A Bear's Life: Student Stories

Student stories from our peer counselors

Archives for September 2022

Managing Homesickness (Fall 2022, Week 6)

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Welcome back to the blog everyone. It’s literally only been a week but who’s counting, certainly not me. This week I chose a topic that is really special to me and has become increasingly persistent in my life these past few weeks. If you have read the blog post before, I always list information about myself and my family at the end of each post. My family is a big part of my life because without them I wouldn’t have the motivation to continue my education or even want to learn new things. I’m extremely close to my family members and these past two weeks have been hard because my younger brother is turning eleven and my younger sister is having a hard time adapting to her new fourth-grade class.  

Drawing from these experiences, I’ve created a list of things that I do to manage my homesickness and keep myself grounded and looking forward to graduation.  

Managing Homesickness 

Call your family or friends 

It might be hard at first but keeping in contact with the people that you care about can really make you feel better. You shouldn’t cut yourself off from talking to others but make more of an effort to stay connected with everyone. You can start to feel more alone if you don’t put in the effort to maintain the relationships that you have. So, call, text, or even email your parents, siblings, or friends as much as you can.  

Do the things that make you happy  

College is no fun if you can’t continue to do the things that make you happy or smile. You can think about your family and care about what happens outside of class, but you have to prioritize yourself. I’m at my best when I’m able to express myself and do the things that I like.  

Let your emotions out  

It’s better to get your emotions out than to keep them in because at some point you’ll just explode. It’s okay to cry, scream into a pillow or journal about how you feel. You hurt yourself more emotionally and cause yourself stress when things remain pent up.  

Stay productive and busy  

Distracting yourself with your classes and even a job (if you have one) can help your mind not to wander. You chose to come to Missouri State for a reason so keeping your goals in mind can help you to stay grounded. You can eliminate stress and work in a way that gives you more time to do what you want or take naps.  

Give yourself something to look forward to  

It always helps to bring yourself some happiness whether that is your favorite food or some new clothes you ordered. This can be a form of reward for yourself and can keep your mood elevated as you go through the semester.  

Self-Care 

One of the best things to do from this list is self-care because you’re the one that’s experiencing homesickness. Self-care is all about keeping yourself healthy so you shouldn’t avoid it but welcome it into your routine. For example, take relaxing baths or even put on a face mask to end the night. Self-care can eliminate things like stress or depression while increasing happiness and improving your energy.  

Takeaways  

I realized after being a student for so long just how important it is for me to stay happy because the world doesn’t look the same when I’m not. I love my family and how they support me and want what’s best for me. The connections I have with my family and friends help me to be a better version of myself. Homesickness can come out of nowhere or just be at the forefront of your mind for weeks but doing things like this helps me to become more aware of myself and just how much I can handle in order to reach my goals. Being a big sister, daughter, cousin or friend is always going to bring some challenges, and managing homesickness is just one of those challenges.   

I’ll leave you with this quote by Jodi Picoult, Handle with Care:  

“MAYBE YOU HAD TO LEAVE IN ORDER TO REALLY MISS A PLACE; MAYBE YOU HAD TO TRAVEL TO FIGURE OUT HOW BELOVED YOUR STARTING POINT WAS.” 

~ Alexandria  

(Bio: I’m the middle child of seven kids in my immediate family. I’m currently a senior business major at Missouri State University.)

Backpack Essentials (Fall 2022, Week 5)

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Hello fellow Bears and welcome back to the blog, I really can’t believe that it’s already the fifth week of school. However, I’m starting to get used to my schedule as the days go by and I’m enjoying the new amenities that have been added to the campus. Even though this is my fifth year as a student at Missouri State I’m always changing the way that I do things or just what I carry along with me. I always have my backpack with me because I’m usually going to work, classes, or prepping to study somewhere. For this specific blog post, I wanted to share my backpack essentials and why I carry those items. 

Backpack Essentials

Loose Leaf paper

You never know when you need to write down some information or just if you want to take some time to doodle to relieve some stress. 

Pencil Case

My pencil case holds my writing utensils, paper clips, sharpener, and calculator. Being a student means that you should always have something to write with so having my pencil case handy helps keep me on track.  

