Also First Apartment!

While my junior year at Iowa has certainly brought a handful of life adjustments, one of the biggest adjustments has to be moving into my first apartment with two of my friends.

I absolutely love it.

Living in Burge was fun-I spent two years there and wouldn’t trade them for the world-but having my own space is so exciting and freeing. I love my roommates, and one of them was my roommate from last year, but it is so nice to not have to share a room anymore. I get to spread all my stuff out if I want and keep my room as tidy or as messy as I want. It’s an odd sense of freedom.

I think one of the best parts is getting to decide what I want to eat. I don’t have to bend my eating preferences around whatever the dining hall is serving. I don’t have to eat country fried steak and gravy twice a month.  (I no longer get to bask in the greatness that is dining hall chicken strip night but that is beside the point). I get to decide.

Apartment life if pretty glamorous. Its one caveat is that I don’t get to spend a lot of time in it. Between 18 semester hours, working at Burge Front Desk, interning at Loebsack for Congress, my extracurricular commitments, and doing my continuously mounting stack of homework, I often do not spend a significant chunk of the day at home. It’s not a bad time though, I really enjoy being this busy.

With that I leave you with some fun pictures of my bedroom. It’s a little sparse on the wall decorations but I’m happy. *Not pictured are my dual closets, my nightstand, and my comfy chair!

 

Working Towards

Part of the point of going to college is that we are preparing ourselves for life after college. Our educational plans after our undergrad years. My plan is to go to law school. Where? I currently have no idea and I’m keeping my options open. What do I hope to specialize in? I’m thinking along the lines of civil rights, litigation (criminal), or international law. But in this respect, I am also keeping some options open. With my blog this year, I hope to keep you guys updated on the process I’m going through.

To start we can talk about today. I’m the Chair of Public Relations for Phi Alpha Delta, the pre-law fraternity, on campus. Essentially, I manage all of our social media accounts (check us out @uiowa_pad!). Tonight we had our first meeting of the year and heard from Dean Byrd from Iowa Law. He talked about the law school admissions process and handed out information on Iowa Law. Now you have to understand the format of P.A.D. (in case you ever want to join). In the Fall we hear from various law school admissions counselors from all across the nation and then in the Spring we hear from practicing lawyers and current law school students. I have really enjoyed P.A.D. In my past year of membership, due to it having brought me a leadership opportunity, it connected me to like minded individuals, and has given and continues to give me resources and support I think will be beneficial in what is sure to be a crazy year.

One piece of advice that Dean Byrd gave us that I’d like to share with you all is the concept of the three J’s: Start preparing in January of your Junior year for the June LSAT. It provides you with enough time to prepare for the exam and navigate through your other school obligations.

With that, I hope everyone has a great year, and I can’t wait to share with you all everything that happens to me this year.

The Internship Search: Resources & Success

Much like my student employment search over a year ago, the internship search has certainly been a trip. To start off, the University of Iowa has a number of resources to aid students in a job or internship search. There’s the Pomerantz Career Center and the Job & Internship Fair. The career center will help you with anything from resumes, cover letters, and letters of introduction to interview prep and practice. Not to mention, they are a great resource if you do not know where to start. The Career Center also puts on the Job & Internship Fair which pulls over a 150+ employers and all of the graduate schools from the University of Iowa.

Due to my own blunders, I have not been able to attend the Job and Internship Fair during my semesters here. It is held once a semester, always on a Wednesday, and usually from 11AM-4PM.

And I always have class.

The fair is one of the more traditional ways of finding an internship. Being a political science major and being subscribed to student organization emails, the UDemocrats presented an interesting opportunity: Congressman Dave Loebsack’s Iowa City office was still searching for another intern. It had a minimal time requirement (~10 hours), unpaid, and purely made to gain experience.

While the unpaid part may sound disappointing, it’s the experience part that is key. There are thousands of stories of college graduates who have never held a job and are struggling to find work because employers want experience. The internship sounded more than okay to me: it hit my interest in politics, my desire to gain experience working within a political office, and it was something I could put on my resume if given the job. So I applied. All I had to do was send in my resume and wait.

Luckily, I received a reply from their staff within a day. They wanted an interview and offered up some potential dates and times.

I dressed in my best business casual and went out to meet a member of their staff for the interview. It was rather open ended. They wanted to know why I wanted the internship, what my relevant experience was (thankfully, I had volunteered to canvass neighborhoods for the Hillary Clinton campaign prior to to the caucus), and any details about myself or experiences that would make me a beneficial intern. Between my experiences of canvassing and my involvement with No Labels, I had plenty to talk about and use to sell myself. And I did it successfully. By the end of the interview, I was offered the position as an intern. Now, within my first week, I’ve done a little bit of work for them and I’m excited to see where this experience takes me.

