Posted on March 15, 2017March 15, 2017 by Robbie Davis — Leave a comment

Student Spotlight: Nicolas Giorgi, Designs in Rhythm

I’ve known Nic for nearly my entire time at Grove City College. He came in as an engineer with the class of 2016 with the intent to pursue product design. After extenuating circumstances, Nic left due to medical complications, but returned with the class of 2017.

Despite immense trials, Nic pushed forward, still driven by his passion for aesthetics and practicality. With what was then a fledgling design program, Nic began to delve into the world of design, studying under Nathan Mucha, a recent Design hire at Grove City College. Through hours of study and practice, Nic honed his design skills to realize his dream.

“It’s all about the process,” Nic muses. “There isn’t necessarily a correct solution, or product, when you go into the design process. It builds on each idea you have. Likewise, the journey to becoming a good designer is not a straight shot upwards. Just like any skill or craft, there’s mistakes made; however, that’s the way things go.”

After hours and hours of classwork and personal projects, Nic began to apply his design skills to various outlets across campus. From theatre posters to event programs, he’s applied what he’s learned to whatever comes his way.

For two years now, Nic and I have been roommates, and it’s an absolute pleasure to watch him go through the design process. The various iterations that stem from an initial concept always amaze me, but, being a perfectionist and skilled designer, Nic knows which route will bear the best results.

“Because of the classes I’ve taken and the professors I’ve been able to study under and ask questions of, I’ve had the privilege of taking part in projects which are not only campus-wide and beyond, but that have also stretched me as a designer. Grove City’s classes have taught me the basics, and the opportunities I’ve had provide me with the chance to apply those basics to a myriad of purposes.”

While Nic’s scientific background gives him the geometric and analytical tools to measure his tools with precision, his artistic experiences prior to Grove City College have tempered his design sensibilities to implement creativity into his well thought out plans. While he didn’t take many art classes before college, Nic was an avid drawer.

An aspect that ties closely into his designs, believe it or not, is his music choice. Many of my current favorite songs have come from Nic’s playlists, but his ethereal synth pop closely echos his work. There is a carefully calculated aspect to both, ideas that are filtered to ensure their purest essence is captured, and designs that are rhythmic and measured.

“Everything that I do as a designer is purposeful. It’s a microcosm of life. Whatever you may do, be it design or accounting, we are called to be meticulous and economical. We are given resources and abilities that are not to be wasted.”

Posted on March 14, 2017January 3, 2019 by Lindy Bowser — Leave a comment

Putting the Professors in the Hot Seat

When you come to visit Grove City College, you may meet some wonderful people who say they will be there for you for the duration of your studies at Grove City College – and they are not kidding. They will tell you they are here to make sure you grow as an individual in both your spiritual and academic life. They will tell you all the cool things you have the opportunity to learn about and they will say they have been praying for you. Who are these people? None other than the professors.

To better explain why these professors are so fantastic, I have critically reviewed some I have had over the years to show you how each one is different and challenging, but always acting with your best interest in mind. Warning: this is going to be a long post.

Hot Seat #1: Dr. Messer – English

My first experience with Dr. Messer started at 9 a.m. on the first day of classes. Side note, Dr. Messer is the head of the English Department and winner of the Professor of the Year Award in 2015 (intimidating). I was in the required Writing 101 class all freshmen have to take, and I was extremely nervous to be in my first college class AND have it be a subject I am not the best at. Dr. Messer seemed pretty cool in his introduction of himself in front of all 13 students, but what got me was he said it was required for all of us come to his office for 15 minutes before the week was over. I thought that was a little weird and out of my way – why would a professor want to see his students so early in the semester? Oh, little naive me. Upon meeting Dr. Messer in person in his office, I came to realize he requested those 15 minutes because he wanted to know who I was so he could better understand why my writing and class performance was the way it was.

