Ohio Wesleyan University

Date: Mar 17 2004
Major: Engineering Department (This Major's Salary over time)
Ohio Wesleyan started a whole new chapter in my life, still holding tight those images of Ohio Wesleyan-in-the-brochure. Day by day, I've been exposed to so much more of an unadvertised Ohio Wesleyan: one of the top libearal arts colleges if ranked academically; super fun classes; energetic student activities, by which I've first been made aware of many social issues in the US; a wide range of academic classes, some of which I have never thought of, but now have a real chance to explore, etc. I now wish I could stay at Ohio Wesleyan for 8 years, just to take all the classes that I like, though I know that it takes about 125 years to finish all the classes in Ohio Wesleyan's curriculum!!

But what impresses me most is probably my professors. Growing up in an educational environment where 30 students in a class meet each other everyday and thus become very close members of a big family, I was quite upset by the new American system. Everyone is always on-the-run. I see about a hundred "classmates" in four different classes everyday, but hardly see someone for more than an hour of class time. It's the professors that make me comfortable and confident again. I can always drop by during their office hours to discuss schoolwork, to complain about anything and to seek for encouragements, especially when SAD (seasonal affective disorder) falls on me in winter. I adore my math professors for their great lectures, their fun manners and the enthusiasm they bring to class every day. At their late twenties, my Japanese instructors become my big sisters and reliable friends. I'm totally indebted to these people for the rest of my life.

However, Ohio Wesleyan University is not a bed of roses. America is still a notion I haven't grown accustomed to, and the cultural shocks are still shaking me, yet Ohio Wesleyan keeps my feet standing firmly on the ground. I've discovered parts of myself, learnt how to value my origin and tradition, and most of all, learnt how to treasure the family and friends I have back in Vietnam. As one of my friends puts it,

Ohio Wesleyan doesn't change me. It just makes me more.