A Broken Foot, but not a Broken Spirit

Posted on November 30, 2023 by Chloe

How breaking my foot affected the course of my Fall 2023 semester. If you’re not super interested in the backstory, go ahead and skip to the first picture set in this post!

One fateful night during the Fall 2023 semester, also known as Wednesday, September 27, I was playing in an intramural volleyball game with my sorority, Sigma Kappa. We were doing pretty okay, and definitely had a chance to win the game. So, naturally, I put my all into the game. And broke my foot doing it.

I have loved playing intramural sports and I actually played lacrosse for about 6 years prior to attending Embry-Riddle, and never broke a single bone in my body, until this relatively low-stakes volleyball game. (We weren’t playing for a championship ring, really just for fun)

Like I said, I played lacrosse, not volleyball. So I was really just trying to get the ball over the net. About halfway through our first game, I jumped up to hit the ball back over the net (which I did successfully, and we got the point) and upon landing back on the ground, I felt my left foot do something weird and immediately start to hurt.

I didn’t want to delay the game, so I got up off the ground as quickly as I possibly could, and have been told I did it so quickly that most of the people there didn’t even know I got hurt. I made my way to the sidelines of the court, where a couple of my sorority sisters were there to check on me. I received a bag of ice and someone asked if I wanted medical attention, to which I responded; ‘No, I’ll be fine,’ genuinely believing that the pain would go away by the morning and I would be fine.

I stayed for the remainder of the game, which we unfortunately lost, and I went to get up from my seat and go out to my car in the ICI parking lot and drive back to Residence Hall 2 (RH2). Upon attempting to get up, I realized that I could hardly put any weight on my left foot, which was a problem. One of my sorority sisters went to get my car and drive it closer to the entrance of the ICI center, while a few members of the opposing team, who were also my friends and brothers of the Delta Chi fraternity, acted somewhat as ‘human crutches’ and helped me out and to my car.

One of my sorority sisters drove me back to my dorm in RH2 and parked my car for me. That night, I got into bed with my foot elevated and some ice on it, took some pain reliever, and somehow fell asleep, with the hope my foot would be alright in the morning.

Surprise! My foot was not alright in the morning. I woke up around 8:30 am and intended to get ready for my 9:45 class, in which I had an exam, but found I could barely walk. I called the campus’ Health and Wellness Center, who advised me to call Campus Safety to pick me up and drive me over to the center so they could take a look at my foot. I called Campus Safety, and only waited about 10 minutes for them to arrive, and they were incredibly helpful in making sure I got to the Wellness Center safely. Once there, the lovely nurse told me that I needed to get an X-ray and referred me to a local orthopedic clinic. The center provided me with crutches and I once again called Campus Safety to drive me to my car so I could go to the clinic. (It was my left foot that was broken, and all I needed was my right foot to drive, so no worries there.)

I sent an email to my professor explaining the situation, in hopes I would still be able to take that exam I mentioned. (I did, again no worries there.) After my X-rays, I was told I did in fact break my foot, and I should expect to be on crutches for about 3-4 weeks. Here’s where I guess I figured it was time to continue on with life as normal.

Me, in bed, the night I broke my foot, making friendship bracelets! (I know, it’s blurry, but I didn’t have many photos from this night.)

I truly appreciated the support when the injury occurred, and I included all of this context because every time I was asked how I broke my foot, this is just about everything I ended up responding with. (People love details, I guess)

The Fun Part: Life on Crutches!

No one told me how physically exhausting it would be to go through daily life on crutches. The first day was actually the easiest, I think. I wasn’t quite tired of the crutches, and was really just trying to ignore the pain in my foot. I answered a lot of questions and told the story of how it happened many, many times.

The biggest thing I noticed was how much I had to ask for help, which is something I’m not at all used to, and that’s where being on crutches began to take a mental toll. Many times, I found it incredibly frustrating to have to wait to ask someone to carry my lunch for me or to open a door for me, or I just had to figure out how to do it myself.

Usually, one of my friends would be around to help me get lunch, and that was no big deal. But sometimes, there was no one around, so unfortunately, I thought my solution was to just forget about it and try to get food another time. This is not the best way to go about my situation, and I have learned that now.

In regards to opening doors, many of the buildings I entered had a button I could press that would automatically open the door for me. However, when going to individual classes or even to the bathroom in some buildings, I struggled to open doors. Usually, when going to class, there was another person arriving around the same time, and would hold the door for me. Bathrooms, however, I found often had very heavy doors that were difficult to open, and was somewhat frustrating. It made me stop and think how accessible our campus really is.

