Vi’s View: Into the Unknown

Meet Viyang Hao, the first dedicated student writer for Stony Brook Matters. Catch her experiences at Stony Brook University each month in Vi’s View.

I’ve been listening to Christmas music since the beginning of November. And, when I say Christmas music, I mean that “Santa Tell Me” by Ariana Grande is actually on repeat. It’s not that I love the holiday season, but rather because I can listen to her amazing song without being judged so much. And it’s been a great way to decompress as I finish up my first semester at Stony Brook.

However, wrapping things up this holiday season, in the academic sense of the word, has not been easy. Like many of my peers, I have a large pile of assignments to finalize. So, here I am, completing countless writing assignments, essays, quizzes and asynchronous finals – all within a week. I can’t say that I’ll miss the amount of writing I had to do this semester. I’ll most likely joke over the break about how I wrote more essays in one semester of college than I did in my entire high school career.

Looking ahead to my spring semester, I’ll be writing a lot less than I am now, thanks to being done with the time-intensive WRT 102 class. I’ll have to find some way to thank myself for getting that one out of the way early! Instead, I’ll get to see what the coursework is like in my first 200-level course. Although higher-level courses can be a little intimidating, I know several current freshmen taking 200- and 300-level courses right now, and they’re doing perfectly fine.

Looking back on this semester, nearly all of my classes were fairly easy, but how well will I do with more challenging work? Will I be prepared? When I think about the upcoming semester, that’s what keeps me awake at night.

Courses will no longer be a review of familiar subjects and well-worn lessons. Instead, I’ll explore topics that are almost entirely new to me. Am I ready for this? Perhaps, that’s the point of college – throwing myself into a hole of unreadiness, only to work my way out of it and get a specialized degree. 

I’ll continue reassuring myself that everything will be alright, I’m ready for what’s ahead, and I’ll succeed.

Apart from that, I’m ready to embrace a month-long break. I’m looking forward to catching up with friends and spending precious time with my family. Have a happy holiday season!