Hey guys! I'm Joe and I'm (obviously) also a Freshman at Hopkins this year and I'm one of the 8 Freshmen who are going to be writing on this blog. I would also like to welcome everyone to the blog and if you don't find the answers to you questions I invite you to check out the Student Profiles and the Admissions Forums. If you still don't find your answer be sure to contact one of us and we'll make sure your question gets answered. Before I get to the main point of my blog I'd like to let you guys know a little bit about me.
I'm from Belmar, New Jersey (right on the Jersey Shore, I actually live about 5 blocks from the beach), I'm a Neuroscience major and Psychology minor and I'm on the pre-med track. I attended High Technology High School, a Pre-Engineering magnet school that was recently ranked 4th best high school in the country. I watch a LOT of different TV Shows but my all-time favorite TV Show is LOST (closely followed by Fringe, if you don't watch these shows you should start now =D), I'm literally obsessed with it. I listen to all different kinds of music but my genre of choice is definitely metal, all the concerts I've been to were to see metal bands. I'll listen to all other kinds of music but I prefer metal. I'm also obsessed with almost anything related to technology or medicine and you'll find that all of the classes I'm taking this semester and next semester are related to both of those topics (I tend to avoid humanities at all costs =D). I live in McCoy Hall which is actually an upperclassmen dorm but the floor that I'm on (Terrace Level) is all Freshmen and I'm right across from Wolman Hall. I personally love the location because even though I have to walk a fair distance to my classes (especially Physics which I have at 9AM and is literally the farthest building from my dorm room) I love being close to the book store, Charles Commons/Nolan's, and all of the restaurants on St. Paul Street. I also love McCoy because I have air conditioning and I share a bathroom and kitchenette with my two other suitemates.
In case you're wondering, here's a little bit about why I chose to come to Hopkins. I chose to come to Hopkins because when I was here for the 2008 Pre-College Summer University program I found out that everyone on campus is so nice and friendly and always willing to help you out if you have a question or a problem. (Summer University was one of the best experiences of my life and if you have the ability to do it I strongly suggest you do) I also came because of the presentation I saw during one of the open houses for the Neuroscience department. At that time I wanted to major in Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering but after I saw that presentation I started leaning toward Neuroscience. I actually made up my mind when I filled out the form that went along with my deposit to Hopkins and changed my major to Neuroscience. The availability of research here was also a deciding factor. At my high school we were allowed to do research but we couldn’t use human subjects so all my ideas weren’t approved. At Hopkins not only can you do research on campus relating to the medical field, but you can also work with students at the medical school or even work directly with the Hopkins Hospital.
Right now I'm taking 5 science-y classes: An Introduction to Neuroscience (my favorite class and professor so far), General Physics I for Biological Sciences Majors, General Physics Lab I, Introduction to Cognitive Neuropsychology and Introduction to Psychology. So far I've taken my first exam (An Introduction to Neuroscience) and while it did require a lot of studying it wasn't that bad. Some of the activities I participate in on campus are Club Swimming, Hopkins Organization for Pre-Health Education (HOPE), Student Admissions Advisory Board (SAAB), and the JHU Photo Club. I also love video games (even though I haven't found the time to play them that much yet). One odd fact about me is that since I've been to Hopkins I've gotten more sleep than I used to. At my High School I was used to having 4+ hours of homework each day and now that I only have 2 classes with homework I spend my free time catching up on readings (which doesn't take long at all) and sleeping at random hours during the day.
Thats basically everything you'd ever want to know about me and my schedule at Hopkins so far, so now I'm going to talk a little bit about Orientation (otherwise known as O-Week). Orientation is the first thing you experience at any school and it is often one of the most memorable times. I remember talking with my friends about what they were going to have going on during their orientations and it sounded really fun. The odd thing was that all of them had orientations lasting one or two days. When I finally got the schedule for the JHU orientation I was ecstatic. They had events planned for us for the entire first week, and even a few more days. They knew that we started classes and they had events planned around that as well. Interestingly enough one of my greatest experiences during orientation was the Alcohol and Making Informed Decisions meeting because one of my favorite Neuroscience Professors was the one who gave the lecture. That's all I have to say for orientation right now, but don't worry I'll go more in-depth into it during my next post.
Well that's all I've got for you guys right now. In closing I've been here for a month so far and to me it seems like its been a lot longer (in a good way). No matter what time of the day it is there's always something to do here (and not just schoolwork) which is great. A lot has happened too, I've made a lot of new friends, participated in a lot of different activities, learned a lot more than I thought I would in all of my classes, and learned my way around the entire campus. Make sure you check out my student profile when its put up in the middle of October, and my page on the Hopkins Forums (please don't hesitate to post your questions, I'd love to answer them!) Also check out my TypePad profile page for other ways you can keep up with me, friend me on facebook if you want or check out what music I've listened to recently on last.fm =D.
Oh, I forgot to mention I'm going to try post a link to a random funny YouTube after every blog post I make. Here's the first one: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6jxXdCEcFHM. Also if you're wondering I got my post title from one of my current favorite songs. See you guys next time!
(1.) I didn't even know they ranked high schools, but just wasted way too much time looking through that list and learned that some schools from my hometown are on there. who knew? (2.) when I couldn't find my way around campus, I'd sneak a peek at a map that I kept in my bag. I tried to do it very discretely so people around me wouldn't see that I was lost.
great first entry!
Posted by: JHU_Mandy | 10/03/2009 at 11:51 AM
(1.) Haha yea its pretty random that they rank high schools but we didn't really question it because our Principal made the last half of that Friday a huge party where we didn't have to go to class and we had a lot of free food.
(2.) I put the campus map on my cell phone back in the summer so I know what you mean. =D
Posted by: Joe N. | 10/03/2009 at 12:19 PM
Joseph:
Glad to hear all is going so well at school, your programs and all the activities that your are involved in, wow were do you find the time? What letter or number are you in in the freshman picture?
Keep up the good work while enjoying the experience...
I like your blog as well
Uncle Pat
Posted by: Patrick Nugent | 10/05/2009 at 10:43 PM
Hey Uncle Pat! Thanks for reading my blog, and thanks for the compliment! I find the time for my activities because I have a LOT more free time here than I did in High School. As for the Freshman picture I'm wearing a blue shirt and I'm in the middle of the "U" on the right side, just about halfway between the top and the bottom. I couldn't find a larger picture of I would have edited the picture to show where I am.
Posted by: Joe N. | 10/05/2009 at 10:46 PM