adulting

Living On My Own & The Reality Of It

March 20, 2024

Unlike most college students, I didn’t move out at seventeen. No, instead I moved out at nineteen, when I transferred to Berkeley to finish my college career as an upperclassmen.

After realizing that I was going to be moving to Berkeley from Southern California and living on my own, hundreds of miles away from my family, I was excited but also scared.

There are so many positives when it comes to living on your own and the expectations that I had were most definitely met.

The first thing was making my own schedule without...

Coping with Newfound Adulthood

March 15, 2024

Like most fairytale-loving kids, I never wanted to grow up. The idea that growing up meant becoming a responsible, reliable, and problem-solving person out of necessity was sickening. When you’re a child it’s whimsical to do responsible things on impulse, because you can go play after. Nowadays, at 20, to play is to be rewarded, and by what? Finishing tasks? Meeting deadlines? Having such little anxiety or imposter syndrome or so much stress and fatigue that you finally just stop studying? The feeling of never doing enough follows me around like a bouncy child asking “Are we there...

Hiking to Independence

March 13, 2024

“How many times does your mom call you?” is a question that I was once asked at the end of my sophomore year. It took me a second to think, and I replied with, “Maybe twice.”

“Now, is this twice a week? Twice a day?”

“No, twice the entire time I have been at Berkeley.”

People are usually shocked when I tell them my mom rarely calls me, but we still do talk. We keep our Snapchat streak going, and I will send her some pictures of the sights I see, food I eat, or quickly tell her something funny that just happened. We will...

Day in the Life of an English Major

November 17, 2023

All throughout highschool (...and middle school) I would watch countless amounts of “Day in the Life of a…” videos. Heading into my college years, I especially loved to see videos about college students and people who were studying what I wanted to study. Rather than film a video, I’m going to be sharing my day in the life as a Berkeley English major!

From a recent Friday (08/27/23) in the Fall 2023 Semester:

8:30-9:00 am – Waking up! Honestly, sometimes the hardest part of my day. But it is Friday!

9:30 am – Grabbing a...

Course Highlight: L&S 12, The Berkeley Changemaker

April 18, 2021

As a campus ambassador, some of the most common questions I get on my tours are: what are some of the best classes to take? And, this one is a big one, but why Berkeley? What makes our university different from the rest?

The answer to these questions lies in L&S 12: The Berkeley Changemaker, a 2 unit course that students can take on a pass/no pass basis.

...

Guide to Finding Off-Campus Housing in Berkeley

April 7, 2022

As you may have heard, finding off-campus housing in Berkeley can be kind of crazy. I would know, I’m in the process of that right now. So, if you are wondering where to start, what to expect, or even just get a general overview of the off-campus housing process. This is my general advice and experience for you. Hope you enjoy!

HOW/WHEN TO START LOOKING FOR HOUSING

Apartment hunting season for the next academic school year typically starts in the Spring semester. So, February-April is high time to apply for housing. I would say it might be safer to...

Dear Junior Year

April 26, 2022

Dear junior year,

What a wild ride, am I right? I’ve been looking forward to writing this blog post all year, but now that I’m here I have no idea where to start. Lets work backwards. I had my first ever in-person Cal Day on April 23rd, 2022, and dare I say it, life felt like normal after two whole years in the pandemic. Wow. I won an award in the Rally Committee for being a dedicated older member. I applied for chair of the Rally Committee and did not get it (I’m telling myself that one is a blessing in disguise). I took over this blog and have been running it for quite some time...

My Internship Search

March 2, 2021

I feel like my parents ask me at least twice a week what job I’ll be able to get with my major and what my career goals are. Both of my majors are incredibly broad and not something you see in a lot of fields. In a previous blog post I talked about my decision to become a geography major on top of my Society & Environment major. Truthfully, with a lot of things academic wise and career wise, I just don’t know what I want. I’m the type of person who gets excited about literally anything and everything but I also get bored easily. I chose my majors because I wanted something that would...

Ready for the Real World

March 26, 2021

I distinctly remember the frenzy in February of my freshman year when it came time to find housing for the coming year. Most private apartments around Berkeley do a 1 year lease starting in June so that it matches with the school year. That means that come springtime, the early bird gets the worm to find a good housing deal for the next year.

It’s always a bit dramatic to sort out the roommates. Are you looking to room with 1, 2, 3, or 4 others? Are you okay to have a double occupancy room, or are you going for a single? What’s your budget, and are you willing to compromise? All...

How to Develop Successful Habits for Online School

March 23, 2021

The transition to online classes has been difficult for many. It’s not easy to stay focused during quarantine…so how do we maintain our “A game?” If you’d like to know the secrets in developing successful habit, then stick around!

If you’re like me and many other students, then you’ve probably experienced zoom fatigue. Staring at zoom or your computer for extended periods of time is not sustainable for maximizing your retention rate in learning. We’re not robots..but rather humans that need to have a proper work-life balance!

So where do we start?...