This past school year, I had two completely unrelated experiences that greatly impacted my personal and professional trajectories.
The first was my decision to take a certain math class second semester: engineering calculus 2. I took engineering calculus because I was planning to pursue my Masters in Business Analytics. However, by the end of the semester, I had decided that this was not for me. By far, engineering calculus 2 was the most difficult class I have taken. I got a C in the class. I decided that this would be the last calculus class I take. Not because I had gotten a C, but because I reached a point in the semester where I could no longer comprehend the material.
I had a good teacher, I did my homework, I went to office hours, I studied for the tests and tried to meet with tutors. I was never able to understand what I was doing, though. I enjoy a challenge, but this class was different than any challenge I had faced. I’ve often found that if I try hard enough, everything comes together, eventually things make sense, but that never happened in this class. I looked at my course schedule for the fall and saw that if I were to continue on the track to get my Masters, I would have to take multivariable calculus, or calculus 3.
I made a very calculated (no pun intended) decision to pursue a major in Business Analytics instead of the Masters. With my decision came a feeling of relief. The major requires another algebra class, but no more calculus.
I am also planning to major in accounting. I know that when I graduate I do not want to be a data analyst. I know that I want to work with people, not just numbers. The reason I chose to even study Business Analytics is because I want to be able to understand it. I know that with technology advancements, businesses are able to collect more data than ever seemed possible. In whatever I do, I want to be able to understand the numbers so that I can help companies make decisions based on many factors, not just by looking at the accounts.
The second experience that really impacted my life this year was the adoption of my fourth sibling. It’s so odd now to tell people that I’m the oldest of five. For the past fourteen years, I’ve had one younger brother, and two younger sisters. Now, I have two of each. In March, my family went to China to bring home Howie, my adopted three-year-old brother. I made this trip an honors experience, so there’s a little more information in that section of my website. I have one thing to add to it.
I think the biggest change that I notice when I go home is that my house is happier. No one wants to be upset around a three-year-old, and he’s too cute for anyone to be upset with him. We’ve realized the importance of working together. We are all incredibly busy, but one thing never changes, Howie always has to be watched. I think that as a family, we have learned how to be more patient with each other and how to communicate better all around. Adoption is new for us all; just like Howie is new to our family. As we go, we are teaching him how to love and learning for ourselves how to better love. Adoption truly does build a family. I think it brought mine closer together.
I cannot wait to see what my next 4 years at UC bring!
The first was my decision to take a certain math class second semester: engineering calculus 2. I took engineering calculus because I was planning to pursue my Masters in Business Analytics. However, by the end of the semester, I had decided that this was not for me. By far, engineering calculus 2 was the most difficult class I have taken. I got a C in the class. I decided that this would be the last calculus class I take. Not because I had gotten a C, but because I reached a point in the semester where I could no longer comprehend the material.
I had a good teacher, I did my homework, I went to office hours, I studied for the tests and tried to meet with tutors. I was never able to understand what I was doing, though. I enjoy a challenge, but this class was different than any challenge I had faced. I’ve often found that if I try hard enough, everything comes together, eventually things make sense, but that never happened in this class. I looked at my course schedule for the fall and saw that if I were to continue on the track to get my Masters, I would have to take multivariable calculus, or calculus 3.
I made a very calculated (no pun intended) decision to pursue a major in Business Analytics instead of the Masters. With my decision came a feeling of relief. The major requires another algebra class, but no more calculus.
I am also planning to major in accounting. I know that when I graduate I do not want to be a data analyst. I know that I want to work with people, not just numbers. The reason I chose to even study Business Analytics is because I want to be able to understand it. I know that with technology advancements, businesses are able to collect more data than ever seemed possible. In whatever I do, I want to be able to understand the numbers so that I can help companies make decisions based on many factors, not just by looking at the accounts.
The second experience that really impacted my life this year was the adoption of my fourth sibling. It’s so odd now to tell people that I’m the oldest of five. For the past fourteen years, I’ve had one younger brother, and two younger sisters. Now, I have two of each. In March, my family went to China to bring home Howie, my adopted three-year-old brother. I made this trip an honors experience, so there’s a little more information in that section of my website. I have one thing to add to it.
I think the biggest change that I notice when I go home is that my house is happier. No one wants to be upset around a three-year-old, and he’s too cute for anyone to be upset with him. We’ve realized the importance of working together. We are all incredibly busy, but one thing never changes, Howie always has to be watched. I think that as a family, we have learned how to be more patient with each other and how to communicate better all around. Adoption is new for us all; just like Howie is new to our family. As we go, we are teaching him how to love and learning for ourselves how to better love. Adoption truly does build a family. I think it brought mine closer together.
I cannot wait to see what my next 4 years at UC bring!