This past week has been really busy for me, but overall, it was great. Last Tuesday, I had the opportunity to go to a JP Morgan Networking Event in Boston. At first I was a bit hesitant to register, because I also had to submit my resume, but I’m so glad I did! I learned a lot about what JP Morgan has to offer career wise, and the opportunities they present students. So, if you’re ever questioning as to whether you should do something, just give it a shot, what do you have to lose, right? (In my case-at the end of the event, my feet hurt so bad-sometimes heels are not a girl’s best friend)

At the JP Morgan Event

I also went home for a bit this weekend to apply for a passport, because I decided I wanted to apply to study abroad, and I guess having a passport now that I’m in college isn’t a bad idea (spring break is getting a whole new meaning? 😉 ) I’m looking at schools in England, and my roommate also wants to study in England next year. We’re planning on spending winter break in Italy (doesn’t that sound so nice?) and parlo l’italiano so we should be okay, haha.

On the academic side, my work load is… well…it’s there. Some how I always get all my work done. But those Thursday nights…before a problem set is due for one of my math courses, you can find me with a bunch of my friends trying to solve problems until past midnight, guaranteed.

See, this is the thing with math problem sets: you can’t finish them until the end of the week, unless you want to teach the material to yourself (and I’ve tried…and failed).

But this shouldn’t discourage you from taking math courses. I’m starting to like Thursday nights more than any night of the week, because my friends are in the same boat as me, and we have a great time laughing about anything (everything is funny after a certain time-me and 4 of my guy friends are always like, we should have a comedy show) and who doesn’t love eating pizza at midnight?

Welcome Week: The first week of the academic year.

It’s been a few days since fall semester began, and studying is a thing again. Now that I’m a sophomore, I pretty much know what I need to do to get things done. Time management is definitely a skill worth learning. So far, I have been assigned with a decent amount of work, but I’ve been pretty much on my game these past few days, and have finished most of what I need to get done this weekend. It helps that I am working in the library this semester, so I can get some studying done while at work. It also helps that most of my friends live in the same residence hall this year, so they are within steps of me when I need them (or their books…haha…because one of mine is still in the mail). Living on campus definitely has its perks.

My classes have been great so far. My professors are awesome, and most of my friends are in my classes, which is a bonus. Other than the two math courses I’m taking, I’m also taking a philosophy course and an architecture course. So, I’m knocking off two more common requirements with classes that intrigued me the most while selecting courses for this semester. If you have to take something, might as well be interested in the course material, right?

Okay, so enough about the academic side of my week. Let’s talk about what Welcome Week has to offer. Every day during Welcome Week, there is an event. This past week, there was the Outdoor Edge, Bingo, Stump Trivia, Clay Time, and also, a Mentalist performed one night.

   <—— My Bowl I painted during Clay Time

In exactly a week, classes will begin on Mount St. James! I can’t wait!

There hasn’t been much going on during this last week at home for me. Just reading for a class, and starting the whole packing up (pretty much) my whole room. So I thought I would share what I did this summer.

This summer I worked at this family retreat and conference center on Lake George in New York. I had two roommates: a friend from school and a new friend from Belgium. While working took up a majority of my time, we always found time to have fun, and occasionally, my amazing new friends made the time go by a lot faster at work. My new friends come from all over the world: (in alphabetical order) Belgium, Brazil, California, Columbia, Florida, New York, Illinois, Massachusetts (just like me!!!), Michigan, New Jersey, China, Venezuela, and Virginia.

I think I grew a lot this summer, and I definitely learned a lot this summer. One thing being: how to use a power drill, haha. Those things are pretty neat.

Some memories I would like to share:

1. Sleeping outside beside Lake George underneath the pretty stars
2. Kayaking
3. Hiking
4. Roller skating party
5. Dinner Cruise on Lake George
6. Scavenger Hunt in the pouring rain
7. Going on a midnight run after work

In My Hammock by Lake George

Hey all,

As some of you may have noticed, summer is now ending. Soon, we will be back in school. I’m not entirely sure how I feel about going back to school. Some days I can’t wait to be back on campus, but other days, I don’t want summer to end.

The other day I was thinking about what I may have been thinking about last summer and during my first semester of college. I thought about things that I wish I had known, and the things that I learned through experience. So, I thought I would compile a list of advice.

1. Starting conversations with complete strangers can lead to friendships that will last forever (or a really really really long time)
2. If your life plan does not turn out the way you wanted, life does not end.*
3. Find one or two clubs that you are really passionate about.**
4. Go to your professors’ office hours even if you don’t have questions, because they are people who care about their students, and a professor has told me once that their office hours can get boring if students do not go to office hours.
5. Some advice I was given by a friend and now a graduate of the College of the Holy Cross: make everyone your mentor, because everyone has some advice to share and experiences you may not have had.
6. If you are able to, visit your parents. During the weekends, you may just want to party and hang out with your friends, but your parents do miss you when you’re at school.***
7. Take some time out of your schedule to explore the city your college is in.****
8. Studying is not everything. It should take a portion of your time.
9. Make time for yourself. This is implied above but I felt the need to be explicit.
10. Be open-minded about every opportunity that comes your way.*****

*I thought I would major in biology and be in the health professions program, but it turns out that I would rather major in math.

