During my years in high school, I would eagerly look forward to the days of college when I could choose classes that I would actually be interested in, instead of taking classes in all of the subjects. When I graduated high school I wasn’t certain what I was interested in, but I was still excited by the prospect of choosing.

Now I am a second semester sophomore, and this freedom amazes me. Sure, I have to take plenty of required core classes that may not intrigue me, such as statistics and philosophy, but when it comes to classes for my majors, the freedom is incredible!

This semester I have 3 classes I am taking for my political science major and 3 classes I am taking for my communication major. For political science, I am taking American Constitution Development, African Politics, and Intro to Research Methods. For communication, I am taking Health Journalism, Audio Production, and Communication Law. All of these classes excite me and make me want to learn.

American Constitution Development explains our Constitution and understanding all the elements of it. This class is one that interests me due to my love of the Broadway hit, Hamilton. I love learning about America’s government, but I have to admit that I have the Hamilton soundtrack running through my head the entire class.

African Politics is a topic I know nothing about, so when I go to class I know I am walking out with more knowledge and understanding about how governments and politics work in different African countries. This sparks my passion to actually read and understand because the information is new and intriguing.

Intro to Research Methods was a class I was very unsure of. It is a required classes to get a political science degree, but researching and understanding methods does not seem like the type of class I would enjoy. After attending a few classes, I am much more excited for this because we get to draft a research question and propose a research plan. The topic I chose was on African politics, and I am eager to put to use the information from my African Politics class.

Health Journalism is one of my favorite classes of the semester. Because journalism is the career I am pursuing, this class motivates me. We get to write feature stories on health topics that are of interest to us. This class combines my love of writing and my interest in the medical and health fields.

Audio Production is an awesome course. I have no audio production skills, so walking into class on day 1 was pretty intimidating. However, I have found it is not as scary as it seems. Editing sound waves, using the mixer with all the faders and buttons, and recording are all basic skills that are not hard to understand once you know how to use the equipment.

Communication Law is giving me insight into the First Amendment and cases dealing with issues such as freedom of the press. I get to read and analyze Supreme Court cases, which reminds me of my experiences in AP Gov. and mocktrial. These were two experiences I loved in high school, so it is nice to use the skills I learned then and apply them in class now.

The ability to choose which classes to take is so liberating. I absolutely love taking classes for my majors because they inspire me and motivate me to learn and work hard. Although I am grateful for my high school experience, college has really given me the opportunity to grow in my passions and grow as a student.