The remainder of the semester I was continually impressed by Dr. Messer. Since he had met me before and knew a little bit more about my hometown and family, I felt extremely comfortable going back during his office hours to ask more questions. I knew I was not the strongest writer, and I blatantly said that during my meeting – so it was no surprise when I knocked on his door two weeks later asking for help on my persuasive essay. It is hard to put into words how helpful Dr. Messer was in a class I felt extremely like a fish out of water in. The best part about him as an instructor was he knew his faults. This was his first semester teaching Writing 101 so he was honest with us and said, “I am new to this too.” One of our assignments entailed writing on a topic within our major of study using library book resources. Do you know how many books are written by entrepreneurs? Not very many. As an Entrepreneurship major, this task was difficult so I said to him one class, “What would you like me to do? There are no entrepreneurship encyclopedias to look at.” He accommodated yet challenged me by saying, “Base your research on what you can find, but I have never studied entrepreneurship so impress me.” I did.

To this day, I see Dr. Messer around and he always says hi to me and asks me how I am doing – he still remembers my name a year and a half later.

Hot Seat #2: Professor English – Entrepreneurship

I met Yvonne English on Junior Crimson day a long time ago when the academic departments had open houses. I already knew I wanted to be an Entrepreneurship major but I had no idea what kind of academics that involved or what kind of professors I would have to deal with. I walked into the Entrepreneurship suite and my dad (to this day) said my face lit up. I was star-struck and high on cloud nine. What brought me back down to the real world was Professor English. She warmly welcomed me, offered me a free t-shirt (bonus!), and asked me my name, why I was into entrepreneurship, and all that typical small talk. Once she started explaining the program, she sold me on Grove City.

Fast forward to today, Professor English and I are buddies. I have had several classes with her and in each one she pushes me a little bit further outside of my comfort zone. She in no way, shape, or form babies her students. As Entrepreneurship majors, we have to know the material because it is real life, and if we fail on an idea in the real world there is no professor to hug us and say we can have a curve on our grade. Professor English takes tough love to a whole new level because she wants her students to succeed. Before she was a professor, English worked with several startups and accelerators so the topics she is teaching us in class she knows from experience.

I always go say good morning to her in her office – I feel like the day is not complete until I see her. This past semester I had another professor in a generic, required course that was really pushing my buttons and I would tell English about him when I would visit her. One morning, this professor and I just had a breaking point. I acted disrespectfully towards him and felt very bad about it, but did not know what to do. So when I wandered into English’s office I told her what was going on, and honestly, shed a tear or two because I was so upset at what happened. She handed me a tissue box and said, “I will help you write your apology email.”

I have stories upon stories of the nice things English has done for me (like buying me donuts or taking me to Rome in the summer) but that would be an entire blog post in and of itself.

Hot Seat #3: Dr. Tedford – Orchestra

My sister, Maddie, graduated last May as an early education major and during her time on campus she was the principle cellist of the orchestra. I met Dr. Tedford through Maddie. I was a timpanist (the big drums in the back of the orchestra) for all four years of high school and Maddie wanted me to play with her so she introduced me to Dr. Tedford in hopes he would win me over. But I am stubborn and refused to join. The story does not end there, Maddie and her roommate, Abby, were babysitters for Dr. Tedford’s two (now three) little kids. Naturally, the two got attached and Dr. Tedford created a strong bond with Maddie and Abby. So strong, in fact, when Maddie comes up to the area now to visit her boyfriend she will stay in the Tedford home. Whether they are there or not they always welcome Maddie for a visit.

What does this have to do with me? Maddie, naturally, would talk about me with Dr. Tedford and the subject of my photography came up in conversation. Dr. Tedford at the time was looking for a photographer to take photos of the orchestra so he emailed me asking if I was available for about an hour to take photos of the orchestra. I, of course, accepted. As time passed and he continued to ask me to take pictures he was so impressed with my work he hired me as the music department photographer for the band and orchestra. I have a special place in my heart for the orchestra because of Maddie and my past life as a timpanist so I have had an absolute blast being Dr. Tedford’s music photographer.

Maybe other school’s music conductors would do the same sort of thing to hire a student as a photographer – but Dr. Tedford is different. Every time I see him during rehearsal, he asks me how Maddie is doing, how my parents are, and if I am ready to listen to some music. The established relationship makes my job even better.

I believe majority of what makes my college experience great is the people I have come to know and love. These “people” include the amazing professors who have taken me under their wing and make it their goal to help me grow as a student.

