I’m still a wee bit jet lagged from this weekend so this post might be short and sloppy because my bed is beckoning.
DC
So I took the red eye out of LAX on Thursday and headed for IAD (Dulles). From Dulles, it’s a 50 minute bus ride on Metrobus 5A to DC. I got off at Rosylnn station and bought a one day Metro pass. The DC metro stations are by far the most aesthetically pleasing subway stations I’ve seen. The mood lighting and lack of trash and rats definitely gives the place a good vibe. From Rosylnn, I went one stop to Foggy Bottom where my journey through DC really began.
I didn’t do a whole lot of planning for this trip and because I was counting on Google Maps to help me navigate through the city. The Foggy Bottom station dropped me off right at the entrance of George Washington University Medical School. I walked about half a mile south till, passing the Department of State and the Navy Surgery Center, until I got to the Lincoln Memorial and the Reflecting Pool. The view was impressive. I wish I could wax poetic about how grand and “monumental” the experience was but I’m not that eloquent. Since I was in the area, I also visited the Vietnam, Korean, and WW2 memorials. I then walked down to the Washington Monument and Smithsonian Memorial.
By the time I got to the Smithsonian, my feet and back were begging for relief. I spent about an hour in “The Castle” catching my breath and taking care of business. Tiff suggested Ben’s Chili on U St. It happened to be on my way to UMD so I decided to have lunch there. Think Wienershnitzel but with a lot more soul. Thumbs up.
After chowing down on a Half-Smoke @ Ben’s, I continued on my way to UMD via the Green line. I checked into HI and crashed for about an hour. I used HI’s complimentary shuttle to get dropped off at UMD’s student union (The Stamp) after my nap. The campus was just as my friend described it: big and diverse. The buildings are all built out of bricks and the student population is a melting pot of cultures. School spirit also runs abound compared to UCI. Almost every student had at least one piece of Terp Swag. There are several sprawling lawns scattered throughout the campus where you’ll find kids playing flag football. The football and baseball stadium are also on campus. On the map it shows that there is even a golf course. I went inside The Stamp to buy a souvenir. Inside, there a bunch of places to eat, a bookstore, a small market, a tech store, post office, basically everything you can think of to keep a small village running. I eventually meandered my way to Van Munching Hall to scout out the place before the event.
For dinner, I met up with an old friend for Pho. Pho in Maryland? Yup. It wasn’t half bad either.
Diversity Workshop
I got to VMH at 8:25 thinking that I was early. Turns out quite a few people were already there and eating breakfast. I was greeted by the recruiting manager, a fellow Anteater, who explained to me the days events and the ice breaker game we were playing. I sat down at a table with two Smith ambassadors that I ended up talking to quite extensively for the rest of the day.
Instead of continuing this as a story, I’ll just enumerate the highlights of the day:
- A lot of the things that were presented, (ie admissions, curriculum) could have been attained by visiting the Smith website. Being at the event revealed the intangibles that you can’t get from a website such as the helpfulness, passion, warmth, and the sense of community that I felt from the students and staff members.
- The mock class was taught by Professor who had ten degrees and ten times as many awards. If the professors @ Smith are at least half as entertaining and effective, then I’m all in.
- The Netcentricity Lab was really cool, especially the Stock Exchange lab. Having designed a demo room myself, I could really appreciate the room and all the A/V stuff they have in the room. Geeked.
- I won a lot of swag which I didn’t expect. I won an aluminum Smith water bottle for winning the ice breaker competition and a Smith fleece for having traveled the furthest. Everyone was surprised that someone from LA actually flew out to the event. Apparently that’s a big deal. <shrug>
- The keynote speaker gave us two pieces of advice that I felt was really good: “Just do it”, and “Ask questions”.
- Actually, one thing new that I did learn that I don’t think is covered really well on the Smith website is the extensive amount of interaction students have with the career services department. The process starts during the summer when OCS assigns “homework” to us that helps them get spun up on what types of internship/jobs we will be looking to attain once school starts. Two thumbs up in this economy. Btw, Smith placed 6th in Best programs in terms of job placement.
- It’s possible to do two Global Study trips (8-10 day trips abroad to places like India, China, etc to learn). Woohoo!
- Smith is realistic about its brand and weaknesses. The brand is strong within the DC area and the staff is trying to grow it outside. The school has its weaknesses (unstated) but the school reacts quickly to feedback and adjusts.
I’m sure I’m leaving something off the list but bottom line is that I left Smith feeling really good about the school. There’s still a lot of hardwork ahead but I’m more motivated now than ever. I received some good news this morning when one of my recommenders finished her forms. All I have to do now is spit shine those essays, get the other recommendation form in and prep for the interview (hopefully).
Time to crash!