**For me it is blogging for the Holy Cross site, and if you read my first entry of last year, I also joined knitting club.

***I barely went home during my first semester, because I was always busy working or studying. One of my sisters told me that mom kept calling everyone by my name.

****I’ve gotten to go off campus, and Worcester has so much to offer (especially food of multiple ethnicities).

*****I was on the fence about applying to be a student blogger, but I knew it was an opportunity that I wanted to take, so I applied and one day, I got an email telling me tht I was chosen to be one. I think it was one of the best choices I ever made.

Hi readers!

Ellen Chen, second year, here writing about how I can’t wait to go back to school this fall! But first I have to buy my textbooks….my bank account just flinched…

Okay, so I just wanted to write about the Top 10 things I can’t wait for this fall.

1. Seeing my friends for the first time in forever, of course
2. Seeing my professors from last year (they are actually pretty cool intelligent people)
3. Using my hammock on Easy St.*
4. Staying up past midnight, studying with my friends, because that’s bound to happen at least once**
5. Not having to walk back and forth to one of the farthest residence halls on campus every day
6. Receiving mail in my tiny cute mail box
7. Knowing everything I did not know last year***
8. Seeing Kimball after its renovations this summer
9. Going to events that the Campus Activities Board (CAB) plans
10. And of course, last but not least, blogging for the Holy Cross site

*Back story…last year, I saw a couple of students using their hammocks between the trees on Easy St. and I thought it was genius.

**Probably singing songs with lyrics that we have altered on the spot to fit our studying needs, just because we need to stay goofy to stay awake and keep ourselves entertained/sane.

***Pro tip: Learn to take the elevators to a certain level of certain buildings to get somewhere else on campus faster (much faster than if you walked)

My last final of my first year of Holy Cross was this morning! I’m technically done, but I have a paper to write for Monday. But other than that, I am ecstatic that I am done with final exams. This last week has been pretty hectic. I did not think I could run on so little sleep. 😉 But that’s finals week for you; it is so not uncommon for people to still be at the library at 2 AM. Which is why there is such a thing as Midnight Breakfast, and why I love coffee.

I should really be working on my paper/packing, but I just wanted to take a quick minute to thank you for reading my blog entries!

Have a great summer!

Best,

Ellen Chen

I swear the semester just began…how is it already the end of April! Time sure flies. I really can’t believe I’m going to be a second year in just a few months!!! #NoLongerAFreshman next semester #Can’tWait #Yes,IAmUsingHashtags

Top things I loved about my Freshman Year:

1. Becoming best friends with people from all over the world (I love you guys 😉 ), especially my future roomie, who, in fact, was my summer orientation roommate

2. Having an awesome mentor* who met with me almost every week this year

3. Going to Mentor Program events*

4. Getting to know a lot of people from working in Kimball, science labs, and studying in groups

5. Participating  in Odyssey*

6. And last but not least, becoming a Holy Cross student blogger <3

Links that might help explain what I was talking about:

* http://academics.holycross.edu/alana/mentor_program

** http://academics.holycross.edu/alana/odyssey

Hey all,

They say that the recommended amount of studying time for every hour you are in class is three hours. Being a college student is definitely a full time job. I have found this to be so true.

I’ve been pretty swamped with work lately (ever since spring break ended)…the course load at Holy Cross is seriously no joke. But it keeps me busy, and I like being put under stress, because that is when I do my best work. I have a draft for a research paper, 2 essays,  a lab worksheet, and problem set. All of which are due this week, and I also have an exam to study for. This does not reflect my usual work load though; it is not usually this heavy. An example for a usual week would be a problem set for math, maybe 150 pages of reading for my Montserrat, a short reading for my English class, and some textbook reading for Psychology.

On the bright side, it is almost Easter Recess!! (A perk of going to a Catholic institution-a lot of time off for the holidays.)

UPDATED: So the week went by; I survived!!! And I can say, I only stayed up late once during that week. Obviously don’t wait until the night before something is due to work on it, but I totally understand that procrastinating is tempting. But from experience, I usually have both time to study and hang out with my friends so don’t worry about the workload in college taking time from making time for your friends.

Congrats to those accepted to Holy Cross! #HC2018

If you’re still deciding on which school you would like to go to school next year, I wish you good luck. I know it can be a difficult decision. I remember discussing college with my friends in high school. It was such a challenge for some that they drew up pros and cons for each of the schools they were accepted to. But some instantly knew, like me. I knew I wanted to come to Holy Cross. There were a lot of factors that influenced my decision: financial aid, distance away from home, academics, etc. Factors differ between people, so my advice is to carefully choose, but don’t dwell on the decision, because it’s not the end of the world if you choose a school that ends up not being right for you. Keep in mind that transferring is also an option for the future.

And to end this post…(because everyone loves food)…

From left to right: sushi, beef and rice chalupa (both from lower kimball), and large iced caramel latte