Good News

Now that we have all returned from our last break before the end of term 2, we are re-energized and prepared to finish our last term of classes strong. I had a wonderful break, I went to visit Niagara Falls, Canada for the first time with my boyfriend and I had a blast. When I returned to campus Sunday afternoon to finally hand in my internship paperwork to be accepted and approved, I arrived to a pile of good news in my mailbox. First, I received information about Commencement preparation which is rapidly approaching. Second, I received news that my essay that I submitted for the ISM scholarship was selected as one of the finalists, and that I have an interview on Thursday to further discuss my interest in pursuing procurement and purchasing as a career. Third, was a notification that I was one of 47 students selected by Elmira College to be a member of the Who's Who national recognition for students that demonstrate academic excellence and leadership abilities. Also, my picture and biography were posted in Harris Hall on the Economics bulletin board for having senior status and studying for a minor in economics. I also got an e-mail about being an overnight host again for a perspective student for Honor Scholars Weekend in March. Today, my group and I presented a huge group project presentation for one of my classes, and the weather is starting to get warmer. Only a few more weeks of my crazy, 6 class schedule and I'm home free!!

Senior Year Courses

I remember one of the things I was worried about the most as a high school senior enrolling in college, was being able to understand, complete, and enjoy college-level coursework. I remember thinking that high school-level course work seemed hard enough, so college-level coursework seemed unmanageable. I thought I would use this entry to describe the work associated with college for all the nervous highschoolers out there, or for anyone who is interested in knowing what kind of schoolwork Elmira College Business Administration majors receive. Ironically, after three years of increasingly difficult classes, I still believe that my freshman year was the most challenging; and I think that is part of the school's strategy. In freshman year, every student is required to take a "Freshman Writing Course," regardless of incoming college-level transfer courses (trust me I tried) in which we write at least two papers a week (most of them with midnight due dates.) There are also Saturday classes for the first term, and a twenty-page paper due at the end of the course, in addition to a mid-term and final. That class, in addition to the required CORE class, Encore (classical theater) requirements, and community service (60 hours), (plus an off campus part-time job I decided to add), freshman year was by far the most difficult to handle. However, at the end of freshman year, after accomplishing all of that, the feeling of relief and pride is so overwhelming, it empowers students and instills confidence in them to complete the remaining years at Elmira College successfully. Now that all of my general degree requirement classes are completed, I finally have the chance to take classes that are challenging, but rewarding and enjoyable. For example, in my Market Planning class (the capstone class for a Marketing specialization) we are assisting a local, non-profit business in writing a marketing plan for their business which they will implement for the year 2013 (I cannot describe more details because I signed a confidentiality form). In my Human Resource Management class, groups of three people are traveling to local business to meet with representatives from Human Resource (HR) departments to discuss their career in HR, ask them what challenges they face, learn about the company they represent, and then report about it at the end of the semester. Recently in my Strategic Advertising class, we watched the Superbowl commercials and analyzed the effectiveness of each one and the elements that make a successful or unsuccessful advertising campaign. Needless to say, the courses get more involved in the transition from underclassman to upperclassman, but they are far more interesting and relevant to future career plans. With only 5 weeks left before my last semester at Elmira College and my trip to Hawaii, I think about how far I have come and how much farther I can go now with everything I have learned these 3 short years of college.

Halfway Point

It is almost the halfway point of term 2, and everyone is feeling the stress of mid-term exam week. With 4 classes in a row on Tuesdays and Thursdays, I'm very fortunate that two of my professors took pity on us, and gave us take-home mid-terms instead to lighten the load. This weekend is the Athletic Alumni Weekend, where a bunch of alumni come to network with current students and answer any questions they might have. Also, my parents are coming this weekend to visit me since my 21st birthday was 2 weeks ago and I haven't seen them yet. I recently applied for a local scholarship offered by the Institute of Supply Chain Management in the Finger Lake Region (ISMFLR). Every year, the ISMFLR holds a fund raiser to collect as much money as possible to give back to the community in the form of scholarships. The criteria to be a candidate for the scholarship is full-time student status, majoring in Business Administration, with an interest in pursuing supply chain management as a possible career. I applied for this scholarship last year, however, they only had enough for 2 $1000 scholarships, and they ranked me third. This year, I have senior status and I am more interested in supply chain management than last year, and hopefully my essay application reflects that. The winners of the scholarship get to attend a supply chain management conference in Baltimore, Maryland in the begninng of May as well. The review the applications after the deadline which is in the beginning of March, so cross your fingers for me!