The Not So Definite Rankings of Academic Breaks

Academic Break–noun/adjective– the glorious two word label for “school is not in session”

Before I start, there are a lot of hurdles in your way before getting to an academic break. And there are four big ones during the school year: Thanksgiving Break, Winter Break, Spring Break, and Summer Break.

Getting to an academic break is by no means an easy task. We’ll start with thanksgiving break: a solid second place after winter break in terms of 1) greatness and 2) relaxation. Thanksgiving break is like the teaser trailer to a highly anticipated movie (read: winter break). It promises the chance to go home, get stuffed with great food, see some of your hometown friends, and spend time with your family. I call it a teaser because once break is done, you’ll be filled with motivation to see it again. However, the road from August to November is a hard fought one. By the time that Thanksgiving break comes along, you’ll have gone through at least two rounds of  midterms, probably have written a paper or two, and might have suffered through your first college breakdown (I’m sorry to say that it may not be your last (but I promise you’ll make it through)). All of this makes Thanksgiving so much more rewarding.

Moving on to Spring Break. Spring break is like the cousin you’re on the fence about. They can be cool sometimes but other times you might want to hole up in your room when you see them. I’ll place them as third on the list. Spring break is the time for a vacation or kicking it back at home for a week. It doesn’t usually involve a food -induced coma like Thanksgiving but it can still be alright. Like Thanksgiving, it usually involves a round or two of midterms before the collective sigh that is Spring Break.

On to Winter Break! Winter Break is by far one of my favorites and my number 1. Winter Break means you 1) survived the gruesome, pitiful hole that is Finals Week and 2) you completed a semester! 1 more for your student record on the Iowa Student Information System. Getting to winter break is hard: you have the weight of the entire semester riding on your shoulders as you gallop into the last three weeks of the semester after Thanksgiving. I tend to lose a bit of my determination and will to study after Thanksgiving but you CANNOT-I repeat-CANNOT lose motivation. You’ve made it this far and you’re so close to the holy grail. Churn out those last assignments, make it to the last few class sessions, and make sure you study hard. Try your best to end the semester on a good note and make Winter Break that much more rewarding.

And finally, Summer Break. It could be argued that Summer Break should not be ranked last because you don’t have to do school work for three whole months. But hear me out. After spending nine months in Iowa City and living your life here, it’s a little hard to go back to your hometown and be a little less void of academic responsibilities. With every day and night making friends and memories in the residence halls, classes, and clubs, you fall in love with Iowa City and the University of Iowa a little more every day. I promise that during those three months, you’ll be wishing it was August to do it all over again.

No Labels: Another opportunity

Hello,

I’ve previously talked about No Labels, an organization that I head here on campus. I’m talking about it again because in the past 48 hours I participated in a really cool opportunity. They offered to their college leaders: the chance to go to Manchester, New Hampshire for a one of a kind event.

First quick recap: No Labels, is a non-partisan organization that wants bipartisanship between the two major parties. We also want support for a National Strategic Agenda, which encompasses four goals: Create 25 million jobs over the next 10 years; Secure Social Security & Medicare for another 75 years; Balance the federal budget by 2030; Make America energy secure by 2024. Goals everyone can agree on, right? No Labels seeks to achieve this by first awarding a No Labels Seal of Approval to whatever politicians vow to start work on the National Strategic Agenda within the first 30 days of being in office. The Seal of Approval also lets voters know, which politicians are onboard and ready to tackle America’s problems and the gridlock.

Jeff Danielson and I, post flight from Boston at Chicago's O'Hare
Jeff Danielson and I, post flight from Boston at Chicago’s O’Hare

Now onto my opportunity: The No Labels Problem Solver Convention.The national organization flew myself and about fifty other college leaders out to Manchester, New Hampshire to teach us about being college leaders, spreading the word, and making an impact on campus. But that was only the first day. The second day we were there to witness first hand 8 candidates of both parties for the 2016 presidential race take the stage to speak to us about HOW they would tackle America’s problems and the continuous gridlock in Washington D.C. We got free t-shirts and plenty of available swag and got to experience perhaps a once in a college lifetime event. We listened, cheered, and questioned Jim Webb, Martin O’Malley, Chris Christie, Donald Trump, Bernie Sanders, George Pataki, Lindsey Graham, and John Kasich with the residents of New Hampshire and neighboring states throughout the day. There were also panelists, senators, and governors from all over the U.S. (Side note: Have you ever had the chance to meet Jeff Danielson? He’s in the Iowa Senate and is responsible for the Cedar Falls/Waterloo area. If you ever do meet him, he is the nicest guy!)