Posted on March 13, 2017 by Tiffany Seitz — Leave a comment

Major (Life) Changes – My Switch From Communication Studies to Entrepreneurship

When it comes to your college career – maybe you’ve got it all figured out, maybe not. I know I certainly didn’t upon entering college, and I’ve learned that’s perfectly okay! The college experience is uniquely different for everyone – no two experiences will be identical. I’ve learned so much throughout the change that I’ve endured, and it has allowed me to reflect on the past four years, to see how I’ve grown not only as a student, but as an individual. Many people come into college assuming that their academics will be their primary learning source. However, I believe that a bulk of my learning has been done outside of the college classroom.

As a senior in high school, everyone asked me what I wanted to do. As any indecisive high school student, I answered “I don’t know,” and that was true up until the tail end of my freshman year of college.

I came in to Grove City College as a Communication Studies major, and it wasn’t until I took a Principles of Marketing course that I would recognize where my real calling is – business. As I sat in that course, I was deeply intrigued by the many facets of business that we discussed in that class. I loved the fast paced and ever-changing environment that the business world had to offer. It was that single class that made me ask myself the question – “what do I really want to do with my life.” It was because of this class that I decided to officially change my major to Entrepreneurship.

If you would have asked me what Entrepreneurship was my senior year of high school, I would have told you I had no idea. And to be quite honest, I still to this day sometimes struggle in spelling the word. My newfound major of Entrepreneurship has allowed me to experience a new side of life and a new side of me. I have found creative and innovative freedom through this major, as well as new skills to accompany those. I’m glad that I took the leap of faith in changing my major, because it has changed me for the better.

Now, I just made that sound like a piece of cake because I really enjoy my new major. However, sometimes it’s really hard to get where you want to be, especially if the major transition doesn’t work. Luckily, since I was switching disciplines within the school of arts and letters, I had very little issue in making the switch. I was a few credits behind, but I was able to make that up through some a summer class, an intersession, and some overtime credits.

If there’s one thing I can leave you with, it’s this – don’t think that if you come in as one major, you can’t graduate as another. As of now, I am on track to graduate with a major in Entrepreneurship with a minor in Communication Studies. And just think – I only started out as Communications! Remember, there’s no glass ceiling on what you can do when your mind’s put to it and your heart’s in it. Follow God’s call for your life – He won’t lead you astray. A lot of the time that leap of faith – whether it be changing your major, auditioning for the musical, or trying out for a sport – takes obedience on our part to get God’s blessing in our lives.

I encourage you – don’t settle for something you don’t want. Go after what GOD wants for your life!

Posted on March 3, 2017 by Lindy Bowser — Leave a comment

Rise of the Makers: The Story of a New Competition on Campus

What is the most unique, eye-catching, ridiculous object you can come up with? This out-of-the-box question is what encompasses the Make Movement. The movement strives to clash together crazy entrepreneurs with risk-taking engineers; and the result is flame-throwing musical instruments. It was the goal of GCC senior engineers Logan Mackenzie and Sam Cooper to coax the engineers out of the shade of Hoyt Hall and the entrepreneurs off their lofty third floor in HAL – bringing them together in holy innovation, much like the Make Movement. Sam and Logan noticed that campus is rather segregated in regards to major studies. The engineers stick to their structured equations and the entrepreneurs continue to come up with ideas with no ability to develop into reality because they simply cannot build it. Logan and Sam sat down with Entrepreneurship professor Yvonne English to address this concern. In this meeting, the Maker’s Design Competition was born.

The whole concept of the competition was to encourage entrepreneurs and engineers to come together and make some sort of prototype that was exceptional in either design or functionality… or both. With the help of the Center for Entrepreneurship and Innovation, Logan and Sam were able to offer a small allowance to each team to develop their idea over a period of three to four months. After Professor English had motivated Sam and Logan to write down the basics of the competition on paper it was time to find their team members. Sam sent out a mass email to several students that Professor English recommended would be a great asset to the team. Not soon after that, a team of two had grown to a team of four engineers, four entrepreneurs, and one international businessman. In the eyes of the entrepreneur, this competition was a startup, and it had to be treated, loved, and worked on as so.

