“I was really questioning what it means to be successful on this campus. But I went abroad, and I know everyone says this, but it was the most transformative part of my time here. I wasn’t with many people, and it was very isolating. I found that I could not sit still and do nothing. I tried to figure out why that was, and I guess I felt like if I wasn’t doing anything, it wasn’t meaningful or significant. So it took about four months of being abroad to recognize I was trying to be something, rather than be someone. And I realized it is a lot harder to become someone who is comfortable with themselves, and can find meaning and success within themselves than to focus outwardly. Junior year was a lot about trying to piece this together because on this campus there is such an emphasis on outward success.”
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