A Fresh View: Some Frequently Asked Questions

Hello Everyone!

My name is Emily Schell, and I’m the freshman behind “A Fresh View.” You get to read my attempts to tell jokes and blog for the next year – but at least hopefully you will get something out of it! While you all struggle through the college application process, I get to struggle through the trials and tribulations of being a freshman. So there you have it: neither of us is alone. This blog is just a little bit of Brunonia to brighten up your week!

Update from College Hill: THE PREFROSH ARE HERE! I REPEAT: THE PREFROSH ARE IN THE BUILDING. Yes, this weekend is indeed ADOCH, which, this year, is actually Three Day(s) on College Hill… and you know what that means? Three times the festivities! ☺ If you have the opportunity to do ADOCH, I would seriously recommend it. It seems like a wonderful venue to meet new students who might potentially be your classmates and get a good feel for exactly what kind of stuff Brown is made of (a.k.a. awesome.) However, over the last few weeks, especially today, I have been peppered with a variety of questions from prospective students and so, because these questions have come up so frequently, I figured I would compile a list and answer them for the benefit of you all! I know most people look at a FAQ section and that is the one page they tend to avoid – but in this case, many of this information is helpful and I advise you all to look, even if only for a bit!

Disclaimer: Many of these answers draw from a lot of my own personal experiences at Brown, because I can’t really answer for anyone else – the best answers I can provide are ones based on my own understanding of the inner workings of Brown. Also, shout out to my girl from Ethiopia, Saron Mechale, for being the one to bring a lot of these questions to my attention at first so I could formulate the awesome answers I have here

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Q: What are classes like at Brown? How big are they? What is the professor to student interaction?

A: To be honest, I haven’t had that many big lecture classes here at Brown (especially in the humanities.) The only classic, big lecture scenarios you’re going to see here are in classes such as Organic Chemistry, Biology, Economics, etc. Those are baseline courses that most people at some point in their concentration HAVE to take (for example, I have to take Intro to Econ for my International Relations concentration.) Other than that, most of the classes I’ve had have been less than 30 people. Regardless, big lectures really are nothing to sweat. I promise you that the professors in those classes are really approachable, really WANT students to come talk to them, and actually will remember your name. I’ve been able to talk to all 3 of my big lecture professors on a frequent basis, they’ve helped me out on certain questions I’ve had with the course material, we’ve had in depth discussions, etc. It really is something that shouldn’t stress you out at all — even if it might seem a big scary at first. I promise your professors will be normal people too!

Q: What are some good concentrations at Brown? Does Brown have a pre-law concentration?

A: In the humanities, our East Asian Studies, IR, Political Science, and Public Policy departments are DEFINITELY the strongest. Public Health, Computer Science, and Applied Math are some not-as-humanities concentrations that I can think of off the top of my head that are also really strong. (Some weirder ones are ethnomusicology, electronic music, etc. <– those are also really cool and really good concentrations, I probably will take a class in one of those at some point!) Unfortunately, we don’t have a pre-law concentration or track — but that is okay because most law schools these days actually are looking for people with a diversified degree, not just a pre-law track, so it actually works in your benefit!

Q: Open curriculum…what does that even mean? Does it give you more responsibility (over your curriculum)?

