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LaurenDucoste
HonorsColloquium
ProfessorWalsch
11/10/16
MyAcademicRollercoaster
Freshmanyearsofarhasbeenarollercoaster.Ithasbroughtmeup,thendroppeddown,
swirledaround,upsidedown,gonefast,andslowedtowhatseemedlikeacompletehalt.But
eachstepalongthewayhasbeguntransformingmeintothepersonIhopetobeafter4years,
andwhoIwillbebeyondthen.
Thissemester,IhaverealizedhowhardIworkwhenIhaveagoal.Inhighschool,Iworked
hard,butneverwithatruegoalahead,otherthanforagoodgrade.Now,Iworkhardforevery
assignment,quiz,andtest,becauseIknowhowimportantitis.Thissemester,Ihaverealizedmy
capacitytosacrificeforwhatIwant.Ihavepushedmyselfsothepointofsacrificingsleep,just
togetinacouplemorehoursofstudyingforaChemistryexam.OnetimeIevenpassedupafree
tickettogotoCarowindstostudyforaBiologyexam.Ifeellikethisisanimportant
characteristicthatIwillcarrywithmethroughmyfouryearshereatUNCCharlotte.Therewill
betimesthatIwillhavetostudyduringfuneventgoingoncampus.andImayevenhaveto
sacrificespendingsometimewithfriendsinordertodowellinmymanyendeavors.Ialso,
although,mustremembertotaketimetoreflectandrelax,inordertonotlosesteam,andbeable
tokeeppushingforwardtomygoals.

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AsaCrownScholar,IhadtheprivilegeoftravelingwithmyfellowCrownScholarsand
facultymemberstoaninternationalrestaurant.WewenttoaplacecalledAthensPizza,a
restaurantthatisrunbyanIranianfamilythatservesauthenticIraniancuisine,aswellaspizza.I
thoughtthiswasacoolcombination.TwoIraniangraduatestudentsformUNCCharlottejoined
usatthisdinner,anddiscussedalittlemoreabouttheirculturethroughtheirfood!Theychosea
varietyofdishesforustotry,allverypopulardishesintheircountry.Thesedishesrangedfrom
aKoubidehKabab,madeofgroundsirloin,toDoogh,ayogurtbasedbeveragewithsaltand
carbonatedwater.EatingalldifferentdishesshowedmethatAmericanslovesugar!Allofthe
dishesweresomewhatsour,andthegraduatestudentsexplainedtousthatthatisacommon
trendamongIraniancuisine.WhenIwaspresentedwiththeDoogh,IcanhonestlysaythatIwas
notlookingforwardtoit.Ayogurtbaseddrinkwithsalt?Thatdidnotsoundappetizingatall.
ButIcanhonestlysaythatafterItrieditIdidnotlikeit.ButIdontthinkthatwasthepoint.I
thinkthatthewillingnesstotrysomethingnewismoreimportantthanactuallylikingit.Ibelieve
thatifmorepeopleopenedtheirmindstothingsthattheyareunfamiliar,theymayfindthatthose
thingsareexcitingorinteresting,andmaywanttobranchoffofit!WhenIstudyabroad,Ihope
tohaveasimilarexperiencetothins.Ihopetonotlimitmyselftofamiliarty,andbranchoutside
ofmycomfortzone.ThatmeansnotrisingtheMcDonaldsoverseas,butinsteadgoingtothe
cornerstoreforsomeauthenticfood.Anewexperienceisnotlimitedtofood.Oneshouldalso
stepoutsideofthestatusquowhenitcomestoallexperiences.Forexample,climbingtheEiffel
Towerwouldpushmetofacemyfearofheights.
Thissemester,IalsohadtheprivilegeofparticipatinginCityasText.Thisexperienceopened
myeyestothebeautyofuptownCharlotte,butalsotothemanyissuesthatstillexist.Walking

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throughthecity,Isawalldemographicsofpeople:young,old,white,black,Asian,short,tall,
andmore!Itwasbeautifultoseethatsomanypeopleofalldifferentbackgroundscouldlive
togetherinthisbeautifulcity.Ienjoyedexperiencingthetreecanopy,somethingthataddeda
naturalbeautytoalltheskyscrapers.
TheUHPparticipatedinCityAsTextrightafteraterribleeventinCharlotte,thekillingofa
blackmanbyapoliceofficer.Whilewestilldonotknowexactdetailsofthecircumstance,any
deathisonethatshouldbetakenseriously.Thiseventledtopeacefulproteststhatquicklyturned
intoaggressiveriots.Thiseventwasadefiningmomentforthecity,andshowedthatwhilethere
issomesenseofcommunity,theystillhaveawaystogo.WhenwearrivedinuptownCharlotte,
theriotshadceased,buttheeffectswereevident.Manywindowshadbeenboardedupafter
havinghadchairsthrownthroughthem,shatteringtheglass.Despitealltheterriblehappenings
surroundingthatevent,Charlottewasstillabletofindpeaceinit.Theboardedwindowshad
beenpaintedonmyartistsaroundthecity.Thesewaitingsharedmessagedofpeaceandequality,
andstressedtheimportanceonunity.ThiswasthefirsttimethatIhadeverexperienceanything
likethis.Seeingsomanypeoplegetunjustlymurderedhasbeenverydiscouraging,but
Charlottesprevailinghopetaughtmethateveninthestorm,youmustfindlight.Iamthankful
totheUHPforthisexperience,andamhopefulthatIcandoitagain,maybeeveninanother
city!
Freshman year so far has brought many ups and downs. While I have done well in my classes,
it has not come easily. Before coming to school, I did not realize that I would be studying for
such intensive, long periods of time. It honestly feels like I never stop studying, and when I do
feel that there is a small gap of time where I can relax, I still feel the need to do something. I do

