College wasn't the best 4 years of my life
11 tips that is a must-read for all college students
Hey friends, I graduated almost a month ago now. I’ve been an absolute bum procrastinating on this newsletter like everything else in life. But I saw a motivating TikTok so I’ll finally finish this.
Reflecting on these past 4 years, my motto throughout college was always this:
Push yourself outside of your comfort zone
I know it’s cheesy but I just had it in me to seek discomfort every year because I somehow knew that doing so will allow me to grow.
I write this for the college students who want to make the best out of their college experience. I also write this for myself to remember my journey and challenges I’ve faced in these 4.5 years.
Exploring as a Freshie
First month was lonely. In high school, everyone knew everyone. Every day you’d always say hi to friends in the hall. When college hit, I was a nobody walking through campus. I walked alone. I ate alone. I sat alone. My fear of having a terrible college experience was slowly becoming a reality.
I finally built enough courage to walk up to this club tabling on campus. They called themself Akbayan (Philipinx-American Organization). I went to the first open house. And everything quickly fell into place. I found a friend group. I met amazing people. Attended events back to back. I felt comfortable.
Spring semester came around and I knew I had to do something different. Remember that cheesy line I mentioned: Step outside of your comfort zone. So I joined a new org called VSA, Vietnamese Student Association. Not as just a member, but as an intern. Meaning that I was planning events for members I’ve never met. This was the start of a love story between me and community-building.
Best of Both Worlds
In my 2nd year, I was the Publicity chair for VSA. I wanted VSA to be bigger and better. This was already a huge time commitment, but I wanted to do more. I wanted to step outside of my comfort zone. So I became an intern for Akbayan.
As if that wasn’t enough, I ALSO started creating weekly college vlogs. This was probably one of the most busiest years of my life. I was on fire. I was finally getting the college experience I wanted. Parties, events, social life. I was thriving.
I did fail becoming the next Elliot Choy of SJSU. It’s okay tho because I have saved precious memories in video format. Looking back, not sure how I had so much energy. At the end of the year, I was tired. I was done with leadership.
Presidential Obsession
Or so I thought. Started my third year being President of VSA. Every priority I had was below VSA. My vision grew and I realized I wanted to do more for this organization.
My priority list:
VSA
Me
School
School was last because while my classes were hard, all I wanted to focus on was the club. I still definitely tried because there were close calls of failing classes. I didn’t feel motivated to do well, I knew that I was not interested in Computer Engineering. I enjoyed coding more and wanted to switch majors but that would’ve held me back even further which was a slap in the face. I wanted to get out of here ASAP.
VSA was bigger than it ever was. We were one of the largest VSAs across the U.S. I was speaking to over 150+ students every week. I was getting messages on how fun VSA is. It was a thrill. But..
I burned out. My mental health suffered. I’ve lost people in my life. I was obsessed. The ambition that helped me get to where I am became my downfall
This uncontrollable drive led me to make many mistakes as a leader. I was blind to things that were obvious. I have learned from those mistakes but at what cost.
COVID hit spring semester. Being president for a club of over 400 members was hard. But through a pandemic made it 100x harder. Member retention dropped but my mind was set on making sure we have a space for those who needed the VSA community during these hard times.
Laser-focused
Summer after my third year, I knew that I had to start focusing on my career. I was about to graduate soon so I tried to land a Software Engineering internship that summer after but miserably failed. Then, something magical happened.
It was love at first sight. The intersection of my favorite things: Business, Engineering, and Design. I came across the role of Product Management. I fell in love. I found my new obsession. Focusing intensely on my career came with sacrifices, I isolated myself to focus on this new career path.
A CEO of a startup responded to my cold message on LinkedIn. The startup was a mentorship app which I was highly interested in. I got the SWE internship for the fall. A month later, I became a PM intern. This experience confirmed my theory that I would enjoy being a Product Manager and later helped me land an internship at Microsoft.
New Community
In my 4th year, I wanted to combine my love for leadership and engineering. So I became an officer for SASE, Society of Asian Scientists and Engineers. It was a dying club so it had different challenges compared to VSA. The officers and I learned to grow the community and keep the members engaged throughout the year on Discord. We got Outstanding Program of the Year but happier to say that we were able to rebuild the community.
History Repeats Itself
My last semester was a reminder of my first month in college. This was the first time since my first semester that I didn’t take on a leadership role. I just had classes. Often felt sad. I was out of it. Wasn’t super excited for graduation. Didn’t feel that sense of belonging because I wasn’t active in any community.
I had no motivation to do any work for my classes. I did the absolute minimum and only having classes as a priority felt like it was even harder to do assignments.
It was a rough semester, however I was able to spend more time creating content on LinkedIn and TikTok and help students with their career journey. There was a joy with every message I got thanking me for the advice and support.
And that’s it folks. A spark notes version of my college experience. Maybe it was the best 4 years of my life, maybe not. I look back and remember the good and the bad. Even if it was the best 4 years, it won’t stop there.
I have my whole life ahead of me. For the real world. I’m coming for you. Change is inevitable. I’m here to adapt. I’m here to thrive.
11 tips you can trust
Academic:
Professors can make or break your experience in class. Enroll in classes based on the professor. Go to Rate My Professors
Make friends in your classes in your 1st year. These are the people that will be with you for the next 4 years. You can’t do this alone. Create study groups. Help each other out.
Don’t buy the textbook before the first day of class. You can find free textbooks online. Save money.
Learn to learn. This skill will be used beyond university. You should understand how to get in flow state.
Career:
Network early. Reach out to upperclassman, new grads, and professionals. Get in those coffee chats. You will hear valuable insights you couldn’t find online.
Apply to internships early. Applications start to open around August/September. There are internships for 1st and 2nd years.
Make a LinkedIn. Showcase all your projects and experience on it. You can learn a lot on how to navigate your career on LinkedIn.
General:
It’s okay if you don’t know what you want to do. This is your time to explore and figure that out. Keep trying things until something sticks. Have a bias for action.
Join organizations that align with your interests. Diversify your clubs. Join a social one and academic one.
Understand yourself. Push yourself. This is where you can learn more about your limits, identity, and values.
Put yourself out there. It’s scary at first, but it’ll be worth it. Find your people you click with in and make memories.
If you forget everything, just remember this: Step outside of your comfort zone. I want this newsletter to be a space for us to have authentic conversations. So stay subscribed if you’re ready for vulnerability in this upcoming year. I’ll also be posting my entire college experience on my Youtube.
If you’ve made it this far, thanks for reading! Reply with your favorite gifts from the holidays and/or what you’re looking forward to this year. Always accepting feedback on how to improve the newsletter <3
Other cool stuff
My story with hard of hearing throughout college
My new creative edit on TikTok about how to land your dream job
My favorite gift
