As a first year at Randolph College, I had no idea what being a
student at a liberal arts college meant.
I thought it possibly meant taking classes
about the fie arts. But as I started talking to faculty and staff, I came up
with a general idea of the liberal arts experience.
According to the Association of American Colleges and
Universities, the idea behind a liberal arts education is an approach
to learning that empowers individuals and prepares them to deal with complexity,
diversity and change. It provides students with broad knowledge of the wider
world as well as in-depth study in a specific area of interest, according to
the organization's website.
A liberal arts education helps students
develop a sense of social responsibility, as well as strong and transferable
intellectual and practical skills such as communication, analytical and
problem-solving skills and a demonstrated ability to apply knowledge and skills
in real-world settings, it states.
One
advantage of attending Randolph is that you get to express your feelings and form relationships with faculty and
staff members, and that has helped make me feel comfortable as
an student. I have been blessed to have wonderful faculty and staff at
Randolph and I know other students who feel the same way. Liberal arts
institutions tend to be small, and that typically means smaller class sizes –which
often leads to more interpersonal communication between you and your professors.
The ability to express my ideas was something that I had never had an
opportunity during my high school years. Many of the professors here at
Randolph truly care about us as people, and are interested in learning about
our personal life experiences.
Secondly, A liberal arts education has
definitely helped me improve my English writing
skills, and I'm not alone. I have heard international students
in particular, talk about how the focus on writing at a liberal arts college
has helped them, from writing articles for the sundial to writing various
research papers and lab reports.
Finally, Randolph offers an all-around education. As a
first year, I registered for an introductory theater class. I had no idea what
to expect, as I come from an urban culture where most forms of theater were
looked down upon, and the theater students in my high school were outcasts.
When I entered the class, I found
that many of my classmates had the same perception of theater that I had,
“Theater is only for rich upper class citizens who have too much free time.” As
the semester went on, I became really interested in the class. I not
only got to see various plays but also got to interview one of the professors
as part of the class.
I have also taken other classes like graphic design, political
science and presentational speaking. My majors have nothing to do with any of
these classes, but taking them made me realize why these classes could be
useful: I gained the ability to think creatively, speak openly and present
professionally.
The education I had received in high school was more
about learning concepts and then applying them to an exam. But being part
of a liberal arts institution has allowed me to not only learn, but think
logically and apply ideas in real-world situations.
A lot of students don’t really know what they want to do in college, but
being part of the Randolph College experience has definitely helped me figure
out what I really want to do. I knew I wanted to major in Biology but I
did not know what to expect. But taking a class in each department helped me in
figure out a general pathway to follow.