Planner

If you use a planner, you’ll definitely want to carry one with you around campus, so that you can update it and check your upcoming assignments whenever you need to. If you don’t use a planner already, you should! Planners help you stay organized, help make sure you won’t forget something important, help you stay motivated, and can reduce stress. I wasn’t really a planner person to begin with but the semester can get a little crazy so I opted to get one. If you need a planner, stop by the CAST office at Meyer Library 116 for a free planner.

Mini First Aid Kit

Accidents can happen anytime but I also can be a little clumsy, so I like to keep a first aid kit in my backpack. The kit has cleansing wipes, band-aids, and gauze just in case something pops up. Tons of people get paper cuts, blisters, and all sorts of little injuries so I like having the kit to not only help myself but potentially other people. 

Toiletries

Walking around campus can make you really hot and uncomfortable so I make sure to keep extra products in my bag like deodorant, lotion, gum, and a light perfume. You won’t believe how having things like this can really change your life because anything can happen

Lysol Wipes

I haven’t completely let my guard down in relation to the pandemic so I wipe down surfaces that I use at work and sometimes where I sit in my classes. Even if the pandemic didn’t happen this is always a good item to have just to get rid of germs and make you feel safer in particular spaces. 

Hand Sanitizer

I quickly realized that I touch a lot of surfaces on campus and just to keep myself safe and healthy, my hand sanitizer travels with me.  

Headache Medication

Being a college student does bring occasional stress, so I like to keep headache medicine in my bag just in case I get a migraine. 

Water Bottle

It helps to stay hydrated and just have access to your own drinks so carrying a water bottle is a great essential, especially for long commutes around campus. The campus is equipped with traditional water fountains and water bottle filling stations so getting a drink around campus is easier. 

Takeaways 

One thing that I’ve learned throughout the past year is that you can’t always be ready for everything, but it doesn’t hurt to have access to a few things. My backpack essentials are definitely going to be different in comparison to someone else but it’s always good to share just in case you want to add something to your bag to make life easier. All of the essentials that I carry have been used in some capacity, so I’ll continue to carry them throughout the semester.  

I’m going to leave you with this quote by Israelmore Ayivor: 

“Preparation is the key to leadership success. The more prepared you are the less your struggle…” 

~ Alexandria 

(Bio: I’m the middle child of seven kids in my immediate family. I’m currently a senior business major at Missouri State University.)

Communicating with Your Professor (Fall 2022, Week 4)

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Communicating with Your Professor

If there’s one thing I’ve learned in my time at university, it’s that it is okay to ask questions. Not only is it okay, it’s also vital to your success as a student. Whether you are well-versed in this, or have no idea how to start, I think it will be beneficial for anyone in their professional lives to know how to effectively communicate with other people, particularly those who are teaching you. Below is a list of tips and tricks that I have learned through the years to enhance your professional communication skills.

Office Hours

Every professor at Missouri State is obligated to have a number of office hours every week during which they must be available to students for questions about the class and other student support. These will be listed on the course syllabus and may be in-person or virtual meetings. Utilize this resource! It will not only give you a chance to connect with your instructor, but it will also set you up for success in the course.

Email Communication

Barring in-person interaction, the number one way most professors prefer to be contacted is through email. Here are some general rules to follow:

  • Rule #1: Always use your university email (Bear Mail) when contacting your instructors. In addition, always put your course number and section in the subject line, or as the first line in the body of your email (ex. COM 115-001).
  • Rule #2: Before sending the email, make sure you are addressing the instructor correctly. If you’ve been in class and know their preferred title, great! Use that. If not, first you should go to MissouriState.edu and type their full name in the search bar. Once you’ve found their profile, check their education to see if they have a doctoral degree. If so, use Dr. If not, and you aren’t sure whether Mr., Mrs., Ms., or Mx. is appropriate, your go-to should be “Professor [their surname]”.
  • Rule #3: It’s nice to start with a greeting. This could be a simple “Hello,” “Good morning,” or “Good afternoon,” depending on the time of day. Technically, you can email professors during the night hours, but just know that it is unlikely for them to respond until the following morning.
  • Rule #4: Use appropriate language. Avoid any profanity or unprofessional terms.
  • Rule #5: As a general rule, keep it formal at first. It is sometimes the case that you and a professor will become more comfortable with each other over time, and then you can pull back to more casual writing while maintaining the professional relationship.

