When we first start school in September it feels like a very long time until June, but the days pass by much faster. The college process for the upperclassmen is very long and it gets stressful along the way. Many of our students don’t know what they want to be and which college they want to attend. Graduates from the Science Academy have been through the same struggle but all made it to the other side. Lisberma Peralta, Divya Rana would like to share their experiences in this interview – 

Lisberma Peralta (CO’20 Valedictorian) attends Vassar College here are her experiences – 

Q: Why did you choose the college you are in right now? 

A: I applied to many colleges, and I was lucky to find similar levels of financial aid offered to me due to the QuestBridge program (which I encourage you all to look into!). In the end, the choice was between Vassar College, whose open and malleable curriculum was very attractive to me, and Notre Dame (shoutout to Mr. Fitz!), whose incredibly beautiful campus caught my breath. Notre Dame, albeit attractive, is very far from my home, which presented a challenge since my family is extremely important to me. I wanted to be able to visit home as many times as possible, which I am now able to do due to the closeness of campus to my family. I wanted to see my little sisters grow up and give my mom some comfort with my location. That was the tipping point for me, and so far, I believe I made the right choice. I am very happy at Vassar, and I am very happy with the exciting material that the college offers. 

Q: What are you majoring in? Are there any tips for someone interested in the same major? 

A:  I am doing a double major in Neuroscience & Behavior and English Literature. I chose the first one because I’m really interested in the neural basis of behavior! Why we think, act, perceive the world the way we do. So far, neuroscience classes have been extremely demanding, and it can be very easy to get left behind, so my advice to someone in this major would be to stay organized, constantly ask questions, and never miss class! These have been my own combative methods against the challenging material and speed of the courses. Studying actively is also very important; exercises that require active recall (as opposed to just passively reading over notes) and provide breaks in-between studying have worked most effectively for me and guaranteed me high grades for exams. This major is also in constant development, which makes it very exciting since it gives me hope that I may be able to be part of the breakthrough research one day!

As for my second major, I chose it because of my extreme love for reading. Reading books and then sitting around and discussing them? Best thing ever. I also like to challenge myself with circular thinking as opposed to the linear thinking that neuroscience requires. English reminds me that nothing is black and white, which I believe helps me appreciate the world positively. My advice for those thinking of this major is to enjoy it! Reading is super fun, and the different approaches others take to the same issues as a direct effect of their background is extraordinarily interesting to see. This, of course, requires you to do the work before class, which is reading the material. Make the reading a fun and calming part of your day rather than a chore you are not looking forward to. 

Q: How was the change from living with your parents, to living on campus with a roommate and how did you adapt to it? 

A:  I lived with my amazing single mom who overcompensated for the absence of my father with overprotectiveness. When I came to college, the overprotectiveness and control just disappeared, which I knew to expect but was still shocked when I experienced it. I was constantly surprised that I did not have to ask permission to go to the nearest cafeteria outside of campus or to the movies with friends. I was happy for the lack of overbearing questions (which released a lot of my tension and stress), but still missed my mom very much. I was lucky to connect with an understanding and kind roommate whom I am now very close to, and she provided me with support and guidance in approaching my newfound freedom. We did and still do everything together, which offers me comfort. I believe she is one of the biggest reasons I was able to adapt to freedom so quickly and safely.

Q: How is the bond like with the faculty members and staff at your school? 

A: My classes have, so far, been relatively small, which allowed me to be recognized and remembered by professors quickly. However, I believe closer bonds with faculty have been a direct effect of me attending office hours, which I try to do regularly and encourage everyone else to do. During these small periods of time in professors’ offices, I have been able to not only be recognized by my countenance and participation, but also by my ideas, my thought processes, and my background. These closer bonds with faculty have exponentially increased my enjoyment and appreciation for class material, and therefore my overall college experience.

Q: Were there any opportunities given to you throughout highschool that you wish, you had taken advantage of, but didn’t? 

A:  I am a pre-med student, which means I have to deal with the horrible existence of chemistry (sorry to all chemistry teachers at the academy!). Organic chemistry, which I am taking right now, is the bane of my existence. The only thing I wish I had done in high school is taken AP Chemistry so I could have felt more ready going into general chemistry and organic chemistry, and so I could have performed better without having to work as hard. 

Q: How was it transferring from an environment like the one at the academy to college? 

A: I believe the academy did an excellent job in preparing me for college in regards to academics. Because I had already been exposed to taxing material and expectations from teachers at the academy, I was able to easily and rapidly adapt to this newly taxing environment. The amount of AP classes I took at the academy made me ahead of my peers so I did not have to start at the beginner level of every subject. This is why I am now able to double major: because I started with higher level courses, I have space to fill with more classes throughout my college career. I have been thinking of even taking along a correlate, so we will see how that goes!

Q: How safe do you feel on and off campus that you are in? 

A: I feel very safe on campus. I find Vassar to be a very inclusive, very secure community. Campus security is everywhere, ready to act in case any issue might arise. There are support resources for every situation, and all students are required to take annual training concerning a variety of subjects to ensure the safety of everyone on campus. Still, it is common knowledge that students call security more for campus wildlife than anything else (there are deer everywhere!). I do not feel as safe off-campus since there is not as much monitoring, which is why I ensure to always be surrounded by my friends whenever I want to spend some time outside. 

Q: Do you regret not taking a gap year? If yes, why do you think taking a gap year would have been beneficial to you? 

A:  I do not regret not taking a gap year. I believe coming to college right after high school was the best choice for me due to the very long path that awaits me on my way to becoming a neurosurgeon. I also wanted to experience the world on my own without the constant commentary of my mom as soon as I could, so I welcomed my new environment. I do, however, believe that gap years are very beneficial, which is why I am considering taking one after college to get my master’s degree in Public Health in one year. Vassar has an exciting partnership with Columbia that would allow me to do this were I to pursue this course of action! 