A: Open curriculum, to me, encompasses two different things. One part of it is that you get to take classes in whatever you want (although of course you have concentration requirements you have to fulfill). I DO participate heartily in that part of the open curriculum — this semester I am taking an engineering class on Industrial Nonprofits (so cool… also the professor has been teaching here since the 1950s and he actually is the wisest man I’ve met.) Last semester I took a music First Year Seminar on different art and music manifestos in the 20th century. This benefit of the open curriculum actually goes both ways — for students who don’t know what they want to do yet, it definitely gives them an opportunity to explore without feeling confined by other classes that they are forced into taking, but also for students like me, who already know what they want to do, its beneficial because I don’t feel bad taking courses outside of my concentration. In fact, it encourages me to do so because I’m not cramped for space in terms of classes. Students at other schools that DON’T have an open curriculum have to deal with both their concentration requirements and a “core” curriculum (oftentimes composed of some variety of math, science, social sciences, and writing classes) — they don’t even have room to take a class out of enjoyment! I think thats pretty unfortunate. But, as with everything, there are downsides to the open curriculum as well. It IS a responsibility in that you can’t let yourself get carried away — you have to remember that you are concentrating in something and you can’t just take a billion classes for fun and not do any of your concentration requirements. Grad schools DEFINITELY won’t like that — plus you won’t be able to get your degree. However, I have never heard about that actually being a problem for anyone, thats just an extremely hypothetical situation. Also, I mentioned earlier how there is one part of the open curriculum that, as someone who is pretty confident in her choice of double concentration (East Asian Studies and IR), I don’t use as much. That is shopping period. Shopping period is a 2 week period at the beginning of each semester where you can literally just shop classes, try ‘em on for size, and see if you like them — then at the end of the 2 week period you have to finalize your schedule. Because I have more concentration requirements than most people (as a double concentrator), right now I have just been trying to get requirements for my concentrations out of the way (albeit, I’ve still been having fun and taking fun classes on the side!) — so I haven’t really shopped too much. However, I think as time goes on and I have more freedom in my schedule to do certain tracks within my concentration (this won’t make sense now, but I promise it will make sense later), I will probably shop more.

Q: What’s Providence like? How about the internships?

A: Providence IS great. I come from Washington, DC (yay Nation’s capital whoohoo…), so I have a pretty good hold on cities, and I can honestly say that Providence is charming. Between WaterFire and the theater district and the little shopping streets with boutiques, you’re never going to run out of things to do! That ALSO includes internships! Providence is a small city — which is even better for getting internships because right now a lot of start-ups and enterprenuers are working in downtown Providence, starting off their company or brand, and they are definitely on the lookout for fresh blood to really jumpstart their company. They look up the hill and boom – Brown students, what a perfect opportunity! Brown students get hired as interns all the time in Providence. In fact, Brown encourages it. We are in a community, the College Hill community, but also the broader Providence community…and communities give back to each other. Providence is so good to Brown, so, in turn, we are good to Providence. Also, in terms of what kinds of internships you can get – literally EVERYTHING. As I said before, Providence is the city of start-ups… which means that every kind of company under the sun can probably be found in downtown Providence somewhere. I’ve heard of people interning at a wide variety of places: from organic food businesses to searching for better ways to monitor peoples sleep (by this sleep coaching machine thing). Also, as for the competition factor — what the alumni told you is right. Brown IS full of students who all are pretty goal oriented — they have big dreams and are going to fight for them. However, unlike other schools, where this kind of competition makes people backstab other people, here at Brown, it really is you competing against yourself. Most of my friends have been rather successful this year and most of us are doing really cool things this summer in terms of internships, jobs, study abroad, etc. However, there is NO animosity between any of us — we are just happy that people are doing well in the things that they love. It truly is such a supportive environment.

AND…that’s all for now! Hopefully that answered a lot of questions about Brown/coming to Brown/living in Providence that you all might have, but if it didn’t…

If you all have any questions, want me to cover a specific topic, or just want to rant about the college application process, feel free to shoot me an email at emily_schell@brown.edu.

Ever true to Brown,

Emily Schell

Hungry As a Bear: Spice Up Your Life

Be honest.  One of the things that scares you the most about going to college is not knowing what the food is like.  If you are worried about what you will be eating on campus once you arrive at Brown, look no further than Hungry as a Bear with Corrine Szczesny.

What Bear does not want a little Spice in their life?  Here on College Hill, we have our own supply of Spice.  Spice Authentic Thai Bistro, located at 120 Waterman Street, offers an amazing selection of Thai, Japanese and American dishes.  Spice is not only affordable, but it is located just across the street from the Sciences Library, making it a local favorite for Brown students.

A Fresh View: Brown Traditions!

Hello Everyone!

My name is Emily Schell, and I’m the freshman behind “A Fresh View.” You get to read my attempts to tell jokes and blog for the next year – but at least hopefully you will get something out of it! While you all struggle through the college application process, I get to struggle through the trials and tribulations of being a freshman. So there you have it: neither of us is alone. This blog is just a little bit of Brunonia to brighten up your week!

