Hi! My name is Amelia, I’m attending Leeds Beckett University in Leeds, UK. I’m really grateful to be here playing soccer. The level of competition is high, but it’s been such a great experience training and playing with new teammates. I’m studying Sports and Exercise Science. Classes are definitely more challenging than high school, but they’re also more engaging since everything connects to a topic I have lots of interest in. My favorite class right now is probably Functional Anatomy and Biomechanics. I’d say Hale prepared me in some ways and helped with my self credibility and discipline, but doing Running Start helped me a lot as well. Running Start made a difference since I already had some experience with uni-level classes before coming here. The social side has been really fun! I’ve met so many people through soccer, and we’ve grown close so fast. It’s also easy to have an amazing time out in the city, whether you want to eat, shop, or party, there’s always something to do. There’s no Greek life in England, but there are still plenty of clubs and groups to get involved in. I’d say the best part of University is the independence and the time you have to really learn who you are and just enjoy everything. The hardest part is probably just learning how to properly balance everything between classes, training, rest, and social life. It’s been a big adjustment moving to a new country with new people, but overall it’s been such a good experience so far!
My name is Matilda Ainslie and I go to the University of Washington in Seattle! My major right now is Comparative History of Ideas however my goal is to apply to business or minor in business and major in communications. My classes are great! My favorite class I am taking is called sports and global affairs. It investigates society’s treatment of sports heroes and the rituals around the Religion of Sports. I would say that Hale prepared me pretty well but (college) is definitely an adjustment that takes a little bit to get used to. The social life is great, I joined a sorority which I love, but I’ve also heard good things about the dorms. Everyone is honestly so down to make friends in college. The worst part of school has been how fast the quarter system moves is a little bit hard to adjust to in the first couple of weeks of classes. The best part about college has been the new friends, all the new experiences, the school spirit, and not having 6 classes everyday.
Ian Cook,
I go to the University of Puget Sound in Tacoma, Washington. I’m currently on track to major in Business and environmental studies. The classes here are very small, which allows me to know all of my professors on a personal level to the point that I went camping with one of my favorite professors last month (different tents tho dw). My favorite class is probably Japanese since the class is set up in a very fun and interactive style which is awesome! I think Hale prepared me in the sense of being able to talk and get along with my professors, but there are still things I had to learn such as writing emails and being able to deal with the increased work load. The social side of UPSis amazing. Through cross country, clubs, my dorm, and even fraternities, I have made tons of friends. One thing that’s hard with my social life is being able to balance my homework. My favorite part about college is the freedom I have to do whatever I want around my own schedule. I also like how chill the professors are. My least favorite part about college is that there are so many things going on all at once. It can be hard to manage time which leads to decreased sleep. Overall college is a great time! I am in the middle of mid terms right now and despite the added stress from my studies, I am still able to see friends and have fun every day! Go Raiders!
My name is Liam Carey. I’m currently at University of Utah in Salt Lake City Utah. I’m not currently playing any sports. My major is kinesiology. My classes are a ton of fun and my favorite class is kinesiology 2500 class. Hale prepared me well for both my classes and socializing with new people. I’ve met so many people from different places, and going to the football games have been a ton of fun. Freedom is a big upside, being able to go out without someone asking where I’m going, and who I’m with. Doing things you’ve never done before like laundry, cleaning, and chores you have to do without your parents telling you.
My name is Finn Leach and I am currently attending Arizona State University, located in Tempe, Arizona. I am on the baseball team. So far, the college experience has been a lot of fun, but it has also been a very big adjustment for me. Getting used to balancing classes and practices has been a process. I have learned that it is very important to manage your time extremely well. I am still figuring out my routines down here to help me feel organized. With that being said, the freedom of college is amazing and you learn a lot about yourself. I am currently majoring in Data Science. Classes have been as expected. It depends on what you are taking, but most of them are similar to running start. My favorite class is intro to programming. I think Hale prepared me very well, since I was able to take college level courses in high school. The social aspect of college is what you make of it. Like I said before, when you’re in college, you have the freedom to do whatever you want. At ASU, there are tons of opportunities to make new friends. The best part of college is learning how to handle yourself on your own. The worst part of college is walking to class at 7 in the morning. The last thing I would add is for the seniors. Being away from home, I miss all the little things of being back home and in high school. Enjoy every moment you have at Nathan Hale as it will always hold a special place in your heart, even if you think you’re too cool for school.
