to tell now where I will be 5-10 years from now, but I feel that its essential for all of us to start exploring different sub-fields and specialization, so we have an idea of what is open for us. So, my mission now is to talk to professors in these fields and start exploring, if this is really for me.

But, as my mom always says "time will only tell us what we are meant to do".

Until next time :)

(Sorry for the very short post, but this thought has been on my mind for awhile now.)

Law School After John Jay?

2009-09-20T13:08:00.000-07:00

Hey everyone! Happy sunday =)
Since my first post, I have been thinking about switching majors. As I had mentioned, I want to become a lawyer so after John Jay... I plan to go to law school. I was all excited about this until I read the "Preparing for Law School at John Jay College" sheet by the Pre Law Institute! The line that said, "The Dean of Admissions at Brooklyn Law School is quoted saying he 'looks unfavorably on legal studies and criminal justice majors.' Now that may not sound too scary, but being the person I am, I worry way too much. So of course after reading this, and being a criminal justice major, I felt that I MUST switch my major ASAP or else I wouldn't be able to get into a good law school!
I quickly went on the John Jay website to the "majors" section to look at the other possible majors. I looked over the courses for the government majors and that did not interest me one bit. I then started considering majoring in Legal Studies (didn't realize at the time that law schools don't really like this either haha) or English, but eventually... I figured I should talk to someone about it.
First I went to Kate Szur of FYE to let her know about it because I've been talking to her about it for a while and she knew I was thinking about it. After talking for a little, she recommended me to Louise Freymann who could be of more help. Ms. Freymann is a part of the academic advisory and I spoke with her as well. She let me know a lot of information that did make me feel better. One of the things that she told me that stood out was, "do what you enjoy and have fun." I learned that even if you do plan to attend law school after, you should still major in what you enjoy. We shouldnt necessarily do it just to look good or make it seem to the law school that we're trying too hard. Ms. Freymann also informed me of a philosophy major which may also be a good choice. This major is really good because it really helps the students think philosophically and in depth, which is definitely a plus for any career! Something really important for law school however, is that we need really good writing skills.
The process of switching majors really isnt as hard or confusing as I thought it would be. The best thing to do is to talk to many people as you can to try to get different opinions before doing anything.
I wasn't able to attend the Pre Law Orientation because I had class. But just as a mental note for everyone, if you missed the orientation, you can go down to the Pre Law Institute and ask for an separate appointment date to speak with one of the people there about the material covered at the orientation! =]
(As an FYI, the Pre Law Institute website has a link called "Pre Law Advisement Guide" that is really helpful, so you guys should all read over that when you get a chance!)
After the meeting with an academic advisor, I have a better understanding of law school. Some time this week, I am going to the Pre Law Institute to ask for an appointment date. But overall, I am thinking of staying in the criminal justice or switching to a History major and minoring in either english or philosophy. I'll keep you guys update =) Have a good afternoon/night!

Its Time To Shine...

2009-09-15T18:59:00.000-07:00

It has been over a week since college has started and I don't think I could have chosen a better school (I know I probably said it a 100x before), but the first two weeks at John Jay have shown me that this is the college for me, even though sometimes I have my doubts on my dreams and goals in life, but then again who doesn't!

The first day, I have to admit, was extremely nerve-wrecking! I felt scared, nervous, happy and excited all at once! I grew up in Queens and I'm used to the regular "public school" life. Manhattan was a foreign land to me, and was like an adventure every time I would go with friends or family. The night before I remember tossing and turning in bed for almost 2 hours wondering what college was really going to be like, if I'll make friends, if I'll like my professors and most of all, will I succeed in whatever it is that I was going to do. Yes, I had made some friends through Facebook and found some people that were in my classes. It did ease some of the tension a bit.

Since classes had started on a Friday, I had Introduction to Film at 12:30pm. Time went slow that morning in hopes to leave home and head to my first day of school. I knew where most of my classes were since I took a quick look the day of Freshman Orientation (which helped a lot!!). As I walked to school, I sensed a different type of atmosphere, and 'til this date I can't come up with the words to explain it, but it gave me a sense of belief that I really was in college. The people were way different; no loud kids laughing or talking, just kids talking amongst themselves or making their way towards their next class.

I made my way up to my class and I found my class with ease! As I walked into class, there were students already inside and it had been completely silent. It lasted only a little while till my professor walked in through the door. Soon enough, the class became very talkative and we watched our first film for the class :) way to start off the semester, I would say! Time flew by quickly, and the period was soon over at 3:10 and in that time I had made two new friends.

It was a great first day, and it was a great first couple of weeks in college. The work is getting tougher, the thinking is becoming deeper, and even though the travel can be tough sometimes, its all worth it. I have come across so many amazing people in the past couple weeks and made some new pretty awsome friends and learned so much from my professors in the little time that I am in their class!

