Profiles In College — Part II

Twists And Turns In The Search For A Career

Following are more stories from the Class of 2005. One person has changed her major. One transferred to another school and changed her major. Another is still undeclared. And, the fourth was not sure what he wanted to do, so he put off college and joined the Army.

Marymount University — Britta Cedegren attended Marymount University in Arlington, Va., ten minutes outside Washington, D.C. She is now registered at Western Connecticut State University for the fall.

Britta was a criminal and forensic psychology major. “My dad is a cop. I participated in an FBI Youth Leadership Program,” Britta explained. “I’m interested in psychology.”

It seemed like a good fit; then Britta found her passion. Having grown up with heart problems, she has decided to pursue pediatric cardiology.

“My major is now bioscience/premed/nursing. I’m going to do an internship program that will allow me to shadow Dr Alan Friedman at Yale,” Britta said. Dr Friedman is her cardiologist. “I’d like to attend NYU or Yale for med school. It’s going to be tough. It’ll be a long road, but that’s what I’m prepared to do. I know I’d burn out quickly talking to serial killers all the time.”

“I was scared to go away to college. I only saw two or three schools. I wasn’t really prepared,” Britta explained. “I didn’t realize I’d have to live here for four years.”

She advises, “Do your research about the school. If you’re not comfortable, you won’t be happy.”

Marymount has 400 people living on campus, with a total enrollment of 1,200. “Everyone knows everyone else’s business. There are no frats or sororities.” Britta added.

Some people have admonished, “You’ll miss the college experience if you live at home.”

Britta response: “College isn’t ‘Animal House’ for everyone. College is not really life. Everything is provided.”

She feels college is about who you think you want to become. She suggests joining clubs to learn who you are.

And you have to learn to live with other people. Britta and her roommate were just not compatible. Britta said the experience helped her grow.

Britta’s bottom line: “I want good memories of school.”

St Bonaventure University — Caitlin Dalton will be a sophomore this fall at St Bonaventure University near Olean, N.Y., a six-and-a-half-hour ride from Newtown. Caitlin is still undeclared.

“Nothing is my passion,” she explained. “I haven’t found it yet.”

St Bonaventure is a small (enrollment 2,700), Catholic school in “the middle of nowhere.” Friars in brown robes can be seen walking around campus. Caitlin reports it is a very friendly place, but not very diverse.

“Everybody holds doors for each other. But it is very homogenous. Students are mainly middle class white kids from towns like Newtown,” Caitlin reported.

Caitlin chose the school because many of her relatives have attended St Bonaventure. A cousin is a friar there. And St Bonaventure offered a great financial package.

In the dorms, people would greet each other in the halls, but no one got close. “It’s hard to put yourself out there,” Caitlin said. “I lived in Sandy Hook my whole life, never moved. And I’m not the most outgoing person, so I know it can be hard. Everybody’s first month at school is rough.”

Caitlin tried attending some club meetings and she reviewed music for the college radio station. One day, she happened into a meeting for The Warming House, a soup kitchen. Students from the school staff the kitchen daily from 2:30 to 6 pm.

“Families come in, people come in every day. We talk to the patrons and get to know them,” Caitlin continued. “Everybody cooks, everybody cleans up. I like to cook. I’ve made a lot of friends through this.”

She does report feeling very removed from everything. Her other friends from high school are in areas where they can visit each other with ease. “People are not going to drive six hours for the a weekend,” Caitlin lamented.

Caitlin was also disappointed by the limited social scene. “There are lots of bars. That’s just not my scene. But, there isn’t much else to do.”

She was pleasantly surprised that she did very well academically. “Grading was based on tests and in-class presentations, not a lot of repetitive homework.”

St Bonaventure has the dubious distinction of being rated #1 worst food by The Princeton Review. “Everything is deep fried and not that good,” Caitlin reports. “But they are renovating the dining hall and bringing in a new food service for next year.”

Caitlin chose to purchase a desktop computer rather than a laptop. She finds it has more storage capacity and holds lots of music. She did not find it a problem fitting things in her dorm room. She understood what she was getting into as far as that went.

Caitlin is looking forward to returning to St Bonaventure next week.

United States Army — “I always had an interest in the Army,” PFC Dylan Borst said. “I didn’t know what I wanted to do at college. Instead of wasting money and my time, the Army gave me a chance to think about what I wanted to do while getting life experience.”

Dylan graduated a semester early, in January 2005, and joined the Army on February 10, 2005. Basic training and the drill sergeants were not a bad experience for him. “It’s a mental game. You have to get around that,” Dylan said. “If you can do that, it’s not too bad.”

That April, Dylan completed basic training at Fort Jackson, S.C., the site of basic training for soldiers in his military occupational specialty (MOS). From basic, soldiers ship to a base for advanced individual training (AIT) for their particular MOS.