Once the Maker’s Design Competition (MDC) team has established itself as a small family, the students began their first order of business by organizing a mixer right after Thanksgiving break to set the stage for mingling. To promote this event, Sam and Lindy (me) delegated marketing tasks to the rest of the team. Posters were hung a week before the mixer and the day before little dum-dum lollipops with advertisements on the sticks were spread all throughout the academic buildings. Fun Fact: The MDC hand-attached the advertisement tags to the lollipop sticks. In total, they prepped over 900 dum-dums. To pass the time while working, the team watched the movie, “The Grinch”. With cookies, games, and example projects to draw in the wandering engineer/entrepreneur, over 50 individuals showed up on the night of the mixer. Of course, the night was not complete without a family MDC photo in front of the Christmas tree.

Once engineers and entrepreneurs happily mingled, teams began to form. Within a few weeks idea submissions were stacked alongside two large pizza boxes on a table in the STU – the MDC team sitting around the table ready to read over all the applications. After about an hour, the final 10 teams were confirmed to go onto the semi-finals after Christmas break. These 10 teams were also allotted a $50 allowance to use for any materials they may need to build their prototype. Upon returning to campus, the teams had another two weeks before presenting their progress in front of a panel of six professor judges (two entrepreneurship, one marketing, one economics, two engineering). The judges then narrowed the competition down to four teams to go on to the final round.

Two weeks later these four teams stood before another panel of judges and an audience to re-present their idea.

Graphrite

A small, plastic piece used to sketch engineering designs more accurately.

Lees Guitars

A hand-made guitar made of wood.

Vulcans Forge

A wheelchair lift with a crank to raise/life a ramp so users did not have to bend over and lift the chair.

Quick Check

An app for smartphones that allows users to pay for their check without going through a server or table kiosk.

With 10 minutes to wow the room and a $400 grand prize on the line, the teams were cut-throat and ready for battle at 1 p.m. Saturday, Feb. 25. In a fantastic turn of events, the teams were so great the judges ultimately decided to give three prizes of $400, $300, & $200 for 1^st, 2^nd, & 3^rd place (respectively). First place went to Graphrite for their amazing design and unique product. Second place went to Lees Guitars for his presentation style and beautiful guitar, and lastly, third place went to Vulcans Forge for the wheelchair lift that was valuable to any family with a loved one in a wheel chair.

It has been a pleasure working with the MDC team and the entrepreneurship department to put this competition together. There is definitely room for improvement for next year’s competition, but the fact that the idea started in a professor’s office in September of 2016 and ended in February in Sticht Auditorium is worthy of applause.

Posted on February 26, 2017February 26, 2017 by Lindy Bowser — Leave a comment

Questions You Should Definitely Ask on Your Campus Tour

It is great practice for all campus tours to be uniform and follow a certain pattern so you (the prospective student) can learn everything there is to know about Grove City. But if you are anything like I was when visiting schools, you want to hear the things they do not normally talk about on a tour… unless you ask. So, here are some questions you should definitely ask on any campus tour you take in the future:

When in the chapel/place of worship

“Who has been your favorite chapel speaker so far this year?”

This question will prompt the tour guide to talk about what kind of speakers come to campus if she has not already. In regards to Grove City College, we offer a wide range of chapel speakers so students are exposed to something different every time.

When in the science building

“Why is the core science requirement important?”

Asking why an entrepreneurship major needs to take Chemistry 101 lets you see what kind of academics the college has to offer. Since Grove City College strives for a well-rounded education, the science requirement is a part of the course load to give students a taste for all fields of study different from the degree they are working for. The answer the tour guide gives will also give you a feel for what the academic expectations are on campus.

When in a student lounge

“Do you have any great stories from hanging out in a lounge?”

An extremely casual question with the opportunity to hear a comedic, classic college story. For example, I used to tell prospective students about my friends and me making enchiladas in a co-ed kitchen. It always makes the families laugh and it shows that there are cool things to do without breaking the budget.

When in an academic building

“What are the student-professor relationships like?”

