When I came I was a stranger. I never attended orientation and never took a campus tour. I was unfamiliar with Rutgers University and specifically Newark. My decision to attend was based on a promotional video, a scholarship offer and the advice of a few. Leaving Ft. Lauderdale, Florida, to attend college in Newark, N.J., I had no idea what I had committed myself to.
I felt like the new kid in school, nervous and self-conscious. After years of going to school with all my friends and being "in," I felt out. It is amazing how fast we are forced to grow up if put in particular situations. I left my comfort zone and have continued to expand those borders ever since.
Rutgers-Newark has introduced me to aspects of life that I would not have been exposed to otherwise. At Rutgers- Newark, the convergence of many cultures creates a cultural marketplace from which you can observe and incorporate those observations into your own personal growth. I have been given the opportunity to grow academically, culturally and spiritually. My mind has been opened to embrace a plethora of personal situations, ideologies and beliefs. I will be able to leave with a certain strength that has been developed over time due to the independence I was reluctant to receive.
My experience here has aided in cultivating my future goals, both personal and professional. Rutgers-Newark was one of those lessons you learn the hard way but from which you continuously benefit.
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