Written by: Kimberly Vela, Creative Producing Major, Class of 2020
When I was an incoming first-year, I recognized the importance of becoming involved and I put a lot of effort towards trying new things and making Chapman feel like home. It’s not hard to become involved, and I highly recommend trying new things and exploring new clubs or groups because it’s a great way to meet people with similar interests and it may help you feel at home if you take advantage of the amazing opportunities that Chapman has to offer!
I came to Chapman as a Dodge student and I was immediately met with tons of opportunities to get on set and become involved within my major, which I loved! The issue for me was that I made it a challenge to get involved and meet people, instead of an enjoyable journey. I soon became a little stressed because I was in a completely new environment while trying to become as involved as possible; as someone that always says yes to new things, I didn’t realize that I would become overwhelmed.
Although it’s different for everyone, I found out that for me, getting stressed out in college is different than getting stressed out in high school. I no longer had my family with me to provide support, which made for a little bit of an uncomfortable adjustment.
Although I don’t regret pushing myself out of my comfort zone and working hard, I’ve found that I’ve discovered the importance of maintaining self awareness. It’s important to spend time by yourself, do things you enjoy, relax and remind yourself why you chose Chapman in the first place.
For some people it’s clubs, for some people its Greek Life, for me it was going on set and becoming involved within Dodge. There are so many ways to get involved on campus and in your major that it can be unbelievably hard to say no. Make sure to check in with yourself! Is this really something that you feel passionate about? If you focus in on some important hobbies, you can give more attention and love to those things.
Aside from that, make sure you are doing things that make you feel at home and comfortable. Remind yourself that you don’t have to succeed in everything all at once. Take your time to explore, meet people at your own pace, and make decisions that will not only better your future, but will also make you happy in the present!