(cont.)
- Where are you now?
Now I a very happy student at Kent State University (about an hour north of Wooster). I'll talk about Kent a lot more in the next question, but I am also happy to answer any other questions about Kent that may arise.
- Have you found what you are looking for there? Kent State has helped me grow so much socially and academically. The social scene here is vastly different, as I alluded to earlier. Meeting people is much easier, my residence hall has weekly meetings, game nights, movie nights, cookie parties, etc. I have met so many wonderful people in my hall this way. My first month here I went to a karaoke night, a craft night (I still love crafting but it's not all I want to do!), an ice skating party (there was free ice skating, a henna tattoo artist, a balloon animal artist, free food, a free hockey game, a big bonfire outside, etc), a concert, a party (it was college sponsored so there wasn't any alcohol) with a mechanical bull, another big concert by some supposedly famous rap artist I had never heard of, and countless other things. I have not spent a single weekend night in my dorm room alone watching Netflix or doing homework at Kent (I spent far more than I'd care to admit doing so at Wooster). Amy Schumer came to Kent last semester, Aziz Ansari was here a few years ago, Hunter Hayes preformed at the beginning of the year, and countless other big acts come to Kent State. Academically Kent State has a worse reputation that Wooster. I can't argue that, but I can honestly say that I don't think my education has been compromised in the transfer. Most of my classes are just as small as they were at Wooster, I only have one large class (~300 people), which is my intro to biology lecture. However, the professor offers recitations, and we have organized study groups lead by grad students that meet as often as four times a week, so the size of the lecture hasn't been a problem. In terms of the professors themselves the situation is similar to Wooster. I have some professors who are excellent, and some who are just okay. (On a side note, I was lucky enough to not have any grad students teach my actual lectures, so I can't speak to this situation that does happen at larger universities like KSU). Additionally, I transferred into the Honors College so I take most of my classes with other Honors students who are typically very motivated and intelligent. In terms of research, since Kent is a large research institution, opportunities are everywhere. I already have a position in a chemistry lab, where I will work alongside grad students who are working directly with several professors here at the university. I just completed my training and will be moving into the actual lab sometimes in the next few weeks and I very excited.