SPRING. IT’S HERE. Maybe for some of you Texans or tropical kids that doesn’t come as much of a surprise, but for us Brunonians on the East Coast, the arrival of spring means the return of the Clubmaster sunglasses, the revival of colored shorts, and the revitalization of the Main Green (yes, people really do sit on it like you see in the pictures!) And with the coming of Spring also means the coming of something else (suntans?) …. SPRING WEEKEND! ☺ I’m not quite sure what to expect of Spring Weekend myself, I being just a lowly freshman, but I’ll be sure to keep you all posted! I figured that since Spring Weekend is coming up, I’d take this opportunity to tell all of you fabulous people of the myriad of traditions you’d get to be a part of if you chose to come to Brown! (This is the part where all the still undecided seniors go to click the “Commit” button… Kidding, kidding!)

I’m just going to list some of the traditions, because some of them I haven’t been a part of yet (Spring Weekend being one of them) and some of them are a bit less important than others. These are just the big ones! And if you don’t like any of them (which I doubt), Brown is the kind of place where you can start a tradition of your own!

(1) Van Wickle Gates: You’ve seen them on every piece of Brown mail ever! You’ve witnessed their beauty through some hipsterly Instagramed picture! Maybe you’ve even wanted to touch the gates to see what material they are ACTUALLY made of (hey… I did…). Well now you get to walk through them too – but only twice. Brown opens the Van Wickle Gates, the majestic doors to Narnia, only twice a year – on Convocation and Commencement. Convocation is when the freshman class rushes in excited throngs through the fairly thin gap that are the gates (so it goes pretty slowly I’ve heard) to usher in the beginning of their Brown experience. After that, the President is supposed to give a rousing Convocation speech on the Main Green and there is happiness and frolicking all around! I said “supposed to” because I don’t actually know. This year the freshman class had an interesting Convocation – ours got rained out (yes, rained out….bummer, right?) so we actually just got to go through the gates the day AFTER Convocation on our own time. I walked through with a group of my friends and it was still fairly epic… but it wasn’t quite as awesome as the real thing I’d imagine. Don’t worry – that’s never actually happened before as far as I can tell in Brown’s history, so I seriously doubt this will happen to you! Besides, I’ve got a second shot at the fanfare that is walking through the gates in my senior year. During Commencement, we all graduate and that’s fine and dandy…but then we get to walk out of the gates, out of the loving protection of Brown’s “arms,” and into the REAL WORLD! Now there’s some symbolism for ya…

(2) Josiah S. Carberry: Okay, so this guy is supposed to be a fictional professor for Psychoceramics (the study of cracked pots.) He was founded in 1929. So basically…the running joke has been around for a little while and I’m not quite as familiar with the story behind Josiah himself. However, two things I am familiar with are Josiah, the name of the Brown University Library online database, and the amazing Jo’s, the late night grill, salad, and snack bonanza extraordinaire. Jo’s has actually helped my group of friends and I establish a small tradition of our own – the Wednesday night 1:30 Jo’s “spicy with” run. Basically we go on Wednesday night when the only people there are either people desperately stuffing their face with stuffed chicken delight to make up for a horrific night of studying in the SciLi or US – eating “spicy withs” because, why not?

(3) Halloween Midnight Organ Recital: Not into organ? Don’t care. You better go to this anyway. Seriously – this is an amazing experience that I’m so happy my friends took me to earlier this year. You all get dressed up in your Halloween garb and after a fun night of doing Halloween related things, you all crowd into Sayles Hall to listen to an awe-inspiring (you think I’m kidding…) mix of Halloween-themed organ music being played on the largest remaining Hutchings-Votey organ in the world (don’t worry, I had to go to Wikipedia for that… I don’t just know that.) It really is a cool experience, so bring friends on down to Sayles, bring some pillows and blankets because it goes from midnight to pretty late, and prepare to have an awesome last few moments of Halloween!

