Hello! An Introduction

Hi everybody! Like many of the other recent posts, I am here to introduce myself as a new member of the blog. My name is Seth Yarkony and I am a freshman in the Carroll School of Management here at BC. I intend to concentrate in Management & Leadership and Marketing and pursue a minor in Faith, Peace, & Justice. I am from Lake Forest, IL (about 30 miles North of Chicago), and I absolutely love BC.

When I was beginning to ponder colleges, I thought strictly in the Midwest until my counselor suggested BC. I have some family out here but never really considered applying because it was somewhat far from home. Despite my concerns, I decided to include BC in my list of schools to visit over Spring break of my junior year. Needless to say, I fell in love with it the moment I stepped on campus. The beauty of the buildings, strong academic programs, wide array of clubs and other extra-curricular opportunities, and spirited student body is what attracted me to the school. Now that I have been here for over a month, I can affirm that my perception of BC was accurate and has not changed at all. This is a great place to be and everyone I meet is just as happy as I am.

I have managed to become involved in a few clubs on campus, through student activities day and my researching of them before school began. I am a member of the Emerging Leaders Program and I am also on the Leadership Council for Boston College Republicans, along with my newly found work with SAP on this blog and through the High School Visits program. While it may seem like a lot, I find it very easy to manage my time due to the much more free time I have been given at college compared to that in high school. My first suggestion to all high school students entering college: GET INVOLVED! I have met a lot of new people in my clubs that I wouldn't meet otherwise and it is very easy to find a group that shares your passions.

I will do my best to post regularly to share my own experiences and discuss the new things I learn each week here at school. Feel free to ask me any questions through email or on Facebook, I will do my best to answer them. Until next time, GO EAGLES!

-Seth
yarkony@bc.edu

May 1st is coming up!....

The deadline to decide on a college is coming up and to help you all decide if BC is right for you, I've compiled a list of Q&As that I have gotten frequently from friends from home and people I met at Admitted Eagle Day...

Question: "I keep hearing that BC is very Caucasian and preppy. Do you feel like you fit in just fine? Is the student body diverse enough? Also, do you know if there are any Southeast Asian/Indian clubs/dance groups and such? A Capella groups?"

Answer: BC is definitely NOT all Caucasian and preppy. Of course you have preppy students but that is a rumor stemming from the fact that BC back in the day was a very white-dominant school. Today, we have a very diverse population of both Caucasian and AHANA (African, Hispanic, Asian, Native American) students. There are a great variety of culture groups and dance groups. I am a member of UGBC this year and my mentor is the Director of UNITY, which is a liaison between UGBC and the AHANA Leadership Council and we plan a lot of diversity events. One event in particular featured three cultural dance groups on campus. Furthermore, next year's president and vice president have a lot of AHANA initiatives on their platform. The culture groups that you talk of are very widespread on campus.

Question: Do you like your classes/professors?

Answer: I love my classes and professors. I love my CSOM classes and I have such dedicated professors who do whatever they can to help you through the course, and through the four years of college. Professors are also very accessible. I frequently meet with professors to not only get extra help but even life-chat. Even though I am in CSOM, I still have to take a bunch of Arts and Sciences classes such as Philosophy and Theology. I have had two Jesuits as professors and they are amazing at what they do and you also have them as mentors as well, they aren't just professors.

Question: Why did you choose BC?

Answer: I'll admit it wasn't my first choice and I didn't think I would end up here, but now that I am here, I can't imagine going anywhere else. It was a really great fit for me. A couple of my favorite things about BC besides what I've already mentioned are:

1. beauty (love the churches and Fulton Hall, the home of CSOM)
2. proximity to Boston (we have our own T stop and we have a shuttle that goes to another quicker line. The trip takes about 10 minutes)
3. great social life and school spirit, particularly during football season
4. MARATHON MONDAY which was so much fun and inspirational. BC is such a crucial spot during the race and so a lot of people gather on the streets to cheer on runners.
5. such amazing people that you get to see, befriend, work with, and talk to every day

Question: Where do you currently live and do you recommend Upper Campus or Newton Campus?

Answer: I currently live in Fitzpatrick on Upper Campus. Regarding Upper vs. Newton, it really depends on the kind of person you are because there is no difference between the two, save the bus transportation necessary for students who live on the Newton Campus. I am not a bus-person at all. I need to be able to walk back to room whenever I need to because I tend to forget books, laptop, homework, etc. in my room....and I can't run on any other schedule beside my own.

Question: How do the housing/roommate situations work?

Answer: You can choose your roommates through the ResLife portal which you get access to once you decide you want to come here. Your freshman year roommate is usually randomly chosen based on a housing profile you fill out about how neat you are and whether you want to use the room to study, socialize or relax. You can also choose a roommate if you've met someone at Freshman Orientation that you want to live with: generally people do get who they request. Freshmen housing assignments don't come out until August. After freshman year, there is a lottery you enter with your friends based on the number of people you want in your room.

Hope this helps you make this important decision! If you have any more questions about CSOM, BC, or anything about college, shoot me an email (fangda@bc.edu)!

Good luck! Hope to see you on campus next year!

Read All About It!

Hello Friends,

This may serve more as a shameless plug for myself and this blog, but I was interviewed by The Heights, the independent student newspaper of BC. Here's a link to the story. I always pick up a copy on Mondays and Thursdays. They do a pretty good job of keeping administration in check and letting the student body know of issues around campus. My favorite section is the Thumbs Up and Thumbs Down section which falls under the Opinions page. If you have time definitely check them out. There are so many clubs and organizations on campus, never limit yourself to just walking the halls of Fulton as a CSOM student.

Until next time friends …

-Luke Lapointe
CSOM '12 Finance
A & S '12 Communications
Student Admission Program
International Coordinator