I learned a lot from the trip:

  1. No Labels is one of the coolest organizations I’ve been a part of
  2. I can’t wait to do more work on campus to get our local chapter out of our toddler stage and spreading the word about bipartisanship and being a #ProblemSolver

    Dean Norris & I, the night before the #ProblemSolver Convention
    Dean Norris & I, the night before the #ProblemSolver Convention
  3. It is very possible to ride four airplanes in about 45 hours in three different states and only sleep on one of those planes
  4. The networking opportunities that are available with more local politicians and even higher up are limitless
  5. Keep an eye out at any slightly major political event because there might be a few celebrities lurking (Like maybe a certain DEA agent from Breaking Bad?)
  6. Passion, commitment, and hard work can bring about anything you set your mind to. No Labels is a grassroots organization that started only five years ago and they’re staging big events with even bigger names, have their own caucus (Problem Solver Caucus), and currently have a bill on the floor in Congress  about the National Strategic Agenda.

 

How To: Time Management

Pinterest and social media are full of funny little infographics on how college is a triangle and you can only pick two out of social life, good grades, and sleep.

And it’s true.

Kind of.

Now for starters, I am no way an expert in Time Management. It is a skill that I have learned and am still finding my way around as each new semester has its new challenges.

I can however give you some tips on how to manage your time and be on the path for being a successful student at Iowa.

  1. Get an agenda/planner/notebook

    Monthly Calendar View
    Monthly Calendar View

You can choose whatever method you like in order to keep track of dates, deadlines, and appointments. There are also other popular methods like google calendar (which you can sync to your smart phone).

  1. You’re going to use your agenda to write down all club meetings, exam dates, work schedules, and whatever else is going to take up your time.
  2. Follow your agenda and prep accordingly.

On a day to day basis, I like to write in my agenda about what I need to do to be prepared for classes, work, and club meeting for the next day. On the weekends, I put a sticky note in my agenda and write down all the things I want to accomplish in order to be prepared for the following week.

  1. Reap the rewards!

Last week, I was so on top of things due to this method that I had all of my homework done for the week by Tuesday night and was able to relax Wednesday. This also allowed for having the time to care for myself but also have the time to do any assignments that were assigned during the week and due soon after.

 

A New Semester

Hello everyone!

After a very study-heavy spring semester and a summer full of working, it’s time for the Fall 2015 semester! The first week, otherwise known as syllabus week, has already passed and it was nothing but easy. Syllabus week is supposed to be easy and bring about the introduction to your new classes and some of your classmates but the joke was on me. By Friday morning, after my last class for the week, I had assignments in at least every class ranging from reading to full blown ICON discussions and short essays due for next week. Needless to say, it will be the last time I let my roommate choose a class that will satisfy GEN-EDs that we’re both missing. I’ll pick next time if given the chance.

Besides classes, this new semester has brought me a bundle of new opportunities. I started off sophomore year by volunteering to do Move In Crew on the East Side dorms (minus Mayflower) with my roommate and some other friends. With Move in Crew, we got to move into the dorms a few days earlier with the promise that we’d assist with moving in freshmen over a three-day span. We got to select our preferred five shifts throughout the three days and would spend the whole time attached to a bucket bin or bellhop cart and assisting new students find their rooms, get situated, and start their new chapters at Iowa. It was a fun experience as we experienced, rain, sunshine, and a bit of a numbing cold throughout our three day commitment. I met a lot of new students and having a volunteer help them gave students and their parents the chance to get answers from current students. It was a fun opportunity and if you ever get the chance to do move in crew, it won’t hurt to give it a try.

Another opportunity that has come my way is continuing to be President of No Labels, a new-ish student organization on campus. We started last spring and are hoping to continue to grow this semester and the rest of the school year. No Labels is a non-partisan political organization that seeks to have politicians want to be “problem-solvers”. Pretty much, we ask/lobby politicians to become problem-solvers, and once in office start going towards legislation to support a National Strategic agenda. The National Strategic Agenda is a set of goals that would better America as a whole. By becoming a problem-solver, politicians are agreeing to focus more on goals that will better and further America then just the goals of their political party. Additionally, we’re mostly about working together, despite your political beliefs. Catch us on campus with our super cool “Party Responsibly” stickers!

And lastly, the latest opportunity, is working at the Burge front desk. I applied over the summer and was given the chance to work at the front desk this school year. Feel free to visit me (:

Fall, Homecoming, Midterms, Oh My!

