Sarah
“I really forced myself to get involved,” Sarah says. “I just tell myself that it doesn’t matter how awkward or self-conscious you feel talking to professors or new people, you just have to get out there.”
Sarah was introduced to the U of T community through the First-Year Learning Community (FLC) program. She will return to the program as a peer mentor next year.
“I was working with FLC as an assistant mentor last year,” she recalls. “And we had some money from our budget left over, so we went to the dollar store to buy gifts for our mentees. It was then that I realized what an awesome community the FLC was. It can be so hard adjusting to university, and it felt great to feel like I had made a difference in someone’s life.”
Sarah first arrived at U of T with a passion for soccer and fashion, but since she started her program — Ethics, Society and Law — she has discovered a keen interest in political theory, feminism and human rights.
“I was so worried when I first got here that I wasn’t going to fit in, that I wouldn’t be smart enough, or sophisticated enough to be here,” she says. “But I’ve learned not to be so critical. You can’t over-stress about fitting in, or about looking or acting like a U of T person, you have to follow your own path, and things will happen naturally.”
Sarah has tried to take initiative wherever she can, frequenting her professor (and T.A.s) respective office hours, taking time management study skill courses at the libraries, and going to her college’s writing centre for essay advice. Sarah has also gotten involved with her course union, as the Vice-President of Communications of the Ethics, Society & Law Students' Association, and is a contributing writer for Blog UT.
“I really like meeting people from my program. My secret is making small talk with people before tutorials; I’ve made so many friends that way. Seriously, it works!”