alissandrablanza

[alissandrablanza]

Life of a Paulinian College Student

When I first arrived in St. Paul back in August to enroll, I never really had big expectations of what my college experience would be like in this new school. There I was, transferring at 3rd year in college, where in fact I should have been graduating already. And so the several days that I was trying to finish enrolling myself and providing all the needed documents for transfer, I thought to myself “Just lay low, do my thing and let’s graduate without any hiccups this time”. 

I thought classes started way too soon after that since it was the week right after the enrollment period but then again, who was I to complain. I got nothing else to do but study anyway, that’s why I relocated here in Cagayan in the first place. 

And so the first few weeks went by, I had trouble with some classes since some major subjects coincided with others and even schedules were being changed by the professors too. The first month went by and I was starting to settle down and get comfortable with the schedule, the night classes, the commute, the traffic, and the unhealthy amount of SPUP corndogs that I’ve consumed for that one month only. I was getting adjusted well in my opinion.

My classmates are a different thing though. The thing is, though I’m in my 3rd year, I have a lot of backlog subjects for the 2nd year. It’s because my previous school and SPUP had totally different curriculums so some of my units didn’t get credited for my new curriculum resulting in me having to take a lot of minor subjects. Also, other than me transferring over, I actually technically shifted my course too because in my previous school I was taking Bachelor of Arts in Psychology and it turned out that St. Paul was only offering the Bachelor of Science strand. I, for one, am not even looking to shift to a whole different course and so I just decided to take this option and shift to BS Psychology. If I were to be frank, I really don’t see myself taking a different path as I’ve already enveloped my learnings to my way of thinking and my perspective in life. 

In that aspect, I was enrolled in multiple major subjects for BS Psychology students that I wouldn’t have taken if I stayed with AB Psychology. And the most exciting part is that the head of the Psychology department, Ma’am Anna Hernandez herself was the one teaching some of those major subjects. I thought to myself how amazing that is, to have an accomplished and distinguished professor for those heavy subjects. In addition, our Abnormal Psychology class was handled by someone that is both a registered nurse, psychometrician, psychologists, and a clinician in practice! I definitely made sure to listen attentively in our sessions because Sir Fabroa would sometimes drop some very informative and applicable bits of knowledge to us either from his practice or from his experience as a board exam student of many different courses. I would always jot down notes and keep it in mind especially some tricks Sir had told us on taking the board exams. I feel happy that I was able to meet and have such kinds of professors in this school!

Despite saying all that though, I cannot lie and say that I did not struggle academically. In all honesty, I was not used to taking the periodical exams like in Prelims, Midterm, Prefinal, and Finals. I got used to my previous school’s project-based type of exam where we either construct a paper or anything deliverable but rarely a printed exam. In SPUP I find that the usual type of exam here was standard multiple choice, identification, fill-in-the-blanks, and even enumeration. I’m not saying every subject applied this to their exam style, but most of my subjects followed this way of measuring student’s performance and comprehension of the academic topics discussed by the professors. To be quite frank, I found it difficult to adjust to. In essays and projects, I had all the freedom to showcase my knowledge of the subject topic. On second thought, am I only saying all this to rationalize the fact that I score average in my tests? Are my observations and reasoning because of unconsciously sour graping? Perhaps. Perhaps not. But one thing is for sure, I don’t think the school would change the way they handle the academic policies and implementation just because some student posted about it on Tumblr. So, I guess I just gotta suck it up and get going huh? Anyways, I only have 3 semesters left before graduation. Hopefully I graduated without problems. 

How is it like being a Paulinian student? Though I’ve been one for 5 months now, I don’t think I’ve got the answer yet. Honestly, I’ve yet to fully open up to my classmates. I go to school when I have classes and when it ends, I go straight home. I’ve never really explored what Tuguegarao has to offer me, nor Cagayan in general. I think to grasp the meaning of being a Paulinian is to also take into perspective the vicinity of where St. Paul exists in the first place. The culture and tradition of Tuguegarao, Cagayan is what highlights the St. Paul value. This is because St. Paul consists of students, teachers, staff, administrators, and even visitors that embody the life of the place. 

This is why I have made a decision for the upcoming semester instead. I wouldn’t say that I’ve wasted my first semester by being reclusive, unsocial, and overall unwilling to open up and fully adjust to my new life here. This coming semester I plan to allot more time in school, staying in the library, eating in the cafeteria, hanging out in the Psychology Lab where all my fellow classmates hang out a lot in between classes, socialize more with my adings, take more pictures of the campus and actually, actually, nurture the thought inside my head that this is already my second home. My classmates and teachers are already my second family. 

[alissandrablanza]

Q: Was BS Psychology the best choice after all?

Choosing Psychology was by far the most representative of my true self that I’ve done. Even though I had several options to choose from, ranging from Culinary Arts, Marine Biology, and Business Management, in the end there’s no regret in what I have chosen 4 years ago. Through the years the things I’ve learned in my major classes have been very entertaining, eye-opening, and it has helped me become more accepting of myself as I looked back into my turbulent life. The things I’ve learned for myself are also applicable to others, and as an occasional antisocial myself, it does help keep me grounded so I can continue living a harmonious life with my fellow difficult and complicated human beings. That’s why BS Psychology was the best choice I’ve made for myself. And anyways, I’m already deep in the course as a 3rd year student so it would be ridiculous if I were to regret and shift to a different course and start from the beginning again. Only being practical.

[alissandrablanza]

Q: Where do I see myself 5 years from now? Was my learning in SPUP vital to where I’m leading to?

Five years from now I’d be 28. I’m not excited at all actually. However I would have to answer this question sooner or later so what’s the difference? Five years from now I’d like to be well on my path to becoming a professional that serves children specifically. I’m in my third year in college yet again, and this time I am planning to continue until graduation. I’ve experienced working full-time while juggling my studies full-time as well and boy was it a mistake. 

By 2027 I can see myself working in a childcare setting environment as either a counselor or a developmental psychologist. That or I could be abroad furthering my studies so that when I come back here in the Philippines I will be equipped with better skills and knowledge to help develop children’s institutions in our country.

Also, I just transferred here so technically I can’t answer this question but I do think that the things I would learn here in SPUP starting now would be precious addition to the learnings I have accumulated over the years.

[alissandrablanza]

*Creative introduction*

Therese, my name.

23, my age.

San Fernando Pampanga, my home.

7 cats, my children.

Korean Fried Chicken, my fave - you should try them.

House and KRnB music, bopping my head already.

Only child, not as spoiled as I'd expected I would be.

Don't drink beer, give me something else.

I feel like I have a granny soul inside at times. 

Fun on Mondays and Tuesdays.

Lifeless the rest of the week.

[alissandrablanza]

I'm awake.