All of these little frustrations really took a toll on my mental health. Having to rely on Campus Safety to get me across campus, or on friends to get my lunch, or on random classmates to hold the door open for me are things I never thought I would have to do, and I felt so incredibly helpless. Additionally, I am a very social person, but there were many things I couldn’t go do with my friends because I was on crutches. I fell into a lonely couple of weeks where I really didn’t feel like I had anyone to rely on. But, as soon as I realized what was making me upset (not being able to hang out with friends and do ‘fun’ stuff) I took some time to think about what I could do.

I could still go to my sorority’s chapter meetings, and even put on a little heel on my good foot when I had to dress up for chapter, hoping to gain a sense of normalcy. I found that I could still go to mass on campus, which helped to ease some of my mental troubles. I was able to go to the movie theater a couple of times, and even participate in my sorority’s philanthropy event.

Yes, it was hard to find the energy to do these things sometimes, but I realized that I was surrounded by people who wanted me to be there and wanted me to want to be there. Although being on crutches meant I couldn’t go bouldering in the fitness center, play volleyball with sisters, or play tug of war at my sorority’s Camp Sigma Kappa, I was still able to have plenty of fun being around the people I love.

Went to see The Eras Tour Movie with my friend Steph, on crutches!

Many of my professors were very understanding when I needed some extra time on assignments, because I was so physically and mentally exhausted while being on crutches. My bosses in Housing and Residence Life (p.s. I am still an RA, if you forgot) were helpful when I needed anything, as well as my coworkers, who often helped me get lunch or take out my trash, or even do my laundry.

Being on crutches taught me that it’s okay to ask for help, and that many people are usually willing to help! I also taught myself to discover things I could do on my own that still made me happy, even when I couldn’t run and jump and dance around my room.

There’s so much more that I could say in regards to breaking my foot, but perhaps that will be in a second story. For now though, I’m thankful to be off my crutches and out of my boot, while still taking it easy and allowing my foot to heal. Life isn’t quite back to normal yet, but I know that it will be soon, and I’ll be sure to update more as life goes on. With finals quickly approaching, my main focus is finishing the end of the semester strong, although much of it was quite the struggle.

I have truly appreciated everyone’s support while I was dealing with my injury, and appreciate the support I am still receiving from my family, my friends, my peers, and my professors.

Thanks for reading,

Chloe

Skipping Town… and Class?

Posted on November 15, 2023 by Chloe

The idea of skipping classes could be unimaginable to some of you. Or it could be an everyday occurrence. Everyone has a different way of going about life, and I think that’s the beauty of being in college. I think sometimes we forget the idea of having free will. We are allowed to do whatever we’d like. However, this doesn’t mean we won’t face consequences.

Most people attend college from 18 years old to 22 years old. In my opinion, there’s a big difference between being 18 and being 22. I am at a halfway point in that span, but I’ve realized that I would not have become a better person since being 18 if I didn’t practice free will.

It’s important to remember that while we are students, we are also people. It’s okay to take a break, especially during college, before getting a real-world, real-adult job. In fact, it’s important to take breaks. Remembering of course that skipping class all the time may not result in the best grades, but maybe a few days of a break isn’t too bad, especially if you plan ahead.

I knew I would be leaving town and heading to Boston, MA, but also knew I would miss about 2 and a half days of class. That’s a pretty significant amount of time. But, all I had to do was reach out to each of my professors and let them know the situation. Most of the time, if you are willing to work ahead and put in a little extra effort to make sure you don’t get behind when you miss class, your professors will help you out too. I might be missing a few days of class, but it doesn’t feel like it. Yes, I am working a little more than normal right before my trip, but that means I get to enjoy my trip and stay on track.

Since I’ve mentioned my trip so much, I might as well share my journey.

My day started at 8 am, when I woke up, got myself ready for the day, and headed to the union for breakfast. After hanging out with a few of my friends who were awake and in the union as well, I headed off to my first class of the day, Airline Marketing. After class, which ended around 11 am, I headed back to the union for lunch and some light socializing, then back to my room in New Residence Hall 2. At this point, it’s around 12:30 pm. Here’s where skipping class comes in… I finished packing up for my trip and got in the car and drove home to Jacksonville Beach, despite knowing I had class at 2:15 and 3:45. I arrived home around 2 pm and spent some time with my family as they began to return home from school and work. I didn’t feel bad about missing class; my professors already knew and I was able to prepare by working ahead of time. My mom, sister, and I departed our home at the beaches and headed to Jacksonville International Airport, where we’d be getting on the evening flight to Boston Logan International Airport. Before you ask, no I don’t know what plane I flew on and I don’t know what other kinds of planes were at the airport either. I like to look at planes, but my knowledge of them stops there.

