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Allison Culp

Freshman Honors Studies

December 1 2016

End-of-Semester Reflection

My first semester as a college student has really flown by. I feel as though only yesterday

I was moving in and completely oblivious to what was ahead of me. However I think I have a lot

to feel accomplished about. Overall I’ve done well academically in exchange for many late

nights in the library and Reading Room. These spaces in addition to the anatomy lab have

become indispensable study spaces this semester and I am very glad that they are open resources.

My anatomy class, while challenging, makes me very excited to continue learning about the

human body. My UHON 1010 course, Humanities, was also a bit challenging in the beginning

but I have seen myself improve as a writer over the semester and really enjoyed the texts that we

read. My honors seminar “Topics in Natural Sciences” surprised me by becoming my favorite

class of the semester. Not only is it relevant to my major but I found Dr. Cleaveland’s lectures

and insight to the practice simply fascinating. This semester I also performed a dissection for the

first time in my anatomy lab and, although a bit apprehensive beforehand, I have become really

comfortable with it and find each dissection very interesting. It is really beneficial to be able to

point out what structures we are learning and allows me to connect what I learn in lecture to the

physical correspondent.

I also think I’ve really branched out with new interests and hobbies and have definitely

gained new perspectives through what I’ve read and through the people I have met. Among the

odd skills I have learned are making coffee with a French press, a basic knitting pattern, and to

never park in a residential neighborhood unless I’m willing to pay for a ticket. I tried yoga for
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the first time and loved it and have spent several Sunday’s walking around the Chattanooga

Farmer’s Market or the Barn Plant Nursery. After exploring the city I definitely want to become

more involved with the community as there are many opportunities to volunteer or just

participate in local events.

There were moments when I could have been more organized and managed my time

better during this semester. My schedule was quite full so time management was the main issue

for me. Anatomy is a particularly time-consuming course and is one that I had to put a lot of time

aside for, which caused me to put other courses on the back burner when I should not have.

Another challenge about college I have found is balancing between socializing and studying. I

adore the Brock Scholars community so having to miss certain events to study was sometimes a

hard decision to make. These are all things I will have to work on throughout the next semester

and probably the rest of my college experience. Next semester I hope to become a bit more

involved as my schedule is a bit less demanding and I would love to volunteer more often on the

weekends and maybe consider a leadership role should an opportunity arrive. Overall I feel

accomplished after my first semester of college and am excited to see what next year will bring. I

will strive to manage my time better and become more involved with all of the communities I am

a part of and can only hope that next semester will be as prosperous as the first.