Through The Fall Semester

Since I came to St. Norbert College, 3 months has already passed and there is only a week leftto finish the first semester, which will be the hardest week for final exams and papers. I have experienced a lot of things in this semester, which were both fun and hard. Speaking of the hard times I had this semester, class was the hardest time for me because of my English ability and Japanese personality.

There was one class where there usually was a discussion time during every class time in this semester. I have been in a Japanese university for two years since I came to St. Norbert College, but I have never had class that usually had discussions in class. Since this is the first semester for me in the U.S., I took a class that I did not have any friend in.

“What do you think, Tsukasa?”

“Hmmm, I have no idea…”

“So, what about this question?”

“I’m sorry, but I don't have any idea too…”

“Okay.”

From the very first class of the semester, the professor let us discuss the reading and I could not say anything because I did not expect that I would have discussion from the first class. Although it is usually said in Japan that people who are studying abroad in America have to be able to express their ideas all the time, I didn’t expect that I have to discuss all of my ideas in the class. Since there are a few times that students are asked to have discussion and ideas in Japan, it was hard for me to come up with ideas quickly.

 “Tsukasa, how’s your semester going?” One of my group members asked me a question a few minutes later, which was not related to the question, although we had to discuss questions.

“It’s pretty good, but I’m a bit nervous. How about you?” I replied, and we had some conversation during class.

She asked me questions in order to make me feel relaxed. Since my group members were completely new to me, I was being shy and was not be able to say opinions positively. However, she noticed that I was getting nervous and tried to let me in the discussion.

When I was in Japan, it was not a big deal that some students became silent while they were discussing in a group. However, as Marie Von Ebner-Eschenback said in her saying “Fear not those who argue but those who dodge,” those who do not say any opinions in a discussion can be negatively seen because people cannot understand what they are thinking without words. It was a very different cultural difference because silence is preferred to having lots of discussions in Japan, but it is the complete opposite in America.

“Tsukasa, how was the first class?” One of my group members asked me a question after finishing the class right away.

“I was so surprised at everything I had in the class…” I answered.

“Don't worry about it, you’ll get used to it soon. If you have any questions, feel free to ask me questions!” The other girl also helped to make me feel better after the class.

Thanks to the help of my group members, I was able to get used to having discussion and saying my opinions. Although I was worrying if I could positively participate in the class, I learned from Marie Von Ebner-Eschenback that adjusting to the culture is necessary without fearing, or I would not be able to learn a lot in the class. Therefore, I would like to make the most of use that I have learned this semester in the next semester and have an unforgettable experience in America.

My fall semester at St. Norbert College

The first semester in St. Norbert College is done. Since I went to America, I have welcomed Fall and Winter. It was never easy to get used to everything because it was my first college life in my life and started in the new country. So I think it was passed too fast. But everything is valuable to me. I could learn English not as a discipline, but as a life. Also, I learned different cultures. There were a lot of priceless experiences in terms of the human relationship.

To attend college really differed from what I have imagined. I used to know everyone in my middle school and high school, so I was closed to all students in the same year.  The fact that there were only about 250 people in one grade made it possible, but I took it for granted because my friends were same as me. But the college was very different from high school. Everyone including me was so busy that it was hard to make a bond between each other. Also, it took a long time to open the mind to others. At first, I thought it is one of American culture, like individualism. But I realized that it is just the normal characteristic of college life, after talking with my Korean friends who are attending university in Korea. So, I changed my mind to try to open my mind and get close to others. For example, I said "hi" to someone with a smile, asked his or her hobby to find common grounds, or treated friend by cooking. After doing that, some friends knew about my efforts and opened to me their mind. Thanks to my friends, I learned new and interesting English expressions, as well as the way to adjust to America.

The second challenging thing was studying. In college, we have to decide which classes we want to take and have to study by ourselves. In my country, Korea, the education system is so-called cramming education, so this change was unfamiliar to me. But I didn't want to be behind the other students in college. I decided to apply for tutor system, which is having my personal tutor. I asked her how to manage my time and how to study efficiently. Before I asked for her, I was afraid that she might regard me as a coward who cannot do such an easy things by myself. However, unlike my worry, she helped me sincerely, even telling her own experiences. So now I found the way that is suitable for me quickly and have studied efficiently.

As I tried to deal with the difficult things with others, I realized that to get up the nerve is really hard but the most important. Anais Nin said, "Life shrinks or expands in proportion to one's courage." We sometimes face the adversity and could be frustrated while living. However, if we try to be brave, that hardship will be the opportunity to expand our life and grow ourselves more.