(4) Naked Donut Run: I had the unfortunate displeasure to NOT see this, because I didn’t really study in the libraries when this all was going on first semester (its okay, I won’t miss it now) Basically, because Rhode Island is the home state for Dunkin Donuts and because we can, a group of naked people always stands outside of the libraries (SciLi, the Rock, and the CIT) giving out Dunkin Donuts to stressed out students around Reading Period as a little perk up. I’ve heard that it’s very effective and especially hilarious (or maybe a bit awkward too?) when you see your friends participating on the naked side of things. However, if nakedness is something that you are not comfortable with – DON’T WORRY! You really do not have to participate in this – nobody is going to force you to (1) go to a library or (2) force you to eat a donut/see a naked person. Nothing at Brown is ever about being forced anyway, so if any of these traditions make you uncomfortable in any way – do not feel pressured to be a part of them because you absolutely do not have to!

And last but not least… (5) SPRING WEEKEND! I’ll be completely honest, I have no idea what to expect for this weekend. I’ve heard its crazy. I’ve heard its some shenanigans. I’ve heard its chill. And I’ve heard its some combination of the three. Whatever Spring Weekend has in store for me and my friends, I know I’ll sure be ready for it! Also…we have Kendrick Lamar and A-Trak (among other amazing artists) coming, so that in itself is a reason to be really, really excited for it!

I hope those traditions get you excited about (1) going to Brown or (2) applying to Brown, because they should! Brown is a school full of awesome people and awesome traditions – and I hope that some of those awesome people and I can make a tradition of our own someday ☺

As always, if you all have any questions, want me to cover a specific topic, or just want to rant about the college application process, feel free to shoot me an email at emily_schell@brown.edu.

Ever true to Brown,

Emily Schell

Hungry As a Bear: Cafe Carts

Be honest.  One of the things that scares you the most about going to college is not knowing what the food is like.  If you are worried about what you will be eating on campus once you arrive at Brown, look no further than Hungry as a Bear with Corrine Szczesny.

In college, you do not always have the time to stop and eat a meal.  Between rushing to classes, finishing your homework, and going to work, you might find yourself skipping meals.  Luckily, running late here at Brown does not mean you necessarily have to go hungry.  Situated around campus you can find cafe carts filled to the brim with beverages and snacks, including coffee and sandwiches. With three locations on campus, the cafe carts are never far away. 

A Fresh View: How to Not Die Freshman Year

Hello Everyone!

My name is Emily Schell, and I’m the freshman behind “A Fresh View.” You get to read my attempts to tell jokes and blog for the next year – but at least hopefully you will get something out of it! While you all struggle through the college application process, I get to struggle through the trials and tribulations of being a freshman. So there you have it: neither of us is alone. This blog is just a little bit of Brunonia to brighten up your week!

For those of you who just had Spring Break or are having it – I hope that you had/are having wonderful and relaxing breaks! Lets be real – we all deserve it! And for those of you who are seniors finishing up the LAST STRETCH OF HIGH SCHOOL (oh my goodness, right?), keep your head up! Its easy to feel buried down when the end is sooo close yet so far. Trust me – been there, done that. College is just around the corner, so you can’t quite give up yet!

Speaking of colleges… I just want to give a quick shout out to the wonderful new class of Brunonians. I can’t believe there’s a Class of 2017- but its AWESOME! For those of you who were accepted, a huge congrats is in order. You must have done some pretty amazing things in high school to get where you are so major props to that. And for those of you who did not get the answer you wanted, don’t stress it. You will be happy at whatever college you go to (I’m sure you all have wonderful options all the same!) as long as you have the RIGHT ATTITUDE!

So what does that even mean anyway? Right attitude? I used to hear that phrase all the time and get a bit confused and annoyed by it. Do you have to walk around skipping all the time? Do you have to stalk your professors to get them to talk to you? Like what even!?!?!?! Well fret not, future college freshman. From an almost sophomore (weird…) to an almost freshman, here are a few tips on how to get through your freshman year at least mostly alive. ☺ Over the course of freshman year, through both personal experience and watching friends make mistakes (or, conversely, accomplishments), I have amassed a pretty sizable arsenal of advice. I’m going to share some of that advice with you because…well why not! This isn’t just for current seniors either – you ALL will be going to college eventually, so its worth it for everyone to just take a peek.

