Briefly back on campus before trip #2…
Wow, the past 2 weeks have gone by quickly! I intended to blog last weekend when I was in Florida for work (I wasn’t too upset to have to spend the weekend there as well), but time got away from me. I am in the midst of travel season, which is super busy. During an average day I may leave my hotel room before 7am, visit 4-5 high schools, and either return to the hotel around 3:30pm to catch up on email and voicemail, drive up several hours to the next city and check in to a new hotel, or take a quick break before attending a college fair or other evening program which will allow me to finally return to my hotel around 10pm. Travel is a lot of fun, but it is really exhausting. I’m fortunate to have (or have had, in previous years) territories where I also have family or friends; in those places I find time to catch up with them for a nice break. For instance, I have friends from my time as a Vanderbilt undergraduate that I visit in North Carolina, California, New England, and Florida.
Before I left on my FL trip I had lunch with my cousin, Adam, who is a junior at Vanderbilt. I was so excited when Adam chose to come to VU 3 years ago, but I am disappointed that I don’t get to see him very often (he is a very busy student, and I am often out of town). We walked to a popular deli for a sandwich, and then Adam filled me in on his summer- he got great experience through an internship at a bank and a summer abroad program. He went on our International Studies program in London and had a blast. Chatting with him reminded me of my own similar experience (13 years ago!) on the Vanderbilt Humanities in London program. I’m glad to hear the program is still as fun, educational, and worthwhile as I remember it (for more info on our Study Abroad programs, go here: http://www.vanderbilt.edu/globaleducation/index.html). Because he is starting his junior year, Adam is thinking more about his post Vanderbilt plans. As a Human & Organizational Development (for more info on our most popular major HOD, check out http://peabody.vanderbilt.edu/x3699.xml)and Economics double major, I expect he’ll have several good job options; he is interested in a career in the banking industry and plans to get his MBA. I was pleased to hear him say that he doesn’t think he’ll be ready to leave Nashville or Vanderbilt in another 1.5 years, and that he is considering applying for our 5 year BS/MBA program (a joint program with our Owen Graduate School of Management, for more info go to http://www.vanderbilt.edu/managerial_studies/home) instead of leaving next May with only his BS. I’d love to have him around campus for an extra year!
I returned from Florida on Tuesday night, so Wednesday was my first day back on campus in a week. Students have certainly settled in and campus is bustling; it’s hard to believe campus was empty just 3 weeks ago. On Friday Alumni Lawn was set up for a concert this weekend, and students are excited for our third straight home football game (we beat the University of Mississippi!). While it is a little aggravating to now have to search for a parking spot close to my office or wait in line at the dining hall, it feels much better to have so much life on campus. Vanderbilt is such a dynamic place, and it just feels right to have so much going on. I have to leave for another recruiting trip in a few days, but I’ll soak up as much as I can until then!
October 4th, 2007
Christina! Great blogs. Did yuou know that by using the link button in your post composer your links can be clickable..? This blogging thing is a learning process but we’ll get the hang of it! Keep coming with the updates!