When I first stepped foot on campus as a freshman, I had a certain idea of what my college experience would be like. I was accepted into UofSC as a Biology major, but promptly changed my major to Public Health during one of the admitted students’ days. I thought that majoring in Public Health would make the most sense for my goal of attending medical school after completing my undergraduate degree. As I navigated my first year and a half on campus, I did what many students do- I got involved with organizations and extracurriculars that aligned with my career goals and major. I tried out for many of the pre-med and pre-health fraternities on campus, joined the Carolina Clemson Blood Drive, and even attended interest meetings for public health organizations. I also applied for and accepted a part time job with University Health Services to get some medical office experience under my belt. In addition, I lived within the Galen Health Fellows community my freshman year to surround myself with like-minded pre-health students.

​

As 3 semesters of Public Health courses and health oriented extracurriculars came and went, I realized quickly that I did not love what I was studying anymore, and that my career goals had changed. Many traumatic events in my life like loss of friends and family members made me rethink what I wanted my future to look like, and I made the drastic decision to change my major from Public Health to Studio Art and essentially start over academically. Although the courses I was taking within the classroom changed dramatically because of my major change, I decided not to give up on my involvement with the blood drive or my job with University Health services because I still loved what I did within those organizations. In addition, I made the decision to join organizations that did not necessarily fit exactly within my new studies: I became a University 101 peer leader and strove for experience in leadership and education. The decisions I made to stay involved with beyond the classroom experiences that did not necessarily align with my studies and to join new experiences that also had different topics than my major were some of the most beneficial decisions I made. I believe that the time I spent beyond the classroom taught me more than any course I took at the university, and the leadership roles I took on and organizations I involved myself in made me who I am today, even if they do not align with what would be expected for my major. Participating in leadership roles that have nothing to do with your major or career goals are extremely valuable to becoming a well-rounded student and leader.

​

Although I intend to focus more on the comparison of my beyond the classroom experiences to my within the classroom experiences, it is also worth noting the value of taking classes as electives to try out different topics, even if they are not required for your major. My experience doing this allowed me more growth in the same way- I was giving myself the chance to develop skills that did not necessarily fit within my major but were still beneficial for me as a leader. For example, although I majored in Studio Art, I decided to take 2 graduate level art education courses to learn about the educational side of my interests. One of those courses that had the most impact on me was my ARTE 560/560P class. This was a high school level art education methods and practicum pairing that not only taught lesson planning and facilitation skills surrounding K12 art standards, but also gave us the chance to be placed in a physical classroom in the Columbia area to put our skills to practice. I loved being able to learn about public education and create my own lesson plans to help practice my facilitation skills in a beyond the classroom setting. I was able to synthesize some of the art skills I learned in my major into a class of a different topic and create an effective lesson plan that could be used in a high school art classroom. This course was not required for me to graduate with my BA in studio art, but it taught me important skills in facilitation of lesson plans, communicating with groups, and creating lesson plans that follow South Carolina standards. Many of these skills could be applied in a number of settings, and therefore they make me a more well-rounded student. This combined within the classroom and beyond the classroom experience taught me strengths and skills I would not have learned in my major required courses alone.

​

When I joined the Carolina Clemson Blood Drive as a freshman, I had the assumption that joining would help me with my application to medical school and look good on a resume. However, it gave me much more than just applicable volunteer hours. As I navigated the experience, I realized that the blood drive is more than what it sounds like- there is weeks and weeks of planning and creativity that go along with putting on an event like it. I started off just helping during the annual Carolina Clemson Blood Battle as a volunteer. The blood battle is one of the largest weeklong blood drives in the country, and in combination with Clemson University, both campuses use their rivalry for good to collect thousands of pints of blood. The goal? The university with the most pints of blood collected (and most lives saved) gets bragging rights and a trophy, but most of all the chance to make a difference in South Carolina. My volunteer work involved working directly with blood donors to check them in and hand out snacks and t-shirts. I really loved helping, so I decided to join the organization and work on the logistics committee. I learned through the planning process how much I loved putting on events and working with other students and university personnel to organize everything behind the scenes. I ended up running for secretary and accepted that position around the same time that I changed my major. Although my interests no longer involved healthcare, I stayed with the blood drive because I loved the behind-the-scenes aspects and using my creativity to help market for more donors. I continued to be involved throughout undergrad and ended up accepting the position of co-president. During my time on the executive board, I helped to rewrite our organization’s constitution to help bring us to a higher standard. The constitution is a great tool to show everything we as an organization do behind the scenes to put on this annual event. Although being a part of the blood drive was no longer part of my career goals, it taught me important logistical skills, event planning, and leadership skills. Continuing to be a part of the organization despite my major change made me a stronger leader and a more well-rounded student.

​

            Although my major and career goals changed during my time on campus, I made the decision to stay involved in an organization that did not relate to my new interests because I loved the leadership and skills it taught me. In addition, the choice to involve myself in new interests, such as the combined within and beyond the classroom art education course, or being a U101 peer leader, also taught me important skills and helped me to become a stronger leader. As a result of my experiences at the University of South Carolina, I believe that all students should involve themselves in a variety of different leadership experiences because they all teach important skills and make you a more well-rounded student. Variety is the spice of life, and my choice to be involved in experiences that do not necessarily make sense for a studio art major have made me who I am today- a capable leader with many different skills to offer. I am now equipped to do well in any career I set my mind to.