Until next time :)

My First Day =)

2009-09-13T14:07:00.000-07:00

It was the night before school started. Im sitting by my computer at 1:30 in the morning, restless to sit still, too excited to go to bed, yet too nervous to just watch tv. I kept thinking to myself, "Ahh! tomorrow is the first day of classes!" I think overall, I was just overly excited about everything going on!
After a while, my mom starts yelling at me to go to bed because it's so late and she didnt want me to look like a zombie in school tomorrow haha. So I laid on my bed, and continued talking to my friends on aim from my phone about the next day. I was talking to my friend, Dana about how surreal this all was! We couldnt believe that we were actually COLLEGE STUDENTS! =] Eventually I fell asleep around 2:30 probably?
The next morning, I had class at 12:30. My Gov 101 class. Throughout the whole morning, I just wanted to leave and go to school already! I was sooo excited! But there was still a part of me that was scared to even move... The whole morning, I was afraid of getting lost so I kept looking over the map trying to find my classes, so i could seem like I actually knew where I was going!
By the time it was 11, and I had to take the subway from my parents store... I didnt want to leave. Haha I suddenly became so nervous and I wished that time would just stop because I was just so scared! =( But I did 5 minutes later haha.
The subway ride was quick and when I walked out... As I walked down the street to school, I continued to feel all these mixed feelings. I was nervous and more excited than anything at the same time! I was scared of getting lost, not making friends, and I didnt know anything about my professors. I was a wreckk! haha.
As I approached the front of North Hall, I took a look at the building and thought, this is where I'll be going to school for the next 4 years! I should embrace this opportunity and make the best of it! I walked in and swiped my card for the first time and it all hit me! Wow! Im really in college! As I walked down the lobby, I pretended to act like I knew where I was going when I had no clue! I couldnt even remember the map I studied earlier that day haha =/ I sat down in the lobby, took out my schedule to see the room and just sat there studying the map. Haha i felt a bit out of place because I looked around and there was no one that seemed as lost as me, but eventually... I found the stairs I needed to take and I went there. I finally managed to find my room. I sat down and I started talking to a few people next to me. Then, the professor came in and started talking to us. After the class was over, I took a breath and thought to myself, "that wasnt bad. maybe im going to love college =)"
Coming from Long Island and barely ever going to the city, this was something totalllyy new for me! It was such a big change for me not seeing the same faces in my grade that ive known so well for the last 17 years.
But after these past two weeks, I can honestly say that I love college (IN THE CITY! haha)

Till the next post, take care everyone =)

A New Chapter :)

2009-09-06T19:29:00.000-07:00

Hi everyone,

My name is Farah Chichgar, a freshman at John Jay College. I graduated from Bayside High School in June of this year (and miss it sooo much!). I'm currently pursuing a BA degree in Criminal Justice, but will soon be changing to become a US History or Government major...since I wish to become a lawyer. I really am hoping that I will be able to go to UCLA Law School in California, as soon as I graduate from JJay. (Keeping my finger's crossed!!)

I honestly can't still believe that I am in college! I absolutely love it! The people are awesome to be around and learn from and the professors are extremely experienced in the fields that they teach. I feel extremely honored to be one of their students this semester and I know that I will definitely be able to learn more with their instruction.

However, the work load is more then I ever thought it would be and completely different from high school. We are expected to work on our own and prepare for our next classes before hand, which sometimes I slack off on =/ In high school, we were watched over by our teachers to make sure our work was completed, but in college its the complete opposite, but I can do it no matter what challenges come across.

I am strong-minded and determined to do what takes to succeed in college =D

Until my next blog (which will be very soon),

Farah :)

"Im In College!" =)

2009-09-06T14:56:00.000-07:00

Hii everyone! My name is Michelle and I am currently a John Jay freshman. This is my first time blogging for anything, so I'm pretty excited about this haha =) I'm currently pursuing criminal justice, but I'm going to switch my major to government soon, because I heard its better when applying to law school. I'm actually debating between government or justice studies...

Anyways, let me start off by saying, "I'm in college!" Haha =) I still remember it like it was just yesterday. My high school graduation, June 25th. My friend Matt called my name as i walked across the field to shake hands with the principle to get my diploma. I remember the last few weeks of school, I was a complete mess. I love all my friends and just the thought of leaving and not coming back next year was such a bittersweet feeling. I was happy to finally graduate! But at the same time, I was sad that everyone was separating next year to their different schools. I was also nervous to actually be going to college and meeting all new people! But the thing that got to me most was that i was going to miss my friends so much. Haha ask anyone from my school... i literally cried everyday the last week of school.

But here I am now! I am now officially a freshman at John Jay! The feeling is still sooo surreal to me! The only word that I can really think of to describe how I'm feeling is, "wow." I cant believe we're actually all growing up and in college now! No more teachers reminding us about our work and no more of the same familiar faces we see everyday for the past 18 years! This is real and this is now... (not to sound all corny) but the beginning of our lives, a new chapter! I am so happy to be in college now and I actually love it! =) My professors are good and the people here are soo nice! I met a few on facebook and actually met them in person at orientation, which was awesome! I actually thought it would be awkward and hard to make friends, but its really not =] Now that I'm done with the first week of school... I already know that it's going to be hard work but I am determined to learn all that i can to help me succeed in the future! In the next post, I'm going to write about my first day... haha i would write it all now, but i have to read sooo much for homework. Ahhh =/