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not, although, see studying the way I do as a negative, because I know that this work ethic is
what will help me achieve my immediate and future goals. Since I was a little girl, I have always
wanted to be a doctor, although my specialty of interest has varied. I have wanted to be
everything from a brain surgeon, to a family physician, and everything in between. More
recently, working with special education students at my high school sparked my interest in
neurology with a desire to work with mentally ill patients. In order to explore this possibility,
there are many things I can do along the way to medical school. I must, first and foremost,
maintain a high standing in my academics. I must also stress the importance of being a well
rounded student, participating in internships, campus organizations, and community service.
Thisyear,anexperiencethathasaffectedme,iswhenIreceivedahighgradeonabiology
exam.Theweekendbeforethisexam,Ihadlockedmyselfintothestudyroomandstudiedfor
over20hours.ThereweretimesduringthatweekendthatIquestionedwhetherornotstudying
forthetestwasworthit.Afterallthesweat,tears,andtimethatIputintothattest,Ireceiveda
105.Thistestmademerealizethathardworkisworthit,andthatwhenyouputyourmindtoit,
youcanachieveit.Whilethisisthecase,sometimesthisdoesnothappen.IamsurethatifIhad
receivedamuchlowergrade,Iwouldhavethought,Whatwasthepointofallthatstudyingifit
didnttakeadifferenceanyway?ThisisamindsetthatIcannothave.Ifyoudon'ttryyourbest,
youwillneverknowhowwellyoucouldhavedone.Ibelievethatnooneisexemptfrom
pushingthemselvestoworkhard,notmatterthemagnitude.Whenyoutryyourbest,youknow
thattherewasnothingelseyoucoulddo,andyoucanbecontentwiththat.
While this semester has been very successful, I still have a lot of room to grow. There are
many obstacles that I could encounter during my journey to my big goal of becoming a doctor.

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For example, maintaining a good academic standing will not always be easy, especially when I
get to those higher level biology and chemistry courses. I will handle these difficulties by
utilizing my resources here on campus. For example, I will attend Supplemental Instruction
sessions, get individual tutoring from the UCAE, and study with other students who I can learn
from, and even help. I have successfully utilized all three of these techniques so far this semester.
One thing that I hope to utilize more next semester, and the rest of my 4 years, are office hours of
my professors, not only to understand material, but to get mentoring and advice throughout my
college years. Another obstacle is time management. I sometimes feel intimidated by the extent
of my goals, and fear that I will not have enough time to achieve them. But I know that with the
right time management and a plan, I can achieve my goals, and more! I plan to continue to use a
daily planner, and will use a monthly planner as well, to keep track of major events such as tests
and meetings. I will be sure to include some relaxation time in my planner as well! I feel that it is
important to not only make new friends and build new relationships, but also to stay connected to
my family and maintain my old friendships.
This semester, I have not only been pushed academically, but mentally as well. I am a
democratic and am pretty liberal, so having grown up in Raleigh, I was used to being around
people who mostly share my same values. When I came to Charlotte, I got the wake-up call that I
was not expecting. I did not realize that so many people in North Carolina have opposing views
from mine, and that has been difficult for me to deal with at times. Considering that this year was
a very big election, and it was between two very polar candidates, this brought out the political
side in everyone. The terrible events in downtown Charlotte also brought out the positions of
people on Black Lives Matter. I have always been very strong in my belief of equality for all, so
hearing that some people believe in things that would not make this possible is shocking to me.

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While I completely disagree with the stances of some people on certain topics, I have to learn to
realize that my opinion is not right, its just my opinion. My MBTI, ESFJ, describes one of my
faults as assuming the only right way is the way that Ive always done things. I know that this
trait is something that I will have to work on, especially being here at Charlotte. I have to learn to
not allow these views to upset me, like so many have. While I should be accepting of other
views, I also cannot allow people to disrespect me and my views. Just because what I believe is
not right, it is not wrong. It is just what I believe, and those beliefs are open to changing with
good reasoning. My goal here at UNC Charlotte is to learn to be accepting of people with all
views, and to be able to look past people and not judge them by what they believe.
UNC Charlotte is a city of hope, optimism, and opportunity. I hope to carry the many lessons I
have learned in this short semester, and multiply them 10 fold in 4 years, so that I may become
the individual I hope to be. I am so blessed and thankful to be a part of this beautiful school, and
look forward to the rest of the rollercoaster ride! Go Niners!

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