This may seem pointless, but I am going to present and discuss a few of the more academic and intellectually oriented opportunities that Emory has to offer that are either specifically designed for or are at least accessible to freshmen because I know they may go unheard of otherwise (even when you get to campus).
- A cool admin led opportunity:
http://evidence.emory.edu/QEP-implementation/co-curricular-component.html
Featuring the Dooley Debates as part of Emory’s effort to further enhance the intellectual climate and academic engagement on campus (along with this whole quality enhancement plan).
I think this is a great opportunity for those who may be worried that college is just going to class, studying, joining clubs, and partying. I know that many incoming freshmen are indeed interested in opportunities and social activities that are more intellectual in nature (I’ve seen some of your profiles on here and many of you seem to fit this bill) and something like debate in this context is a great way to be intellectually engaged and Emory has a great tradition in the area. I strongly encourage folks to participate if interested in having stimulating conversations, learning outside of the classroom, working with faculty members etc. Hell, even if simply interested in winning some prize/scholarship money, this is a great way to do so. I am promoting this because I know that many students on main are interested in this sort of thing (oppurtunities to be intellectually engaged with peers), but seem not to know of opps to do so and thus often blame the environment of the school on it. In reality, the students are a huge part of this and students create the intellectual and academic climate, so it is up to you (the students) to contribute to and improve it by taking up such oppurtunities like this one being offered and not just brushing them off as something you “have no time for”. I often find such claims are hardly ever true unless someone is employed for a significant amount of hours per week. Freshman courseloads are typically a joke in comparison to later years provided that their time is managed well. One can easily find time to participate in something interesting and more stimulating than joining millions of clubs with no intent of fully participating in their activities…which is what many freshmen do mistakenly. Aside from this: I recognize cases in which students are not at fault, and instead such opps. are just undersold and underhyped to the point that most do not know they exist. Given that, I am telling the small fraction of class of 2019 on this website.
You may also want to know of other unique oppurtunities that freshmen may have access to that I am sure many of you will go unaware of when caught in the frenzy of orientation programs, social events, etc:’
voluntary core for folks with Liberal Arts Scholarships or those who simply want a more rigorous engagement in social science and humanities courses: http://college.emory.edu/home/academic/voluntary-core-program/about.html
In my opinion, though many courses make you read a lot (and write), it functions as a good networking oppurtunity with top faculty members and instructors in such fields both in and out of Emory (through the Emory Williams lectures, you will meet and even be offered a chance to eat dinner with academics outside of Emory)
The Center for Liberal Arts has come up with several interesting interdisciplinary courses that are very innovative:
http://news.emory.edu/stories/2015/06/er_take_note_cola_courses/campus.html
I think that the Climate change one is the coolest merely because you get an opportunity to attend the conference!
One of my favorites (of which I am an alum), the ORDER seminar: http://order.emory.edu/ you can check it out here. Has something for anyone who sees themselves doing research (science or not) and you get to come up with your own project (some which actually get enough attention to be published or implemented).
This course rarely disappoints unless you were just looking for an easy grade. It is often one of the featured academic experiences in Emory’s newsreel. In fact, the most recent (fall 2014) one was featured: http://news.emory.edu/stories/2014/11/er_sustainability_awards/campus.html
As great as I remembered it!
If you’re interested in sustainability and can’t make it to Paris, be a local agent of change and join forces with others and come up with your own ideas! You can get funded (yes, you, freshmen and ANY undergrads with great ideas can be funded)! :http://news.emory.edu/stories/2014/11/er_sustainability_awards/campus.html
If interested in the liberal arts and a interdisciplinary study in general, craft a major or project through the ILA:
http://ila.emory.edu/home/undergraduate/index.html
This is also an exciting department to be a part of if you are a more intellectually minded individual as they have many events geared toward discussing various issues and the works of you and your colleagues.
Speaking of brainstorming and idea generating, Emory is gaining an ever increasing entrepreneurial spirit among its undergrads (some of these endeavors may have been featured on the admissions website) and as freshmen, you should be aware of such opps if you are the type into that: http://news.emory.edu/stories/2015/02/er_entrepreneurship_ecosystem/campus.html
And we typically a hack-a-thon (for those who are computationally inclined or want to learn how to create an app) a year (a very rare feat at a school without an engineering entity and a relatively weak CS dept…but that is what Emory is all about! One of these was student generated by the way and is the larger of the two):
hack-atl: http://news.emory.edu/stories/2013/11/er_take_note_hack_atlanta/campus.html \
This used to be two (but I think was consolidated into 1-was student started BTW, by undergrads)
Pre-health and interested in issues of public and global health: Try to get on a Case competition team: http://globalhealth.emory.edu/what/student_programs/case_competitions/index.html
This is all just a sample…
These are all things that even freshmen can get involved in so I hope none of you come in and think that Emory lacks these oppurtunies unlike other schools or is intellectually underwhelming because it simply isn’t true. If one is truly into these things, they can hit the ground running as early as freshman year. Emory, in my opinion tries harder than many places (even some peers) in this area, but it is up to you guys to take advantage of these things to ensure its efforts are successful. If you do, I’m sure you’ll find your experiences will be much more enriched and you’ll also find that Emory isn’t necessarily a dull, pre-professionally driven school. There is just so much more going on. Your eyes just have to remain open to see it and you must also sometimes be willing to step outside of your comfort zone or bubble so that you can milk it for all of its worth.