My Experience As A Student Ambassador At My Community College
A significant experience I had in my leadership role was my ability to impact a younger generation with my words. Being a student ambassador at my community college, I meet people from all walks of life who have one thing in common — to figure out a career path that they are passionate about. Though some students are certain about their career choice — a huge majority are not — and in most cases, society peer pressures them into settling for a profession that is “realistic” or makes them feel insecure for not knowing what they want to do. And after being in that former position at one point in my life, I wholeheartedly understand! I have met so many 17 to 18 year olds unsure of the future path they want to follow alongside people in their mid
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to late 20’s with the same uncertainty. This has been a clear problem that has plagued peoples’ lives no matter what age demographic, and it’s figuring out the career that gives them personal fulfillment.
After seeing this unfortunate, but common, hesitance in many of the prospective students I met, I strived to promote the notion of curiosity in academia as one of my talking points. Usually I ask about a field that interests them, and see how I can use that interest to spur curiosity with the student. Furthermore, I make it my priority to get them engaged and create positive reinforcement by helping individuals choose classes that are tailored to their interests. After implementing this mantra in my rhetoric, I noticed people were more receptive, especially the young audience. I vividly recall one instance that felt like an impactful learning experience for me.
One time I toured a huge group of students who went to a continuation school. They were bright, engaged, and fascinated by the college campus and the amount of services we have. After finishing the tour, I had to wrap it up with a final Q&A, however, they didn’t have any questions for me, so instead, I asked them questions like: “has anyone figured out what they want to do yet?”, “are your parents peer pressuring you into joining a career you’re not sure about?” and “are you even motivated to go to college?” And I got many honest, real, and personal responses. Correspondingly, I talked about my personal experiences and related my answers back to their responses. I put emphasis on finding something they feel isn’t a sacrifice to their time, figuring out what brings purpose to their life, and not letting your search be detoured by friends and family. Lastly, I ended my speech with the quote, “Don’t be a stranger to yourself” by Robert Greene, and their eyes widened. I got to them! After I said this, I got a standing ovation and it was the most empowering moment in my life. Right then and there, I knew I wanted to spread that same energy and enthusiasm to other people in the future. The feeling of making an impact on someone else’s life is so satisfying yet difficult to articulate. All I can I say is that I want to replicate that same energy with other people. Hopefully after my speech, that quote rings in the back of their mind like it did mine when I was
uncertain.
to late 20’s with the same uncertainty. This has been a clear problem that has plagued peoples’ lives no matter what age demographic, and it’s figuring out the career that gives them personal fulfillment.
After seeing this unfortunate, but common, hesitance in many of the prospective students I met, I strived to promote the notion of curiosity in academia as one of my talking points. Usually I ask about a field that interests them, and see how I can use that interest to spur curiosity with the student. Furthermore, I make it my priority to get them engaged and create positive reinforcement by helping individuals choose classes that are tailored to their interests. After implementing this mantra in my rhetoric, I noticed people were more receptive, especially the young audience. I vividly recall one instance that felt like an impactful learning experience for me.
One time I toured a huge group of students who went to a continuation school. They were bright, engaged, and fascinated by the college campus and the amount of services we have. After finishing the tour, I had to wrap it up with a final Q&A, however, they didn’t have any questions for me, so instead, I asked them questions like: “has anyone figured out what they want to do yet?”, “are your parents peer pressuring you into joining a career you’re not sure about?” and “are you even motivated to go to college?” And I got many honest, real, and personal responses. Correspondingly, I talked about my personal experiences and related my answers back to their responses. I put emphasis on finding something they feel isn’t a sacrifice to their time, figuring out what brings purpose to their life, and not letting your search be detoured by friends and family. Lastly, I ended my speech with the quote, “Don’t be a stranger to yourself” by Robert Greene, and their eyes widened. I got to them! After I said this, I got a standing ovation and it was the most empowering moment in my life. Right then and there, I knew I wanted to spread that same energy and enthusiasm to other people in the future. The feeling of making an impact on someone else’s life is so satisfying yet difficult to articulate. All I can I say is that I want to replicate that same energy with other people. Hopefully after my speech, that quote rings in the back of their mind like it did mine when I was
uncertain.