Thoughts on my Studying Abroad Experience

    And here I am studying my degree in the United States of America.  I never thought once in my life that I would be studying abroad anywhere.   However, there is this person who is heavily involved in my life gave this idea and kept pushing me forward in order to seek success and achieve my life goals.  It is my mother, the greatest influence in my life.  The single parent who kept struggling her entire life providing the best education possible and shelter to her two children.  She even gave up the idea of marrying again just to raise us well and make us become the best versions of our selves.  She is the reason why I am here writing this essay.  And I never will be able to reciprocate her favor.

    I started studying English first since it is my second language in San Diego for a year and a half.  What an exquisite place to live in and study.  With its great weather and very kind people.  Moreover, the numerous beaches in this great city that I never managed to visit all of them.  It is also quite diverse with people living in it from all over the world that I made many friendships with people from several nationalities.  One Italian friend I still communicate until now who is also studying abroad now in Austria.  A very kind friend who also opened my horizon to many things in this life.  San Diego was an experience that shaped my personalty into very different one.  Hence I am no longer the same Khalid who came from Saudi Arabia.  A complete transition in life.


   After finishing my ESL program, now it is time to start applying for universities.  With a science major, I would need to reach a level of English proficiency that is parallel to a native speaker in order to be accepted in a school with a Biology major.  So I took the TOEFL test, a test that measures your language proficiency.   fortunately,  I got a very high score.  Now I am ready to start pursuing my degree.  With the idea of knowing that one of my friends used to study in Saint Norbert College.  I asked him if I should apply to this school, and he highly recommended it to me, saying that it one of the best schools I would study in.  Therefore, I applied to it and got accepted.  So excited I was when I saw my acceptance letter in the mail.  Days have passed, and my first semester started in January 2016, and I was so oblivious on how the weather would be in De Pere, since I never experienced snow and very cold weather in my life. Therefore, it was hard for me at the beginning, but I manged to get used to it hopefully.


   Now I am currently at the very end of my Fall semester, my second semester. Very challenging semester it was due the science classes I have taken.  However, I am very positive that I am going to succeed.  Not just for me, but also for my mother, the person who made all of this possible for me.  And the day will come where I will make her proud to be mother.  That is the least I could do to honor her huge efforts.

Fall semester

Fall semester is finished, this has come with many difficulties, memories and good experiences.

From August through December of this year I have learned a lot about my self, how to improve my abilities, make a schedule and more.

At the beginning it was a little difficult coming from another country, culture, speak another language, and do not have any friend. When classes begin I focus in having a social life in the first couples of weeks, then study hard and finally get a job in Saint Norbert College. Although I have been really busy the last month, I can recommend do this with a schedule that will help you. In addition to this, like all my mentors from SNC 101, SNC leaders and friends from Senior year is the use of Google calendar, you will never miss any appointment and the stress of forgetting doing something will disappear.

This was my first fall in the America, looking how the leaves change color, fall, and how the weather was extraordinary I never saw that before, in December looking how the snow started was something that at the beginning terrified me “It’s going to be cold” my friends started saying, I never saw snow before coming America for being the first time it was awesome although we needed to wear a lot of clothe.

This semester the popular saying that will reflect me is “If you never have a dream, you’ll never have a dream come true.” When I was in high school during my last year even though I knew I will come to the United States to start a new life I never though how gratifying it will be, I noticed I can make friend easily and adapt to another environments, that if you make a time for everything and do your best effort in the homework, study time, social life, etc, you will success.

My dream was when I was younger with my brother was coming to the United States and study here our College, I do not know how to express in words my reaction the day Saint Norbert College send a card and a e-mail to my family in Peru explaining that I have been accepted as a undergraduate student. Like many people say “Have a dream for every day you sleep” now my dream is become a professional and take my master here in America. Along this semester I meet wonderful people, I am really glad the professors of the different classes I took where very friendly, kind and help me with extra-credit and re-writings I can say that the small community of Saint Norbert College has help me more that I though.

Now that we are already in winter break although I will take a J-Term class and continue being busy I am really happy of being here in De Pere as an international student my first semester is a memory that is unforgettable.

final essay

My fall semester at St.Norbert College: Personal narrative essay

“Hoping and praying are easier but do not produce as good results as hard work.” (Andy

Rooney)

I was very excited when I started my first year of my college because studying in college is very difference from high school. You arrange all the classes by yourself and make your own daily schedule. The most important thing about college is that you can learn something that is very useful for you that you cannot learn from a textbook. For my first fall semester I really related a proverb that Andy Rooney said “Hoping and praying are easier but do not produce as good results as hard work” because of my study experience.