President Sally Mason @ Homecoming Parade

These past few weeks have literally flew by. But that’s how I feel every week; because before you know it, the weekend is here and there’s a ton of activities to do in and around campus. Earlier this month, UI celebrated another wonderful homecoming with a big win against Indiana! But that was all after the homecoming parade and the building of the corn monument. Homecoming week had been full of spirit with events like Iowa Shout–Greek Life here put on little dance numbers that went along with this years theme: Take it Back. I attended Iowa Shout due to my roommate and some other girls in my hall being a part of Greek Life, and to support them and their sororities. It was a really entertaining night spent on the Pentacrest and I got to see some snazzy dance moves. Homecoming week also brought some delicious food to Burge Marketplace. And before I knew it, the game was won and I was back to studying for midterms.

Tree from the Pentacrest
View from the Pentacrest

And I felt like midterms kinda kicked my butt. I came out of it with a better idea of how my study habits affected my performance and what I needed to do better or not change at all. All I will tell you is this: find a place where you can really study. My favorite place to study is the lounges on my floor. Lounges are designated rooms in each residence hall for either studying or just hanging out. (Hint: Like laundry rooms, they are more likely to be empty on Friday nights and various times on the weekends.)

I Won’t Join Your Club, But I’ll Eat Your Cookies

The strip of T-Anne Cleary walkway from the Blank Honors Center to Gilmore hall is always a bundle of surprises. It mostly serves as the central walkway to go from class to class. That being said, it’s a great way to reach a lot of people in a short amount of time. So there will be the people with massive signs that tell you to abandon your church and seek Jesus as he is a living person. And there will also be the people who want you to go see comedian Retta from Parks & Rec, and hand out cookies. But you know what they say about the dark side: they have cookies. (I’m really kidding, Retta is going to be so awesome at CAB this weekend. Check it out if you can!)

And also wise words from my First Year Seminar professor: “If you’re not condemned to hell [by protesters] at least once while you’re here, you haven’t done Iowa right”.

T. Anne Cleary Walkway at Night!
T. Anne Cleary Walkway at Night!

Move In: The Tears, The Sweat, The Glory

I counted down the days from when I committed to the University of Iowa in Spring to move in day: August 20tth. On August 20th, I would be moving four hours away from my town in Northern Illinois to Iowa City to start a new chapter in my life. I worked my summer job, day in and day out, knowing that each day I was one step closer to saying goodbye to my friends and family for the school year. (I was bound to come back for Thanksgiving and Christmas).

It never really completely hit me how much my life was going to change in just a few short days. It would hit me in little doses: shopping in bulk for dorm-friendly foods at Sam’s Club with my mom, and driving away from the houses of my best friends for the last time for a couple weeks. Those are the moments where a tear would be let loose. I didn’t really cry until I hugged my mom the morning of move in. She was unable to accompany me due to work obligations so my dad would be taking me. Our first hug was fine. She wished me luck and to not get into trouble. The second hug before I jumped into the car was the worst. We hugged tightly and cried.

Fact: it’s completely okay to cry on move in day. In fact, I encourage it. It helps get out all those nerves and lets you know that you and your parents are on the same page: you’re growing up.

My nerves and feelings of anxiety stayed with me for the first hour of my drive to Iowa City. I had a fun playlist going; summer hits from Iggy Azalea and Beyoncé, and thought ahead to the future that awaited me.

Ninety degree weather was predicted for Welcome Weekend. And for what a relatively not hot summer this was, it seemed extremely welcomed. I was wrong. Iowa City was humid, a million times more humid than the current weather at home, and I had to make it to the fifth floor of Burge Hall. Thankfully, I wasn’t doing move in alone. On Iowa! Staff, Resident Assistants, and miscellaneous staff are on hand to help move in to all residence halls. They helped streamline the process and helped my dad and I unpack the car in two trips.

Fact: Over-packing will happen. Try to be aware of what you need and don’t need so your parents will be able to take some stuff back home. If you end up needing something you sent home, your parents can mail it to you or you can pick it up when you visit home again.

Sweat is everywhere. The humidity is beating down on everyone and their mothers alike and it doesn’t help the move in process. Burge luckily has a bigger elevator than say Mayflower so all the sweat isn’t quite as crammed in together. It’s nothing to complain about as everyone is glistening and still excited about Iowa.

The glory part of move in is after all your parents leave, your eyes are dry from all your tears, your room is unpacked, and all the hustle and bustle of move in has settled for the day: You have so much freedom. The end of that first day signals the beginning of your transition into official young adulthood. You are free to make all your own decisions: whether they be good or bad, and to learn from your mistakes. College, and especially at the University of Iowa, is an opportunity all in its own. Embrace everything that comes to you during your time here.

And don’t forget your toothbrush.