Freshman Year Reflection Essay

My freshman year at Portland State University has been quite the journey. From the ups and downs of relationships to the self-growth and learning that I have achieved, there hasn’t been a dull moment through it all. As a Psychology and BioChemistry major I tend to be quite inquisitive of the world around me, and my Freshman Inquiry, The Work of Art, allowed me to inquire about and explore myself and the diversity of a multitude of cultures and to think more critically about the mundane yet exciting surroundings and interactions that I experience on a daily basis.

Throughout the entire year Freshman Inquiry has given me the opportunity to explore myself and come to terms with many events from my past, as well as, aide me in creating goals for the future, through activities such as journal entries, and the exploration and open interpretation of works of art (whether they are in a museum, on a wall, or simply writing on a page). The journal entries assigned in this course required a fair amount of critical thinking, inquiry, and self-reflection, as they asked students to connect a piece of ourselves to a novel, and explore a theme (love, isolation, creativity, etc. . .) in depth. These assignments along with the extra credit assignments (these involved critically and subjectively reviewing gallery exhibits around Portland) gave me the ability and insight into my own beliefs, goals (both academically and personally), and motives.

Apart from understanding and inquiring about my own self, we were consistently asked to explore and research other's cultures in order to understand the context of a work of art, as well as to make sense of the diversity of the human experience. Each term students had to write a research paper that compared and contrasted two novels in regards to a particular theme ( right action and isolation and loneliness), that utilized the cultural background of the author and/or the culture that the novel was written in. These assignments required us to inquire and understand the cultures of Japan, Soviet Russia, Afghanistan, and The People’s Republic of China. We also explored cultures of all of the novels that we were assigned through group presentations, in order to gain a more in depth understanding by connecting the cultural history to the novel. Through group presentations I was able to learn about cultures in Germany, France, Nigeria, and Italy in the 1400's, as well as to work more collaboratively with others and speak more eloquently in front of a crowd.

I think that the most important piece of knowledge that I have been able to take away from my Freshman Inquiry class is that I should trust myself, because I am the most equipped to be able to make the most reasonable and correct choices for myself in my life. I made the decision to end a relationship that was toxic and unhealthy, I made the decision to double major in the two things that I love most no matter how “crazy” others say it is, I made the decision that I love school and that I will try my hardest to achieve the grade that I feel I deserve, and I made the decision to love myself despite my painful past, and I think that that is a pretty amazing and beautiful thing, and I would have never made these decisions without the help of my Freshman Inquiry class, professor, Lea Millay, or my mentor, Christian Logerstedt. I cannot thank you all enough for assisting me in becoming the best version of myself.