Emily Schell’s “Pro Tips” To Not Dying a Premature Death as a Freshman:

(1) Don’t be afraid to say “no:” I learned this lesson rather quickly last semester. Here at Brown, and at many other colleges as well, you will show up on your first day, excited, doe-eyed, and ready to seize whatever opportunities come your way. And come they will! I remember being completely stymied at the first Activities Fair way back when in September… I wanted to sign up for ALL THE THINGS! Big, big mistake. Soon enough I found that even though I wanted to attend that Aldus Translation Magazine meeting, it conflicted with my Jazz Band rehearsal. But wait, wasn’t that meeting of the LGBTQA society then too? I figured out pretty quickly that I had to streamline my extracurriculars, otherwise the only extracurricular I would actually be doing was running from place to place trying to make each one. Saying “no” doesn’t mean you have to go to the Activities Fair at your respective school and shun everything new and different from what you did in high school – feel free to take that leap and try that Irish Dancing class that you’ve secretly wanted to do – that’s what college is FOR! Just remember, there are only 24 hours in the day. Try to fill at least SOME of them with things like eating and sleeping too. ☺

(2) DON’T PROCRASINATE: I cannot stress this enough! I know, we all procrastinate. It’s a basic human impulse/Facebook’s fault. However, in college, it is very easy to fall behind. Seriously. I’ve seen friends slack off on their work even for “just a few days,” and sooner or later that snowballed into weeks and then… BOOM! Along came the final and they were staring at a pile of books. …and that’s how they died.

Just kidding, but seriously, if anything, try and stay AHEAD on your work. Then if something crazy comes your way, you’ll be more than ready for it.

(3) Find the right study place: Every person is different. Not everyone studies in their dorm room like the movies show, or in the library for that matter. Studying is an integral part of the college experience – you’re going to want to find that place where you can actually get said studying done. My suggestion is this: go around campus and try multiple venues, such as your room, the library, the local coffee shop, etc. Want to know what my perfect study spot is? The hallway of my dorm. Yeah, how’s that for weird? Every person studies in their own way – find what works for you!

(4) Find the balance: This is something that my friends and I learned very quickly, luckily. In college, you’re going to be bombarded with many different situations and emotions that go along with them. Living away from home, getting new friends, being in harder classes, parties – all of these things will most likely be a part of at least your freshman year experience. And you should let them be! College shouldn’t be all about the work – sometimes the best things I have learned here at Brown haven’t come from the classroom, but rather from an interaction that I had with someone else outside the classroom. However, that doesn’t mean college is all play either. We’ve all heard the horror stories about the girls and boys who partied themselves into failing out. It’s not just a “state school thing” – it’s an every school thing. While partying and socializing do have their clear pulls, they also have a clear place. Finding a balance is also something very personal – while my friend goes out and parties every weekend, my other friend rarely parties at all, but rather prefers to keep her Friday night circle to a small, chill group of friends. Whatever makes you have fun and unwind is your personal choice – and nobody should ever pressure you into having fun in a way that you don’t want to (which I promise, at least at Brown, you’re very safe from that ☺). As cliché as this may sound, just remember the old adage – work hard, play hard. If you’re going to “play hard” in college (whatever that means to you), you’ve also got to put in the work too if you want to succeed. ☺

IN CONCLUSION…those are just a few of the things I’ve learned from my almost completed freshman year. I’ve learned some of these lessons the hard way and others the easy way, but I’m hoping that this advice will help you ease into college and make that transition as smooth as possible. ☺

On another note: for all those seniors out there making college decisions…choose Brown. No, I’m just kidding (not really…). Choose whatever school you think is best for you (Brown…). But if you have any questions (especially about Brown…) about picking a college, what you should look for, etc., feel free to shoot me an email (my email address is below.)

As always, if you all have any questions, want me to cover a specific topic, or just want to rant about the college application process, feel free to shoot me an email at emily_schell@brown.edu.

Ever true to Brown,

Emily Schell

Hungry As a Bear: These Are a Few of My Favorite Things

Be honest.  One of the things that scares you the most about going to college is not knowing what the food is like.  If you are worried about what you will be eating on campus once you arrive at Brown, look no further than Hungry as a Bear with Corrine Szczesny.

