News-Letter

Last November, I made probably the most important decision of my life to date-I decided to apply early decision to Johns Hopkins University. I walked into my guidance counselor's office and told her the news. At that point, she gave me a look that I would see often in the months to come. The look: partial surprise, partial horror and the rest implying, "Why on earth would you want to go there?" The only thing she could get out was, "Well, they have an up and coming liberal arts program," knowing that I was intending to major in International Relations. Still, I could tell she was confused.

Most people were in fact, confused. When the phone call came on December 15th telling me that I was accepted, I was thrilled. However, as I paraded around in my Johns Hopkins apparel for the next week or so, people would continually stare or simply ask, "What kind of doctor do you want to be?" Then I would either kindly say, "Actually I am majoring in International Relations." or I would say not so kindly "Not everyone at Hopkins is going to be a medical doctor, okay?"

People who had actually heard of Hopkins decided that the school was too hard or too intense. They would speak about the lack of social life, how Baltimore is a horrible city, how everyone lives in the library and how all the students were strange. Well, obviously I decided to come anyway, and after two weeks I can say I am happy to be here. I have discovered that much to the public's dismay, there are other majors besides biology or biomedical engineering, and that not everyone wants to be a doctor. In fact, there are tons of people who want to be lawyers, stockbrokers, writers and even historians.

Now, about those other misconceptions; the social scene at Hopkins, as I'm sure everyone has seen, is unique. However, people speak to each other outside of class discussion and not everyone is a hermit. The weekends are full of things to do and the plethora of extra-curricular activities adds even more flavor to college life.

Baltimore is apparently the "greatest city in the world." Now, being from New York, I cannot completely agree with that statement, but Baltimore is not bad! Sure, the area around campus is not bursting with things to do, but Baltimore's attractions are just a ride way. The National Aquarium, my favorite place so far, hosts a great dolphin show, an indoor rainforest and a wide variety of sea animals. Right next to campus is the Baltimore Museum of Art, which houses one of the greatest collections in the United States. The Inner Harbor, too, is fun, if not a little touristy. The fact that there is something for everyone is what makes Baltimore one of the greatest cities in the world.

Finally, the myths about how strange the student body is, particularly those who live in the library, are not completely true. Admittedly, I have been spending a lot of time in the library. But even as it is a place to read quietly and do work, it can also be a place to socialize, meet people and develop friendships. The student population here is not strange, not comprised of geeks and not really anything, and that is what makes Hopkins so great.

Now, I know all of you upperclassmen are saying, she loves it now, wait a year. Fine, so maybe by then the novelty will wear off. But I can't see myself anywhere else, so I guess I'll just have to wait and see what Hopkins has in store.

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