A little different than the “student-to-professor ratio” question. The response will be different because it will not be a number, it will be a story or an opinion. For me, I wanted to know I would be valued as a unique individual, not just one of 100 in a lecture hall. Grove City College professors know my name, know my dog’s name, and genuinely care about my academic success. If I heard that on a tour, I would not have consider any other school. The photo on the left is actually me and my academic adviser (thanks for the filter, Snapchat).

At the end of the tour

“What sold you on Grove City?”

While everyone is different, you may be surprised that your tour guide was looking for the same characteristics in a college you are. Based on his or her answer, you can bounce ideas off of one another for what expectations are fair or a little too unattainable. On top of that, with the tour over and fading in formality, the tour guide will likely answer honestly – mostly because it is a question directed at them and asking for their opinion. I guarantee the answer will be followed by huge amounts of bragging about GCC.

Posted on January 16, 2017 by Alex Watt — Leave a comment

A Virtual Way Through the Crowd

Crowds are curious things. As I have navigated many in airports, train stations, and other public places in France this semester, I’ve been surprised at how a path through the crowd that my friend took ahead of me, a few seconds ago, is not necessarily the path I should take. People are moving constantly and I need to keep moving as well if I do not want to lose my guide.

Dr. Cory Boatright, Assistant Professor of Computer Science at Grove City College, has done research on crowd simulation since 2011. Crowd simulations are usually of pedestrians, and are defined by giving hundreds or thousands of virtual agents a starting position and a destination. When the simulation starts, individuals begin to make their way through the ever-changing crowd. While visualization is not required, it is helpful for understanding. Below is a screenshot from Dr. Boatright’s work:

While working on his Ph.D., Dr. Boatright’s research focused on using a data-driven approach to crowd simulation, instead of a procedural or geometrical take, with the intent of making the simulation faster. This past summer, two Grove City students worked on updating the framework used for the simulation. When that project is completed, it will be easier to set up simulations to research other things.

“The nifty thing about crowd simulation,” Dr. Boatright noted, “is that it crosses a lot of fields — everything from massively parallel computing to law enforcement.” One interesting application explored in a paper [1] is using software to process a video feed of a crowd, update a live model of the crowd, and predict destinations of pedestrians. The software could then flag unusual behavior, like someone in a lobby who has been wondering about and is not taking a direct path anywhere.

A second research interest for Dr. Boatright is vectorizing raster graphics. A raster image is essentially defined by a grid of pixels, where every pixel has a defined color. Photos, for instance, are raster images. A vector image, on the other hand, uses shapes or paths to define what is seen. Thus a vector image has infinite resolution. Vector graphics are generally used in design, while raster graphics are used for photos.

So when might one want to vectorize a raster image? Boatright referenced Wendell August Forge, which often makes ornaments based on photos provided by customers. This requires an artist to take the photo and trace the important paths in a vector format. If this task could be completed with software, it would save a lot of time.

Boatright has always been interested in large-scale problems and squeezing as much performance as possible out of a computer. Although crowd simulations and IBM’s Watson do very different things, Boatright’s simulation can handle thousands of virtual agents on his personal PC, while Watson fills a room.

Anyone interested in computer science will find that GCC professors, like Dr. Boatright, have a wealth of interesting research to draw on — and some of the research areas present opportunities for students to get involved.

1. Boatright, Cory D.; Kapadia, Mubbasir; Shapira, Jennie M.; Badler, Norman I. (2012). Pedestrian Anomaly Detection using Context-Sensitive Crowd Simulation. In First International Workshop on Pattern Recognition and Crowd Analysis.

Posted on January 16, 2017 by difalcolm1 — Leave a comment

Undecided? It’s Okay

As a high school senior, I felt a lot of pressure to know exactly what I wanted to do with my life – it seemed like I needed to know where I wanted to go to college, my intended major, and what I would do after graduation. The only problem was that I could not figure out any of these impending questions. I had no clue where I wanted to go or my desired major. The whole process was so stressful and I wanted to give up. However, I was able to figure it out, and Grove City made it easy for me to discover my route. Below is my journey in how I discovered the right major for myself:

Starting out: Undecided

Once I was accepted into Grove City College, the next decision I had to choose was my major. I honestly had no clue. After getting advice from my parents and mentors that I trusted, I ended up starting my freshman year as Undecided. I appreciated that I did not feel judged but accepted for not knowing exactly what I wanted to pursue in the future. They gave me an adviser, and came alongside me in the decision making process. One day, the chair of the liberal arts department even gave the undecided students a pep talk and some practical advice on choosing the right major.

