Why I’m glad I chose Temple University
Spring break made me realize how blessed I am
According to Philly.com, Temple University has seen a 15 percent rise in applications for the fall of 2016 compared to last year. Some speculate it might be the success of our football team (Penn State, we’re talking about you!) which contributed to students wanting to become Temple Owls themselves.
For all the prospective students out there, one thing I will say is once you’re an Owl . . . you will miss North Broad Street during your spring break (unless you’re on a tropical island, then maybe not).
Even though Temple might be the only school to pick its spring break this week, I’m glad I came home.
I thought a week away from North Philadelphia would be the best therapy, but I was completely wrong. I realized my home isn’t my home anymore. It’s a weird thing to say, but everyone is in their own place now. Some of us matured and are out there doing big things, while others are still stuck in the mindset of a high schooler.
From the first day of break, I already knew I wanted to go back to Temple. I spent time with a couple of my friends from home, and I realized we were all in different stages of our lives. It was like re-reading a chapter in a book where you already know what’s going to happen. It was unnecessary and redundant to go back to a place where you already knew what to expect.
I realized picking a school which challenged me in ways that made me mature and become a better person was the best decision I’ve made in my life. If I would have chosen to pick a school in my home state, it would have left me wanting to transfer out or with me completely losing my mind! When I came to Temple, I was dependent on my parents and my friends at home for everything, but once I settled on campus and started to become my own person, I didn’t need to call anyone for help. I met the best people on campus, who are either accomplishing amazing things on campus or are out there creating their own businesses! It is not a myth that you will find your best friends at college – you will, and it will change your life.
If there’s one thing I could tell anyone choosing a school is to choose one which will make you grow as a person (and ultimately make the tremendous amounts of money you’ll need to pay for college). I see some of my friends hating on the commuter life at home or even hating being home with their parents.
For myself, I knew college made my relationship with my parents stronger, and it showed me I didn’t need them as much as I thought. It scared the living shit out my parents that I didn’t need them, but there will come a time when each one of our parents will realize this. College is a time to become independent, and like any college student can tell you, the freedom is amazing.
I’ll always be grateful of the people who helped me along these past few years. However, no one can truly grow if they continue the same cycle from before. I think about the amount of students on campus who are here to become somebody after graduation, and that becomes my motivation to become as successful as they seem to be.
Our football team might have been successful this year, and yes, we all loved the bragging rights of a winning team. But no sports team can ever define Temple as whole, because in every department, there are countless opportunities and help from the staff that students can use to obtain their degree. As for myself, the journalism department provides us with resumé workshops and internships how-to’s every week. It can be overwhelming to try to attend all the events, but just knowing my school gives me chances to hear from a guest speakers like Kenan Thompson from SNL and Soledad O’Brien from CNN is awesome. It’s probably the best thing any school could provide to its students.
Yes, being home might suck right now, and it does make me upset that I do not feel the same way about my hometown anymore. But maybe our “home” is not meant to be a single place. Maybe it can be any place which makes us feel like we are welcomed and content. That’s why my home right now is Temple University. I would still choose this school in a heartbeat, with or without the football team. We have opportunities and activities other schools dream of having, so why wouldn’t I be proud of being an Owl?