“Things get a little easier after basic. You don’t see the drill sergeants as much,” Dylan offered. “You spend more time with your job trainers. If you make it through basic, AIT shouldn’t be a problem. ”

Dylan went to Fort Sill, Okla., where he received AIT as a multiple rocket launch systems specialist. When he had completed AIT, he was assigned to Fort Sill as permanent personnel.

In August 2005, Dylan reported to Camp Menden, La. for heavy equipment transporter training and in October he was deployed to Kuwait, Camp Arifjan, for a one-year tour of duty. Upon his arrival, he was assigned a new position.

He is an administrative clerk. Dylan handles paperwork for a variety of personnel matters: awards, leave, etc. A typical day has him at work by 0700 hours, 7 am civilian time. Around 1200 hours, noon, he has lunch, then works 1300 to 1700 hours, 1 to 5 pm.

After work hours, the soldiers spend time watching videos, playing games, going to the gym. The MWR — Morale, Welfare and Recreation Center — has a big screen TV, Xboxes, a theater, ping pong and pool tables.

Asked about the food, Dylan replied, “It’s not bad, but it’s not the best.”

Dylan anticipates returning to Fort Sill this October. He has a commitment to the Army until February 2008 and has made the decision to go to college upon discharge. Dylan will have money for college through the Montgomery GI Bill. The amount is based on his scores on the aptitude tests all recruits take, and on the MOS chosen.

“Arizona State University, Tempe, has a computer science/software engineering program I am interested in. I’d like to go into game development, or programming in general,” Dylan stated.

Returning to the military after college is up in the air at this point. Dylan is considering joining ROTC at college. If he went ROTC, he would be commissioned as a second lieutenant when he graduated.

Dylan said, “I’m enjoying my time so far. The Army’s a great place, a great institution. I have no regrets at all.”

Asked if he would recommend the military to others, Dylan said, “You have to have the right mind set. It’s not for everyone. Definitely not.

“It’s pretty much 9 to 5 with physical training in the morning. You’ve got a college dormlike setting if you live on post. You have a lot of fun once you’re in permanent party [assigned to a base].”

Temple University — Wendy Borst began attending Temple University in Philadelphia studying English and secondary education. Five weeks into the semester she switched to photojournalism. “Technically, it’s journalism with a concentration in photography in the mass media,” she explained. “Possibly adding a minor in English and a certificate in Italian.”

“I applied to five colleges, mainly to see if I could in,” Wendy continued. “Four were in cities and one was rural. I wanted something different from Newtown, which meant a city. Temple was the most affordable school.”

Asked if she was happy with her choice, Wendy replied, “I love Temple. I can’t wait to go back. Of course, I was apprehensive at first, maybe I should have stayed closer to home, gone to a more affordable state school… I’m glad I stuck it out.”

What about drawbacks to Temple? “Being between center and north Philly brings a certain amount of caution to your life. You shouldn’t leave campus alone at night, especially if you’re a girl. The campus lights up like a Christmas tree at night. Staying on campus, you’re pretty safe.”

Her favorite things about Philly? “Cheese steaks, South Street, Penn’s Landing, and the Chinatown bus. Travel is easy. The bus or subway gets you around Philly. You can get to New Jersey, DC, or New York by train and bus. I prefer the subway in the city, and the bus out of the city.”

The Chinatown bus is an inexpensive way to travel between several East Coast cities. Wendy rides from Chinatown Philadelphia to 34th Street, Penn Station in New York City for $25 round trip.

“I was very lucky with roommates. I was in a two-bedroom, one-bath suite arrangement with three other girls. We got along famously,” Wendy explained.

Storage within the room was easy, too. “I was making one trip with one carload of stuff,” Wendy said. “Locals made several trips between home and the dorm and brought lots of stuff. I was very minimalist.”

“I brought a CD player, which I didn’t need. If you have iTunes on your laptop and working speakers, that’s good enough. I did bring a fan, that never got used. My dorm had air-conditioning. But if I ever needed it, I would be glad that it was there,” she said.

While students on campus debate whether people in the buildings with communal showers meet more people than those in private suites, Wendy and her roommates found that if they left their door open, people wandered in and said hi.

The only downside Wendy reported was not being able to cook her own food. Those who know Wendy are probably saying, “Wendy? Cook? No!”

“But I would have known what I was eating for sure and wouldn’t have had to brave the weather to eat,” Wendy replied.

“When choosing a college, apply to a Reach school like the guidance counselors tell you. And apply to a safety school and several in between. Once you’ve been accepted, then go visit. And be willing to make compromises with your parents, but don’t compromise what you want out of your college experience.”