Q: What’s your advice on choosing a college? 

A:  I advise you to choose what feels the most right to you! Due to COVID, I was not able to visit as many colleges as I wanted, which is unfortunate since visits are extremely important. I have a friend that visited Vassar and immediately knew this is where she belonged, so when the college application process came around, she applied to Vassar only. I do think that is a bit crazy, albeit brave, but that just demonstrates how visiting shaped her choice so dramatically! If you can, I encourage you to visit as many colleges as possible. Another good practice is reaching out to students attending the colleges you are thinking of! They can answer your questions about campus life better than an administrator can. You are all welcome to email me at [email protected] if you have any questions about Vassar.

Q:Is there anything you would like to add or mention? 

A:  I would like to wish everyone good luck on the application and college-picking process! I know how nerve-wrecking it can be, so make sure to take mental breaks when needed. My suggestion is reading a book :). Like I said, any of you can reach out to me with further questions, so I look forward to speaking with you if you do so! 

Divya Rana (CO’21 Valedictorian) attends TCNJ here are some of her experiences – 

Q: Why did you choose the college you are in right now? 

A:  While TCNJ was not one of the first options, I chose it because of how much the staff and professors support their students. 

Q: What are you majoring in? Are there any tips for someone interested in the same major? 

A: I am currently majoring in Health and Exercise Science. Tips or advice that I really have for people interested in something similar is to build good study habits, be ready to put in a lot of work, and be on top of things.

Q: How was the change from living with your parents, to living on campus with a roommate and how did you adapt to it? 

A: The change from living at home to living on campus with a roommate was not that difficult in my opinion. I made some friends here that made living in a different environment easier. Something I did to adapt to it was calling home and texting my friends from high school to keep in touch.  

Q: How is the bond like with the faculty members and staff at your school? 

A: My major is big on building relationships with their students and my professors thus far have shown an eagerness to help us with our future plans. There is a clear support system for different types of people.

Q: Were there any opportunities given to you throughout highschool that you wish, you had taken advantage of, but didn’t? 

A:   Looking back, I wish I had done the Associates degree program because that way I would have two years of college technically done by now.

Q: How was it transferring from an environment like the one at the academy to college? 

A: The environment at PASE was familiar for a better lack of words. College was new and different. I have met people from different parts of NJ and it’s opened my eyes to new ways of thinking. 

Q: How safe do you feel on and off campus that you are in? 

A:  I feel relatively safe on campus, there’s a Blue Light system all over campus that alerts the campus police and they come quick

Q: Do you regret not taking a gap year? If yes, why do you think taking a gap year would have been beneficial to you? 

A: No, I don’t regret taking a gap year.

Q: What’s your advice on choosing a college? 

A:  My advice for choosing a college is look at the aid (obviously), the programs offered that can potentially help your future career (if you have an idea), the size of the school (I wanted a small-medium but you might enjoy tens thousands of students), and finally consider how far it is from home and if you’re ok with the distance.

Q: Is there anything you would like to add or mention? 

A: Taking AP and DE classes helped a great amount in college, I got most if not all my liberal learning out of the way. I recommend taking those classes seriously and when you are applying or accepting colleges, look at the NJ Transfer website to see how your BCCC credits transfer and the AP score requirements at the college. 

Although Oscar was not the valedictorian, he still found success in trade school. 

Q: Why did you choose to attend trade school? 

A: I didn’t know what I wanted to do after high school till my junior year all I knew was that I liked cars and wanted to work on cars so I applied 

Q: What are you majoring in? Are there any tips for someone interested in the same major? 

A: I’m majoring as an automotive technician. A tip would be just to try and get your foot in the industry In order for to yourself to know the components and diagnosing in order to be familiar with some of the classes 

Q:How is commuting from school to home like? Are there any difficulties?  

A: It’s pretty easy, the school is only about 15 minutes away from where I live. Only difficulty is the traffic in the mornings 

Q: How is the bond like with the faculty members and staff at your school? 

A: The classes are only 3 weeks long but the teachers still put in effort to get to know the students well, plus interact with each student 

Q: Were there any opportunities given to you throughout highschool that you wish, you had taken advantage of, but didn’t? 

A:   Yes all the scholarships that were advertised at school and the automotive program at phs 

Q: How was it transferring from an environment like the one at the academy to college? 

A: It’s almost the same just that, the major difference is that everyone there is aiming for the same goal and interested in the same things. Which makes it harder to stand out for manufacturers that come and see the students 

Q: How safe do you feel on and off campus that you are in? 

A:  I feel pretty safe, since the trade school is located in a residential area, there’s always cops patrolling the area. Also there are a few campus rules to follow regarding cars and how loud you can drive them 

Q: Do you regret not taking a gap year? If yes, why do you think taking a gap year would have been beneficial to you? 

A: No i do not regret taking a gap year, going straight into trade school after high school would get me to my profession faster than if I had taken a gap year 

Q: What’s your advice on choosing a trade school? 

A:  My advice would be to go in a specific one that offers what you want to study and offers extra programs on that major, try to stay close to home just to keep the living expenses down 

Q: Is there anything you would like to add or mention? 

A: Yes, it doesn’t really matter if you go to a community college or big university you’ll be getting the same education. If you start off in community college and then transfer to a big university, it’s also financially better. All that matters is that you actually like what you are studying 

Thank you to our alumni for sharing their experiences. Good luck to the upperclassmen with their college applications, YOU GOT THIS!!