My (indecisive) experience as a student in the College of Arts and Sciences

I discovered Florida State when I was 15 years old. As a junior enrolled in a small high school in northeastern Ohio, I had compiled a short list of colleges in the state that looked promising. An older friend of mine gave me a priceless piece of advice during my college search: “Don’t limit yourself or sell your dreams short. There are sometimes many ways to get to the same endpoint.”

This same friend suggested that I look at Florida State’s website because she felt that it would be a good fit for me. A year later, I found myself staring at an email notifying me that my admissions status had changed at Florida State. To my surprise, I was greeted by a celebratory jingle and a page titled, “Congratulations!” Not only had I been admitted to my dream school, but I was awarded the University Freshman Scholarship as well as a full out-of-state tuition waiver due to my academic achievement.

I entered college not fully confident in my intended major, Exercise Physiology. I thought that the good grades I had received in math and science classes would translate into passion for a health-related career. I began to examine what my true interests really were when I felt that I belonged more in my general education English course with Professor Oluwafunke Ogunya. With some encouragement from my professor, I decided to pursue my passions as an English major.

I expected the process of switching majors to be one of the most tedious I had undergone. My transition into the College of Arts and Sciences was seamless thanks to the admissions team and the English department. Not once did they make me feel bothersome for reaching out and asking questions, and each time I stepped into the Longmire Building to visit the Dean’s Office or into the Williams Building for advising, I felt more and more in place. There was no question that this was where I belonged.

I chose to study the Editing, Writing, and Media sector of the English program because of my ever-growing interests in prose and poetry, social media, and design. The first course that made a significant impact on me in my studies was Writing and Editing in Print and Online, lovingly known by English majors as WEPO. It introduced me to many different platforms that I hadn’t considered as possible homes for my writing. As well as providing me with foundational tools on which to start my portfolio, this course showed me that there is a very real possibility of making a career out of my passions.

Shortly after this course ended, I discovered an internship opportunity with a local organization. I worked as a communications intern with the Cross-Cultural Coalition of Tallahassee and assisted with the planning of their annual Caribbean family fest. We were more than satisfied with the outcome of almost one thousand participants at Caribé! 2018 that took place last September.

Since my admission into this college, a world has unfolded before me that I didn’t know existed. Using the portfolio that I had started in my WEPO class, I secured a job writing for an online publication. I have also begun working as an intern with the media and communications team in the Dean’s Office of the College of Arts and Sciences. Given the chance to start an official Instagram page for the College as well as writing articles, I am gaining valuable work experience in a professional environment. Through this College, I developed the confidence and knowledge necessary in order to begin creating a career centered around my hobbies and interests. Which is something that I never thought possible.

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