When it comes to new environments, it's important to be prepared. We always hope for a smooth transition, but the difficulty of adapting to a new environment can often exceed our expectations. When you're in unfamiliar territory, struggling to cope with obstacles is a common experience. That is something I had to come to terms with upon entering this program.
Academic struggles and proficiency stress quickly clouded my judgment and made my anxiety skyrocket. I thought about how I was a failure or that I made a mistake choosing this program and that I didn’t belong here with everyone else. But all of that was simply not true in the slightest. I learned that I did in fact belong here thanks to the friends I made along the way and the faculty who were kind enough to guide me through dark times.
Whenever I received a score I wasn’t proud of, I let that score define me. But the truth is, there is no one score that can ever define my current progress in life or what I can amount to in the future. The same goes for everyone.
Some things I did to calm myself down was reminding myself that even though I didn’t do so well now, I have other chances to improve and that there are resources I can find to make sure I can meet my goal. Of course, I understand that with graduate school there is a time crunch so I had to give myself enough time to utilize those tools.
Another common thing was disappointment in some of my scores even if they were considered “good”. It’s okay to feel sad by that score but like I mentioned earlier, scores don’t define you. You won’t be remembered as the person who just barely missed the mark in one class. Your friends, peers, and faculty won’t remember you by grades but by who you choose to be and how you act. If you need to, lean on someone you trust to help you through this. So keep your head up, you are not alone!
Sometimes you need an amazing score to achieve your ultimate goal and you’ve just missed the mark by a sliver. That’s why it’s important to set two goals: a soft goal and an ultimate goal. If I couldn’t meet the “ultimate” goal I set up for myself, I set up a “soft” goal which acts as a milestone that I absolutely must achieve before reaching the finish line, the “ultimate” goal. No matter what happened, I told myself that I tried my best and that it was okay to feel disappointed. I had to pat myself on the back regardless because I still made it to one of my goals and the journey isn’t over yet. I still have more chances to improve and more goals to conquer.
Life is full of ups and downs but how we accept and embrace them can truly impact our future performance. It’s often easier to accept a win or a good score, and it's difficult to accept something below our standards. However, both wins and losses help us move forward and find ways to improve so that we can at least meet or exceed our standards the next time around. Giving up is the easiest option but we’re all here because we didn’t give up, don’t let it stop you now!
Megan NguyenBui, SCCO Class of 2028