My name is Adair Winegardner. I’m at Loyola University Chicago in Illinois. I’m currently majoring in communications and I love it! I plan to minor in history soon. I love my classes! My favorite class is probably my European history class. All my professors are awesome and super nice. College is definitely way harder than high school, but it’s also just so different, you have a lot of freedom and time to decide what you really want to do. I am having the time of my life but the school is a lot and it’s very rewarding to know you are learning so much. The social part is hard at my school because it isn’t super Greek life specific, but I’ve met so many new friends and I love them all and everyone is super nice and cool! The best part is the independence. I do whatever I want when I want and I’ve been craving that for a long time. The worst part is I miss home and my family and pets. It’s hard being so far but it’s worth it in a lot of ways to learn who I am.
My name is Hazel and I am doing seattle promise through North Seattle College. At North I am majoring in nursing and working to get my Associates degree. I hope to transfer to Central Seattle College or the University of Washington and graduate three years from now with my Bachelors in Nursing! From there I am not sure where I will go, I am hoping to work and gain experience and then go back to school to specialize in the field I like most. My favorite class at the moment is my biology class with labs. The science classes I took at Nathan Hale prepared me well for this class. I am grateful for the easy access Nathan Hale offers to running start. This really helped me get ahead! Overall, I am enjoying the freedom I have in college to do many activities outside of school.
My name is Finn Smucker and I’m at Central Washington University in Ellensburg this year. I tried out for the club baseball team but did not make the travel roster. My major is sports management with a focus on sports communication because the FAA said that my ADHD is too extreme to fly airplanes. My classes are going well, and I am about 2 weeks in. My favorite class is History of Rock and Roll, but it is at 9 am. I think Hale gave me an adequate stepping off point. The social aspect here is great, there are plenty of clubs and friends, but no frats here at Central. The best part of college so far is being done with classes by 2pm on my longest day. The worst part of college is that I have a 9am class but I stay up late very consistently. I miss all of you at Hale, please join me out here next year!
Olen Baumfeld
Umass Amherst, Amherst Ma
I’m majoring in mathematics and I will pick a specific branch next year I’m leaning towards statistics and data science. I’m taking a lot of really interesting classes. I have to take calc 2 and cics 110 (intro to python), but besides that I’m taking a logic class that is fun and a news literacy class that rocks. I think I did a good job designing my schedule because I have mostly morning classes, but I start at 4pm on Mondays and my last class is at 10pm on a Friday, so my weekend is extra long. I think that Hale did a solid job preparing me, however college is really different, especially with the freedom given, because all of your learning is in your hands and teachers have points for attendance. But if teachers don’t care if you’re there or not for the most part which gives you a lot of freedom to get stuff done in whatever way works for you. This instant freedom works well for some students but others aren’t ready for it yet, and the first few weeks is kind of a push to figure out how to stay on top of things. But for the most part Hale did about as good of a job at preparing me as a public school might. The social aspect is very free here, which is one of the reasons I picked such a big school.There really is something for everyone and there isn’t one way to make friends and you can make friends with any subset of things you wanna do if you just look a little. Now at a school like Umass, surprisingly the frats don’t really have much control over the party life here, like they throw parties and they are fun but most upperclassmen just go to bars in Amherst and house parties. This is nice because I know that if I go to a frat party it is going to be almost entirely freshmen like me. I received some advice when I was on my way to college to just join a club or anything which turned out to be really good advice because everyone is so damn shy for the first 2 weeks or so. While people get used to college, clubs are such a good, easy, free way to make friends. The secret is that basically everyone is super chill and joining groups just introduces you to so many of those people. I personally joined the frisbee team and I am having a blast going to tournaments and parties and practices. I think for me the best part of college was the freedom that you get, it really does feel like you can just be an adult and make whatever choices good or bad you want. Besides that, I think just all the new experiences that come with moving across the country might be equally cool. The worst part for me is that you’re dropped into this new environment and you’re just really poor and it can feel like you’re not properly equipped to take advantage of all the stuff around you. Also the cost of college is always a looming thought and it can sometimes be hard to shake how much all this fun stuff costs. I will close by saying they have TV’s at Walmart for $100 and it is 100% worth it because you can host movie nights,so add that to the college packing list. Oh, and finally, be very excited because college is everything that you are expecting and more!