Major 1: International Business

Once I was in some exploratory classes for a few weeks, I had a better idea of what I liked. I wanted to make a choice that would help me discover my true calling for the next four years. Luckily, it is not difficult to change your major, add a minor, or even add/drop a class. The goal of the College is to help students discover their calling, while making the process as easy as possible. So I decided to try International Business. I liked the opportunities and I interests gravitate towards international work.

The Right Major: Entrepreneurship

Undecided Major Studied Abroad — I even had the opportunity to study abroad in the Spring of my sophomore year!

Although I really enjoyed some of the classes I took in the Business Department, it did not feel right for me. Again, after some soul searching, prayer, and advice seeking I landed in the Entrepreneurship Department. I decided this in the summer right before sophomore year began. I was able to contact my new adviser and even talk with him over the phone before returning to school. He helped me handle all of the paperwork, and made the transition easy. The best news – I love my major!! It is a great fit for me.

The best common quality among the professors at Grove City is that they all want you to succeed. I am able to go visit with professors, ask them questions about a class, and leave feeling encouraged and cared about. Professors here look to make an investment in each student so they leave feeling prepared and equipped to do the work they have been called to do. So do not worry about coming to Grove City and having all those questions unanswered. It is easy to figure it out here!

Posted on January 16, 2017 by difalcolm1 — Leave a comment

Visionary Speakers: Jake Loosararian

Not only does Grove City College have an Entrepreneurship major and department, but there is also a Center for Entrepreneurship and Innovation. Entrepreneurship students are so blessed to have this Center because it connects us with great people and opportunities. One of my favorite activities sponsored by the Center is the Richard G. Staley ’62 Visionary Speakers Series. Each year, the college brings in some incredible people to share with students their wisdom and experience. This November, we got to hear from Jake Loosararian, a fellow GCC alumnus.

Jake’s Story

Jake graduated from Grove City College in 2013 with a degree in Electrical Engineering. While at the Grove, Jake along with some friends participated in VentureLab, a program funded by the Center. VentureLab provides seed grants and coaching to help launch new businesses. Ultimately, Jake and his friends post-grad co-founded Gecko Robotics, Inc. His company uses robots to scale walls and inspect power plants. Gecko’s products save money, time, and human lives.

Shortly after Gecko launched, they were accepted to Y Combinator, one of the most respected tech business incubators in the county. Jake and his team were paired up with mentors, and were named the #1 Top Startup from Y Combinator’s Winter ’16 Demo Day. His company is fast growing, and currently innovating a space that not only has a monetary impact, but also changing the landscape of safety.

Major Takeaways

I found Jake’s talk to be insightful and inspiring. It is inspiring to see someone not too many years ahead of you succeeding and following their passions and dreams. Jake spoke about courage, and his story truly is courageous. I loved hearing how his time at Grove City prepared him for this crazy adventure.

Overall, I was encouraged by Jake’s talk. I’m thankful that my school sees the value in giving students the opportunity to learn from those a few steps ahead and pass on their wisdom.

Gecko is saving lives and making an impact

Posted on December 7, 2016 by justicecp1 — Leave a comment

Alumni Insights: Electrical Engineering After College

Graduating college is a huge honor and accomplishment that deserves recognition and celebration. Our alumni are some of our greatest resources for career advice, handling student life, and encouraging those still currently completing their undergraduate degree. Recent graduate of the class of 2016, Abigail Liff is an alumna of the Electrical Engineering program and was willing to share her experiences and advice about life after Grove City.

Experience at Grove City College

Abbi works as an electrical engineer for FirstEnergy in Ohio. While at Grove City College, Abbi enjoyed her time living in a small town similar to her hometown in Kent, OH. “I loved the people and the small school atmosphere,” she explains. Each of our engineering programs at Grove City complete a senior capstone project where students are put into team to conduct research and design something to be used in a practical setting. Being passionate about research, Abbi went beyond the classroom to get more hands-on experience in electrical engineering research through summer internships. She explained how she felt very prepared for life outside of college because of these internships that she held both in high school and during college summers.