One day, as usual, I was very tired after I finished all of my classes. On entering my room, I laid flat on my bed like a lazy cat. I shouted loudly “I am very tired!” but I knew that I gave my best try to understand what the professor had spoken in the class. I intended to relax and to take a short nap, but when I opened my eyes I looked out of the window, and the outside had gotten dark. I was suddenly awake because I remembered that I had an exam tomorrow, and I did not do any homework. After I realized this, I checked my syllabus to find out that I also needed to write an essay. At that moment, I was extremely anxious, on the edge, and my brain was blank. I did not do anything, I just hoped and prayed the professor will forget to check the homework tomorrow. I do not know why I did nothing at that time, actually I forgot how to do my homework. I looked at my homework, picked up my pen in a daze for a long time. I put down my pen many times because I felt very high pressure. I tried to escape from that situation by opening YouTube to watch a TV show because I thought that can make me calm down. I enjoyed in the TV show and totally forgot my homework until I feel sound sleep. When I was calming down, I did not have enough time to finish my homework and review for exam. Finally, I gave up on my homework to sleep on my bed for my health.

The next day, I was afraid to go to the class. My hopes and daydream did not come true, my professor checked the homework, and we had the exam. I regretted it too late, and I lost some credit and felt bad about my exam. After that class, I went to the café and sat in a corner trying to reflect on myself. I hung my head on the table. There was an interesting conversation between two classmates at the next table:

“Hi, what is going on?”

“I don’t know, I have too much homework that is a high pressure for me.”

“Never give up, man! Let me tell you a good way to make you be better.”

“Come on, what is it?’’

“When I get my homework I don’t think too much. I just do it and work hard!”

“That makes sense because hoping and praying are easier for me, but they do not produce as good results as hard work.” 

I seemed to understand what they were saying. I went to the library immediately to find a quiet place to sit. I took a deep breath and started to study. My focus was on the homework in my mind, and I did not get distracted with any complicated moods. Soon, it was getting dark, but I already finished all of my weekend homework after only spending a few productive hours. After that day, I mastered the secret of completing a lot of homework! This experience was very useful for my whole semester. I have a new process of doing my homework, and also I am no longer afraid of too much work! 

Narrative Essay:

           One semester after 

I never imagined that I would one day be studying my degree in the United States. I always have seen this possibility as a dream or even something impossible. When I heard from my parents that there was the chance to make it real, I was excited but mostly afraid. Afraid not because of the difference of language, but because of the difference of everything. Leaving my country and having far my family and also friends was a sacrifice, but it worth it.  More than just a semester in college, being in St. Norbert is one of the most significant steps I did in my life. It made me learn many things I didn’t know, from learning how to wash my clothes to realizing how important is to materialize my goals. This learning did not happen since the beginning, I had to deal with a difficult and large process. The process of adaptation in a college for the first time fits in well with Andy Rooney’s saying “Hoping and praying are easier but do not produce as good results as hard work.”

Firstly, the phrase fits in my experience because it talks about dealing with a problem. In the beginning of the semester, I was more confident than I should have been. Because many people told me that the freshman year was the most relaxing of all, I was convinced that all my classes would be easy and that I would get a high grade in all of them. As a consequence of this, I did not take much care of my grades. I focused more on my social life. I preferred many times to go out with friends rather than doing homework or studying. I did not realize the seriousness of this until this lack of importance was reflected in my midterm’s grades. After seeing them much lower than I expected, I felt guilty and, even worst, hopeless.

As the phrase says, “[h]oping and praying are easier;” I started regretting the way I was spending my time doing other activities instead of studying. Seeing myself unable to come back and change the way I took classes, I felt myself without any motivations and possibilities to recover my studies. Thinking about what my parents would think if they could see how I wasted this chance, made me even more worried and sadder.

As when a person falls and finds the way to stand up, I had to react and see how can I solve this problem instead of feeling sad and demotivate myself. As well as how Andy Rooney thinks, the only person that can change things, is oneself. I realized this at the right moment. So I started to look for ways that could make my grades get better, such as asking for extra credit projects and re-writings; this helped me a lot. In addition to this, I changed the way I was taking classes; I started being more attentive in the lectures, more thoughtful in the papers, and also more active in oral interventions. Now that the semester is ending, I am able to see how I have improved and I feel very proud of it.

In summary, I think Andy Rooney says a truthful phrase because it happened to me. A person can’t just be sad and wait for something to happen that magically could solve his or her problem. Someone had to take the initiative, and that is oneself. There are always falls and downs in one’s life, this helps the human person to learn not to fall again in this errors, and also he or she learns how to solve them.

See ya!