Stevens Admissions: Ellyn's Blog

Stevens Bubble

One of the many problems that I know I am faced with as a college student is trying to be informed of the news going on outside of school.  Much too easily I find myself overwhelmed with homework and extracurricular activities that I enter this "Stevens Bubble".

To remedy the situation, I have been using http://news.aol.com/. Mind you, it is not the MOST scholarly of news websites such as CNN, but, it gets the job done. When I have some time, I try to remember to go on this website to see what's going on in the world and get to read some great stories. I can read about random stories like how to recover a wedding ring that has fallen in a sink and also stories about current affairs in our government.

Things happening in my life

Wednesday afternoons have a huge academic window, meaning no classes can be scheduled from the hours of like 1-5pm. But, I always feel like a chicken with my head cut off on Wednesday afternoons. Why? Because I always have like 800 things to do and places to go!

Anyways, onto the title of this post, I am going to talk about stuff relevant to my life that is going on around campus.

Yesterday, I had the pleasure to watch the Presidential Inauguration on TV. Truthbetold, I had never seen an inauguration before, so it was very interesting to see all the procedures and protocols that occurred.  The huge TV in Jacobus was set up and food was setup. Jacobus was FILLED with people!

The process of applying for an RA position just started today for me after going to the Info Session. Now, I have to fill out an application and go through various interviews and groups sessions. It is incredibly selective and competitive to get this position; not only is it a great deal of responsibility but also all RA's get free room and board (~$10,000 a year that the student won't have to pay). Like I said, it is a rigorous process that has just started and am excited to move forward and see what happens!

As for greek life, formal recruitment has just began for the women of Stevens. The next 2 weeks include various events where potential new members get to meet the sisters of the different sororities on campus. The formal recruitment process ends next Friday which is Bid Day, where girls may be given a bid with the choice to join that given sorority.

Wintry Conditions

I am attaching some pics I took from the balcony of our apartment this morning. It is crazy!

chunks of ice that are remaining from when the river froze over

closeup of the ice

 

You should be seeing a view of the city, but it's snowing too hard.

the wintry conditions

What a crazy day

WOW. Words cannot even describe how this day was.

1) A plane landed in the Hudson River right outside campus. People I know saw the plane hit the water. THANKFULLY AND LUCKILY, all of the passengers are safe and the crew did a great job to make that possible and coped with the unlucky situation they were handed.

2) I woke up and saw it SNOWING outside and bitterly cold (and it's supposed to be even colder tomorrow UGH).

(look how peaceful the turf looks with the snow untouched!)

3) The Women's Programs at Stevens hosted a Dove Chocolate Extravaganza. At the Lore-El Center this evening a representative from Dove chocolate came with TONS of chocolate goodies for the ladies of Stevens to enjoy. Truthbetold, I made sure I got a good workout in at the gym before going so I could eat some of the chocolate without feeling guilty (well... as guilty) afterwords. Let's just say the chocolate was wonderful.

4) I just found out that Stevens has a shuttle for off campus housing! I call a number and a Stevens van will drive me to and from school and my apartment. I just took it home and I am in a great mood because of it!

Welcome Back

Yesterday was the official welcome back to Stevens. President Raveche hosted a Welcome Back celebration open for all students. Foodwise, there was FONDUE and a nice vegetable platter. A live band also performed!
Both Dean Weatherall and President Raveche welcomed back everyone with a little speech.  President Raveche's speech really hit home. He talked about the attitude that a Stevens graduate must have when entering the workforce, the attitude that doesn't allow that individual to fail. A high GPA at this school is great, don't get me wrong, but if you can't convince that hiring manager that you would be a vital asset to that company then that GPA isn't all that important anymore. You've got to have that attitude and perseverence for success. You've also got to keep trying until you get it right.

In other news, today was the first day of classes. I can already tell that this semester is going to be interesting to say the least ha. I am taking my first classes for Mechanical Engineering majors, Mechanical Engineering Thermodynamics (say that 5 times fast) and Dynamics [as well as Physics 3 but some other majors have to take it too]. For people that don't know, all engineers take the same core classes through their third semester. Starting in the fourth semester, you begin taking engineering classes specific to your major.

Fun fact (well not really), TEXTBOOKS ARE SO EXPENSIVE. IT IS RIDICULOUS!
Word to the wise, find upperclassmen (if you do a sport, teammates are great for this) who will sell you their old books!

Externship at Colgate-Palmolive

Yesterday, my sister and I participated in the Externship Program for the second year.

Last year my sister and I went to Johnson and Johnson in Skillman.
This year we went to the Colgate-Palmolive factory in Morristown.

The externship program is basically a day in the life of an engineer. It gives undergraduate students the ability to shadow a Stevens alum working in the field to see what they really do at their job. You can read up more on http://www.stevens.edu/sit/ocd/employers/externships/index.cfm

Both externship visits were very different! At J&J we saw more of what a more corporate job looks like. At Colgate-Palmolive, we saw the actual manufacturing and toured the facility where they make the soaps and UAPs (underarm products [such as antiperspirants and deodorants].

It was an eye opening experience to see the differences in both fields. Also, it was very relevent for me. I changed my major over the summer from Biomedical Engineering to Mechanical Engineering (with a concentration in Biomedical Engineering). To see the conveyer belts and machines at the facility was SO COOL.  We got to tour the whole facility from the manufacturing line to the printing room (which as a matter of fact was recently implemented and saves the company a lot of money).  What was not so cool was the apparel we had to wear... but as they say, SAFETY first. We had to wear earplugs, goggles, and these boots that went over our shoes to protect our feet walking through the plant. The boots kind of reminded me of crocs but these were hard-toed and went literally over my shoes and were a PAIN to walk in. Mine kept falling off!

Anyways, it was a successful and informative trip. I encourage all prospective students and underclassmen to take advantage of the externship program while at Stevens.

Wawa

I know what you're thinking... Wawa?! Really?!
Yes, really.

And yes this post is free publicity for Wawa haha. It is awesome.

A one month break seems awesome but it can get boring very quickly. So in order to stay busy, I am working at Wawa (like 40 hours a week!) and got a membership to a gym at home.

Wawa has given me some great stories and actually taught me a thing or two.

1)  Every customer has realized that my sister and I are twins. One of these days I should bring a video camera, because their reactions are hysterical.
2) While watching shows like The Office you see interesting characters. I personally never thought that any job was really like that... but WOW Wawa has that! For instance, one of the managers training me how to clean knives was a lot more fun and ridiculous than you would think.
3) Don't judge someone by where they work or what they're doing. Wawa has some of the nicest and interesting people I have ever met, and the people I work with make it so much fun.
4) Be happy with your job. I know that I like staying busy and doing things, and I want to work with a group of people who mesh and get along with each other.

For your comedic entertainment, I am attaching some pictures that was taken of me at work by my friends Kelly and Erin. They both drove 20 minutes to see me at work and see all that is Wawa.

(notice the customer behind me haha)

(me hard at work)

BY THE WAY, IT'S 2009!