What's up with alumni weekend?

Alumni weekend is one of the best weekends at SMC! (I think so anyway). It was combined this year with New Student Family weekend, so there were a lot of people on campus both new to SMC and old pros.

There were a few games to watch, such as soccer and rugby, and both parents and alumni had the opportunity to attend classes with either their children or some of their favorite professors. There are a handful of other activities that happened as well, such as a pannel about how you can continue to volunteer after college.

Basically it's a great chance for alumni to return to SMC, see some of their old friends who they graduated with, and visit with the current students they might know. I loved seeing some of my old friends, especially the SMC Swimming and Diving Alumni.

What do you want to know about SMC?

I read that you're a psychology major. I was looking at the requirements and saw that there are two Research Methods courses. Although I understand how these courses are integral to the major, they just sound really boring. What was your experience?

I'm not sure what 2 courses you are talking about, but Research Methods is a required course to take almost every 300 level class, and many 200 level classes as well.

It's actually a really interesting course, and it would be hard to continue to do anything in other classes (especially write psychology papers) without it.

We spent the semester learning about the different kinds and methods of research, and creating and implemeting our own research project, which we presented at the conclusion of the semester.

What do you want to know about SMC?

why smc?

Oh wow, big question.

Well, to tell the truth SMC wasn't always my first choice. I applied Early Decision (binding) to another school, but was pushed to the regular applicant pool and then wait listed. It was during this time that I started to look at the other schools I had been accepted to, just in case I never made it off the wait list.

During this entire experience, and since I had met with my SMC admission counselor at my high school and visited later that year, I had gotten a ton of mail from here. I got phone calls and emails from the swim team and coach, viewbooks and information on the psychology program, and even a birthday card. I started to feel like while I was looking one way, asking the other school to "pick me," SMC was looking at me and saying "pick us."

Ultimately it was how much SMC made me feel like I was welcome and wanted here that led me to resign from the wait list at my other school and send in my deposit for SMC.

best. decision. ever. obviously.

What do you want to know about SMC?

Is there anything you wish you knew as a freshman?

I wish I knew how quickly these years were going to go. I don't think knowing everything that was going to happen would have been good, but looking back I don't have regrets, I just wish I had 4 more years to spend here. SMC, and college, really is the best time ever.

What do you want to know about SMC?

What's the most interesting course you've taken?

This is a tough one.

I loved my first year seminar, Looking at Art. It wasn't my first choice and it sounds boring so I was nervous about it, but we ended up learning about all kinds of cool art. We talked about the art around campus, went downtown to the South End Art Hop, and my final paper was about the inner and deeper meaning of a pair of my slippers, so it was really cool.

I also loved sports psychology and biology of exercise. Both of those were cool because I'm an athlete so I was able to apply them to things I was experiencing or actually knew about.

What do you want to know about SMC?

You were talking about parietals which dictate when girls and guys need to be out of eachother's rooms. What are these regulations exactly? Is it possible to sleep over in the dorm of the opposite sex?

The parietals are 1am on weeknights and 2am on weekend nights. All dorms are co-ed, so you'll always have people of both sexes there. However, male guests must be registered with a male, and females with a female. We're all adults here, and the RAs are not going to come around and check your room to see if your friend of the opposite sex is sleeping on your futon or something, but you DO have to make sure it's ok with your roommate first, that's very important.

What do you want to know about SMC?

A Quick Catch-Up

Hello friends,

I'm running around here on SMC campus like a chicken without a head lately, but I wanted to check in with you and provide a fun slideshow of some photos from Orientation 2010 activities with the O-Leaders and my O-Group. Enjoy and I hope to be back in full swing soon!