For St. Patrick’s Day this year, the Blue Room had special molten chocolate cakes with mint chocolate chip ice cream.  I am always impressed with the effort Brown Dining Services puts into providing good food for the students at Brown, and these cakes were no different. While you cannot expect specials such as the chocolate cakes every week, you can expect to find a lot of great options at all of the eateries on campus.  This week, I am going to highlight a few of my favorite foods at some of the places around campus.

A Fresh View: Getting Sick?

Hello Everyone!

My name is Emily Schell, and I’m the freshman behind “A Fresh View.” You get to read my attempts to tell jokes and blog for the next year – but at least hopefully you will get something out of it! While you all struggle through the college application process, I get to struggle through the trials and tribulations of being a freshman. So there you have it: neither of us is alone. This blog is just a little bit of Brunonia to brighten up your week!

So… sorry about this past week everyone! I know your weeks were all made sooo much worse by the fact that you didn’t have a fabulous blog post by yours truly gracing your computer screen (just kidding.) However, this was for a very legitimate reason, which actually is what I’m going to talk to you about today – getting SICK!

As much as you all might think this is a pretty gross, “sticky” situation (ha get it, punny…), it is something that you really need to be aware of going into freshman year that I wasn’t. In college dorms, you will be living in pretty close proximity. That means you will be sharing bathrooms, touching the same doorknobs, eating from the same cafeterias, and basically being in contact with people 24/7. Sorry, germaphobes, your life is going to be a bit of a train wreck for a bit there. However, this shouldn’t be a cause for you to all freak out and decide to join a ultra-hygienic utopian society or anything – in college, the easiest way to avoid getting sick is literally so basic. Drink water, get sleep, wash your hands, and just don’t cough on other people (its just kind of rude too…). I don’t want to sound like your mom here, but one of the biggest things that my friends and I have had to deal with freshman year that has been both surprising and unsettling has been how quickly colds and viruses even more serious, such as mono, can be passed around. For example, on the second floor of my dorm, 4 people had mono in the first semester! 4 out of around 30! And if one person got a cold on the floor, you could count on the whole floor getting it within the next 3 weeks. Getting sick really isn’t fun for anyone because that means you have to miss class to recover, you’re behind on work, and you just feel really bad. All of these things will catch up to you quickly in the college environment – this isn’t like high school, where if you miss a day every here and there its “no big deal.” I promise, you don’t want to get sick – and you ESPECIALLY don’t want to get mono. But, like I said earlier, its nothing to be alarmed about if you’re proactive. Doing those basic things are huge steps in the right direction towards preventing sickness in dorms and on the Brown campus in general.

I don’t want your germs and you don’t want my germs. That’s the attitude you should have at WHATEVER school you chose to attend, but especially Brown (because really, I don’t want your germs, even if they are amazing and awesome because they come from a Brown student.) If you just keep basic health and hygiene part of your daily routine (I know it’s tempting to run out of the bathroom without washing your hands… I know…), you won’t have to worry nearly as much as getting a cold or the dreaded mono (which isn’t just a college myth, unfortunately…) and you’ll be just fine and dandy.

Also, as a final little sidebar just to further belay your fears that I probably just gave you about contracting mono in college/dying – Brown has many different places where you can get your health checked out. We have Health Services, which is generally open all day from 9 am to 7 pm and you can easily call in or walk in to get an appointment at. We also have Emergency Services on call ready to take you to the Providence Hospital IF that kind of assistance is needed (lets hope not!) In addition to these two “classic” health outlets, Brown also has its SHAG (Sexual Health Awareness Group) to help you with any sexual needs or questions you may have AND Psychological Services. Both of those services are always at your disposal if you feel the need to utilize them. So, fear not, getting sick – whether it be the common cold or (hopefully not!) something worse – is definitely something that happens at college, but if you just follow a little basic hygiene and act responsibility if you do get sick, it shouldn’t be anything to worry about! ☺

As always, if you all have any questions, want me to cover a specific topic, or just want to rant about the college application process, feel free to shoot me an email at emily_schell@brown.edu.

Ever true to Brown,

Emily Schell