Final Thoughts

These are just a couple of the common ways to reach out to your professors. I also recommend speaking up in class if you have a question. You never know if someone else is wondering the same thing! Some instructors like to linger after a class is over or show up to class a bit early, both of which are great times to chat with them about your coursework or get to know them a bit. Bottom line: your professors are here to help you succeed. They are a fantastic resource, and there’s no sense in letting that go to waste. Thank you for reading, and I will leave you with this quote from Stephen Covey,

“Admission of ignorance is often the first step in our education.”

~ Georgia

(Bio: My name is Georgia Grace Wright, a senior at MSU majoring in Communication Studies with minors in both Creative Writing and Anthropology.)

Q&A Session (Fall 2022, Week 3)

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Hello, fellow bears and welcome to an all-new semester of blog posts! Unfortunately for us, summertime is officially over, and now it’s time to get back to work. This is my fifth year being a student at Missouri State and will be my last before I graduate unless I decide to go to graduate school. I’m still deliberating on that but in the near future, I’ll be sure to mention my decision.

This is the third week of classes so to commemorate that, I wanted to do something a little fun. For this blog post, I will answer some questions that can benefit you as a reader, and help me to think more about the future. 

Questions and Answers

How do you feel about your approaching graduation?

Honestly, I get a little emotional when I think about myself walking across the stage and receiving my diploma. My education at MSU has been a really long part of my life and when it’s all over and done with, I’m going to move on to new things. I’m excited to experience graduation with my friends, have photoshoots in my graduation gown, and just witness the changes happening on campus. All in all, I’m an excited, nervous wreck, but I also realize that I’m so close to accomplishing one of my biggest life goals and that is keeping me going.

Do you feel like Missouri State prepared you for the real world?

I feel that Missouri State did prepare me for some real-world things, but I still have a lot to experience to put that to the test. I’ve been challenged these past few years whether it was because of the classes that I was taking or networking to meet new people. From those challenges, I learned that no matter how prepared you are, anything can happen. Nonetheless, I can confidently say that the resources at MSU and my position as a student employee have helped me feel more prepared.

Looking at where you were as a freshman, do you believe that you’ve grown?

Yes, when I first started at Missouri State, it was overwhelming because I was away from home and trying all these different classes. I struggled to make new friends and learn how to study for different subjects. I knew that I wanted to go to college but saying you’re going and actually attending are two totally different things. It took some time, but I learned how the campus functioned and what it meant to put in some hard work to get the grades that you want. Not only that, but I trusted the process of making friends naturally and trying different organizations on campus. During my freshman year, I was very afraid to try things but as more time passed, I adapted to what was happening around me.

How do you feel about the financial aspect of graduation, particularly student loans?

Financial aid is something that I understand more of today, but not as much as I did in the very beginning. I’ve made great connections with people in the Financial Services Office and have learned a lot from them. Because my education is so important to me, and I am so close to accomplishing it all, I don’t really regret my loans. Loans have become part of everyone’s lives in some way, so it’s nice to know that I’m not the only one. Keeping a close eye on my student account helped me to better manage my spending and how I pay off certain things which is a great tip for students. I’m looking forward to getting a job and seeing how things go in the future because loans are becoming somewhat of a hot topic nowadays.

Takeaways

A big part of the college experience is coming to the realization that you are changing as a person every single day. My ideas and feelings about the above questions could stay the same, but they could also change drastically as time goes on. I would like for my readers to take the time to reflect more on themselves, even if that means talking to themselves out loud or writing a small note to read back later. Hopefully, this Q&A helps you out in some way just as it did for me. I’m going to leave you with this quote by Nolan Ryan:

“Enjoying success requires the ability to adapt. Only by being open to change will you have a true opportunity to get the most from your talent.”  

~ Alexandria 

(Bio: I’m the middle child of seven kids in my immediate family. I’m currently a senior business major at Missouri State University.)