Getting More Experience

Being in the field of engineering is no easy job, and it can be difficult to find where your interests lie in a broad field. Abbi explains, “Electrical engineering is very rewarding, but it is very difficult and requires a can-do attitude to make it all the way through the program.” She had the opportunity to study abroad in Nantes, France with the European Study Center program with other electrical and mechanical engineers. During this time, she worked with her senior capstone group to create a better food refrigeration system with the help of some French students who studied food engineering. Together they worked in labs and collaborated information to bring back to America to use to finish their senior capstone project. Being in different environments and research groups in and outside of our campus has provided wonderful experience in the field that has helped her get the job she has today.

Life After Grove City College

After obtaining her degree, Abbi began working at FirstEnergy in Ohio through an experience at the Grove City College Career Fair. She said, “The Career Fair helped me get my job because I met a FirstEnergy representative who was very interested in Grove City College students and knew about the engineering program at our school.” Making these connections during college have made all the difference in finding a career path that has worked out for her.

When it comes to deciding on a college major, there are many factors to consider in developing a career to build on for the next four years and beyond. One of the best pieces of advice Abbi gives is practicing perseverance. She advised, “If you want to get this degree, you have to go in to the program telling yourself ‘I will stick with this. I am going to get this degree.’ I told myself that at least once a week, and I got through it, but it’s definitely not for everyone. I saw a lot of people leave because they didn’t have the right attitude.” Always consider the hard work and dedication it takes to obtain a college degree.

Posted on December 7, 2016 by justicecp1 — Leave a comment

Using an Independent Study as a Resume Builder

The hardest part about applying for a job is having to fill out the dreaded “experience” section. Whether you have a ton of past work experience or no past work experience, it is difficult to sum up your skills in a readable and practical way. One of the great opportunities offered at Grove City College is creating an independent study. An independent study is a great experience you can put on your resume. The study is similar to an internship where you design a project or complete a task that displays and highlights your skills within a semester.

Independent Study While Abroad

When I was a junior, I was able to be a part of the European Study Center program in Nantes, France. This program was unique because it offered courses taken directly through Grove City College instead of an outside university like most study abroad programs. I worked with professors from Grove City while in France in order to create a independent study that was focused around my major, communications. One of the best parts about having an independent study while in another country was the fact that I was able to communicate with students from all over the world. With the guidance of communication professors in America, I conducted a series of interviews of American and French students where I asked about how cultural differences affect communication styles. This was an amazing experience that I was very passionate about, and used to increase my experience in independent research and design.

How to Create an Independent Study

Independent studies are not only for students who study abroad, but also for students on campus as well. In order to create an independent study, there are a few steps to complete to gain course credits. Any independent study must be approved by your academic advisor, as well as the chair of the department in which you study. Just like any other course, an independent has to have a syllabus and a timeline of course work that gets turned in and graded. This also includes necessary readings and outside projects or assignments relevant to the study. For my study, I interviewed French and American students to see how cultural differences affect social and educational perspectives. I consulted various books about cultural competence, communication styles, and body language, as well as kept a video blog where I would post about research and experiences. This blog, as well as interview assignments were turned in and evaluated throughout the semester. Not every independent study is alike, and some can have different guidelines for grading upon discussion with your academic advisor. For some independent studies, a final project might be a research paper, a machine, or a public presentation. These can often times count as senior capstone projects, and can fill between 1 and 3 credit hours.

Independent Study as a Resume Builder

Independent studies allow just that – independence in using the ideas you have as a student to create something meaningful and relevant to what you are studying. If you have an idea you are passionate about, an independent study is the perfect excuse to pursue it. Not only can you get credit for it, but you can research and gain experience to help in future job searches. Having research experience can be beneficial in a job looking for someone who can be reliable for deadlines, and work independently. Below is an example of one of the video blogs I created for my independent study of our experiences as abroad students in a different culture. This study is an experience I will always cherish.
https://www.dropbox.com/s/dzfvys3d1vcsfn4/Blog%20Video%20%232-%20We%27re%20such%20tourists.mp4?dl=0