Dumfounded Dreamer

I went into college with my heart set on what I wanted to study. I knew that I was going to double major in Political Science and Communications. I ignored the myths about people going into college as Humanities majors then ending up Pre-med, or going in as Math, and studying Art History instead, etc, etc. Not that I’m doing Science now, as far as Science and me, we’d prefer to stay apart. Don’t get me wrong it’s not that I disapprove of the sciences, it’s just that it’s not a subject area that I’m passionate about.

The great thing about a liberal arts curriculum is that it opens so many doors for you. As you take more and more classes, you become more and more intrigued about the different possibilities out there. My interests have grown from Poli Sci and Communications to a wider range of subjects. I now am fascinated by Computer Science, the design aspect of it, and Global Business, mainly social entrepreneurship. Let me define my interests in these areas in a bit more detail.

• Political Science: An interest in Politics rose within me my sophomore year, my first year on the Mock Trial Team. This interest was re-affirmed by my senior year Government Class. For those of you who didn’t go to Monta Vista High, this program was affectionately called GovTeam. (This definition is taken from my Gov teacher’s website govandlaw.org) It is a competition based course in which students in teams of 4-6 present in simulated congressional hearings + real government projects. The team’s success depends on every team member’s contribution, if one team member is weak, it hurts the whole team. It explores philosophy, constitutional history, law, activism, and economics. I realized that the heart of the U.S. (and the world) lies in DC. And that it was vital for me to be there and be part of the law making process (thereby creating the interest for me to go to law school). To make the laws, I have to learn the law. This year I furthered this interest by the 3 Politics courses I took: Foundations of Political Theory, American Politics, and World Politics. While I found World Politics interesting, I do not see any future for me in International Law. I would love to learn more about American Politics, and possibly participate in the future :)
• Communications: Human communication is what binds us all together. I’ve always been interested in Journalism, and my senior year in high school I had the privilege to write for our school Newspaper El Estoque (check online out here: elestoque.org)! Even though many people don’t take high school newspapers seriously, our Journalism class did, and our school did. When I got to work with the fellow staff who had so much passion for reporting, learning, writing, and re-telling the stories through witty rhetoric I was so fascinated. I love reporting, and learning about other people. As a journalism major you not only learn about reporting, but other legal issues that affect the media. And how the media is the voice of the people. I would love to pursue Broadcast Journalism, and/or be part of the White House Correspondents Association.
• Computer Science: I don’t know much about this field as yet. But I do know I am intrigued by it. I love graphic design, and have of recent been playing around with various design programs. I have many many ideas about what I would like to do in the field. I just need a guiding hand, that can show me the ropes.
• Global Business/Social Entrepreneurship: From the status of women in the U.S. economy and the economics of health care to the social consequences of tax policies, it will focus on how the relationship between the interplay of societal, organizational, and individual forces shape the national and global communities….
• And as a side….I’ve always had a passion for baking/cooking….I would like to open my own bakery one day.

I don’t think we are fulfilling our purpose in life by just fulfilling our own desires. I think that once we find our passions, it is our job to spread it, and enlighten the community/world around us. For example, if you’re interested in teaching, and you become a teacher, I think it’s important for us to be able to go to third-world places, places in need, and help those who are in need of an education. By just bettering ourselves we are in no way changing the world, or making an impact.

As of recent, I’ve been thinking that the purpose in life isn’t JUST to find your passions, but to find your passions and to use that to help bring us all together. Because realistically, you can’t achieve anything all by yourself. We have too much of a radical-individualistic approach to things here in America. We don’t realize that our results both negative and positive are a result of the people around us. For example, no one is going to attain your college degree for you; one must pursue their college degree by themselves. However, getting a college degree is attained only through a collective effort: professors to teach content, advisors and deans to advise the process, college facilities that monitor the level of education received, parents or guardians that fund this education and the list goes on and on.

Anyways, my point is that I love so many things I don’t think I can categorize myself as one or two specific areas of interest. Each area of interest is what makes me who I am today. I will never be able to give up one or another, and along my 3 years left in college I might pick up a few more! One of my best friends gave me this piece of advice a few days ago: “College is to educate you on what you can’t learn on your own”. Realistically I have 1 year to decide what I am officially going to declare on my transcript…but that doesn’t mean my other passions will fade away. I’ll follow my heart, and see where it takes me.