I’ve been told once or twice that i’m a jack of all trades, because I just love exploring and expanding my already diverse array of interests. To put that into simple terms: I have many hobbies! And even though Berkeley can be daunting with its so-called academic rigor and student pressures, I believe this university actually gave me the resources to not only develop the hobbies I’ve had for years now, but also find new ones that I had no interest in doing at all maybe five years ago. Despite having a crazy workload of classes, I still manage to dedicate time into my everyday life to do my hobbies because it makes me feel just as productive (and sometimes even more) as I do studying for exams. Whether I am exploring my hobbies through student organizations, classes or decals, resources that Berkeley provides, referral by my own peers, etc. there are many ways for me to do what I enjoy while being a full time college student. Here is what they are:
Hip Hop Dancing / Choreographing:
My favorite way to get in cardio! I have been dancing since my sophomore year of high school, and I even used to compete at local high schools or theme parks (such as Knotts Berry Farm)! Since i’ve been dancing for at least 5+ years now as of March 2025, i’d say I have some knowledge. Last semester (my sophomore fall), I joined this organization called Danceworx. Danceworx is a student ran club that has been around since the LATE 1900s! They focus on multiple disciplines of dance, such as: jazz, tap, contemporary, and open (or hip-hop, which is the one I dabble in)! Within each category, they have 2-3 different teams. Last semester, I was able of 2 open teams: DWX Feisty and DWX M&M! Being on these teams made me reminisce what it was like to be surrounded by such talented dancers, and even though Danceworx is an exhibition team (meaning the main purpose of the team is to perform at a showcase for novelty purposes and to train the dancers individually rather than compete), I still had a blast! I loved it so much that over winter break, I applied to have my own team AND I GOT IT! So this semester, I’m an open choreographer (with my wonderful Co-Director Mateo), doing a 6 minute piece called DWX Varsity! I’m also in another open piece called DWX Messy. Additionally, I am involved in making choreography for TWO MORE Danceworx pieces (DWX Legacies: meant for all DWX seniors and people on the officer board, DWX New Mem: meant for all new DWX members who joined either in the fall or spring). So yeah, I dance and choreograph A LOT, but I believe dance (especially through choreographing my own pieces) are one of my favorite ways to express who I am creatively, and is one of the best outlets for me to do so (while getting some great workouts in)! Also, beyond Danceworx I used to do K-Pop covers and performances through another student organization at Cal called “LUXX,” and I also do a lot of self-choreography for various solo competition-esque pieces.
Going to Concerts:
While it is an expensive hobby to have, I feel like my greatest safe space is being at concert, music festival, rave, or anything of the sort! Music drives my entire life (I wrote an entire BearTalk blog about this, actually) so being in an environment that is pure good music and good vibes is where I thrive! Berkeley actually hosts concerts occasionally on the Upper Sproul steps, often ran by ASUC’s Superb, the main organization on campus that brings entertainment to students. Some artists I saw that SUPERB hosted include Mike Sherm, the dare, Pierre Bourne, and more! I was also able to expand my music taste by joining communities on Cal focused on driving the music scene, and I even started up a student-run music label called MERGE! With this, I got exposed to so many different types of music, grooves, while learning about music fundamentals, which just made my desire to go to concerts every weekend every stronger.
Watching Movies:
Back in 2024, there was a short time period where I attempted to watch one movie per day (but this only lasted three months because I got burnt out). However, I still have my AMC A-List ready which is super helpful since there’s one only 30 minutes away by BART at Bay Street, Emeryville. It’s so nice getting free transit as a Berkeley studio, because it makes going to the movie theater so convenient. Additionally, I was enrolled in some film classes here at Berkeley where part of our grading rubric criteria is to WATCH movies as homework assignments. Currently, i’m taking a called called “Korean Film Authors” in the Korean Studies department, where every week we focus on a film made by various Korean directors and analyze its themes, film fundamentals, and connect it to broader Korean history (our first film this semester was Parasite by Bong Joon Ho, which is known to be one of the best films of all time according to some)!
Being a Foodie:
Eating counts as a hobby, right? Going out with friends to various Berkeley restaurants and food spots while grubbing and yapping is so therapeutic.. some of my favorite spots to get food are: Moku Hawaiian BBQ, Kura Revolving Sushi, Sizzling Lunch, and more. Additionally, I have a meal plan, and one of my favorite perks of having a meal plan is being able to use flex dollars on GrubHub! For places that are too far away to walk to, I often find myself spending my flex dollars pretty quickly with the delivery charges. However, with a meal plan I also find myself at Browns Cafe VERY often. Browns is an on-campus restaurant located on the North side of campus, and I am always order the chimchurri beef tri-tip with brown rice and garlic fries as my sides (and black tea to wash it all down). If I ever want boba (in which I always do), my go-to places are HEYTEA located in Downtown and TP Tea!
Storytelling/Multimedia Conceptualization:
What even is multimedia conceptualizing? Well, to break it down in (hopefully) simple terms, it relates to what I want to pursue as a career! My dream goal is to start up my own multimedia corporation (think Disney, Universal, Sony, etc.), one that specializes in a variety of different mediums of entertainment such as film, music, gaming, fashion and merchandising, parks and resorts, live productions and musicals, etc. So, in my free time I tend to daydream about certain ideas and concepts that could be adapted into a film production, broadway show, game, etc. I basically do world building for my own cinematic universe in hopes of turning it into reality! Thanks to Cal, I was able to gain some knowledge and insight into how I can take this into a career, especially through the Haas School of Business since in a way I am an entrepreneur of creativity. Currently, I am taking a course called “Imagination to Innovation,” which is a cross-departmental course between Haas and the Theater, Dance, and Performance Studies departments. The class transforms lectures into interactive workshops that exercise how we can think strategically and creatively given a bunch of different scenarios. A bulk of our class grading revolves around a final project where we put our creativity to the test, and for this I am developing a concept for a movie / stage musical called “Vamptastic,” which blends the worlds of competitive beauty standards and model competitions mixed with cyberpunk vampires. Interesting!
Content Creation/Graphic Design:
I love just going crazy and experimenting with my editing skills through videos and graphics! From vlogging to creating marketing/flyering materials, this “digital scrapbooking” allows me to be creative in such intricate fashion. Here at Berkeley, I am expanding my knowledge of graphic design into the world of web design thanks to an organization called “Innovative Design,” or InnoD for short. At InnoD, I am in a committee of ten members where we learn how to prototype and mash up a visually pleasing website together. Additionally, I am involved in the Asian American Association, or Triple A for short, and I am involved in their media committee where I make some of their graphic design posts, merchandise, and lead in branding & identity!
I have so many other hobbies that I did not get a chance to talk about, such as: gaming, fashion exploration, fitness and gymming, music production, songwriting, being a wannabe influencer, AND MORE.. but I am glad that while Cal is known as an academic institute, it’s also a place where I can learn more about myself as a person through the various extracurriculars I immerse myself in!