Growing up in Florida, I’ve never really seen the trees change colors in the fall, like they do in movies. I only know what ‘fall’ looks like because of what I’ve seen in movies or TV. So understandably, I’m pretty excited to head to beautiful New England and get a taste of autumn. On Friday, my sister and mom and I explored historic Salem, right in time for Halloween. Obviously, given I was in Salem, MA, I skipped class on Friday too. But all is good! I had planned ahead of time to make sure I didn’t miss too much. I was supposed to take a quiz in Corporate Finance this day, but luckily, I let my professor know I wouldn’t be in class and he allowed me to take the quiz before I left town.

This is what I’m talking about when I say plan ahead… If you’re gonna miss class for a little trip, just let someone know!

Salem was beautiful and also incredibly educational. I learned plenty about the Salem Witch Trials, and the general ‘spookiness’ of the town, especially around Halloween.

I loved seeing the colors of the trees all throughout Salem, but I really didn’t know it could get even more colorful! The next day, Saturday (no classes skipped) I went apple picking at Red Apple Farms! I truly got a taste of fall through freshly picked apples, an apple cider slushie, and apple cider donuts. What I’ve gathered from this trip is that the taste of fall must just be apple cider, and honestly? I’m okay with that. After apple picking, we headed into Mount Wachusett, where we rode the ski lift. (There was no snow or skiing, it was just a fun ride up and down the mountain.) This was a completely new concept to me- I’ve seen mountains, but I’ve never been in the mountains.

Me, picking apples, which were delicious

I truly had a lovely time experiencing these typical New England fall activities, and then woke up Sunday morning to a gray sky and all-day drizzles. But that’s okay!

Sunday (also no classes skipped) was a day spent exploring my mom’s hometown. I got to connect more with where she’s from, thus connecting with her a little more. I gained a new understanding of where I come from, in a sense. I met some of my family that, truth be told, I didn’t even know I had. It is always interesting to hear my mom’s stories from her childhood, but to get to see the places she mentions was something I could never imagine. It’s almost like I was watching a movie of my mom’s life… weird. Anyways, exploring her hometown was a lot of driving around and some personal stories, so I won’t share much more. On to Monday!

Monday was another gray and rainy day, and it got cold. I was definitely ready to head back to Florida for a sunny, 80° day. Luckily for me, our flight back to Jacksonville was Monday morning. It did require a 4:45 am wake up call, but at least there’s plenty of Dunkin’s to stop at on the way to the airport. Our flight was a little delayed, but that’s alright. We made it back to Jacksonville around 11 am, and back home around 11:45 am. After arriving home, I said goodbye to my mom and sister, and got in my car to drive back to Daytona. At this point, I have again skipped my Monday classes. But no worries! I planned ahead!

I got back to Daytona around 1:30pm on Monday and business continued as usual. I got some lunch in the union and did some homework, then I headed off to the Housing and Residence Life’s Halloween Carnival, where I made snow cones for everyone visiting! After that, I headed to the Student Union to watch Tri Sigma’s Halloween Fashion Show, which was a blast, per usual. As the night came to a close, I got myself ready for bed and said goodnight to Daytona Beach.

I suppose the moral of this story is that it’s okay to skip class sometimes. But it’s important to plan ahead.

“Life moves pretty fast. If you don’t stop and look around once in a while, you could miss it.” (Ferris Bueller)

Ferris was on to something. Maybe he skipped class for some silly reasons, but hey, everyone needs a break sometimes. If I had decided not to go on this trip because I had class, I would be sitting here still unsure of what trees really look like in the fall, what fresh apple cider tastes like, and who my mom’s family is and what her hometown is like.

I’m glad I skipped class, but I definitely made it easier on myself by planning ahead. What I’m trying to say here is that you should miss a class or two, for a break for yourself. Just plan ahead and you’ll be good to go!

I hope you enjoyed hearing about my trip and seeing the photos I managed to take. Hang in there, the Fall 2023 semester is almost over.

End of Junior Year!

Posted on May 22, 2023 by Isabella

The Spring 2023 semester and my junior year has officially ended! A lot happened this semester, so I thought that I would summarize it here.

I took a few different classes this semester:
CEC 315: Signals & Systems
EP 391/391L: Microcomputers & Electronic Instrumentation Class/Lab
EP 394: Space Systems Engineering
ME 200: Machine Shop Laboratory
SYS 560: Introduction to Systems Engineering Management

Compared to previous semesters, this one was pretty light class-wise.
CEC 315 was a great class with very useful topics and a great professor. The class had no deliverables other than two midterms. The second exam/midterm was not technically a final exam, so it did not happen during ‘finals week’ which really helps to spread the load out for many people. The professor is also very reasonable with exam questions, grades, and lecture material in general, so the midterms were not too stressful.
EP 391/391L was definitely more of a challenging class, but the final project was a great way for students to combine things learned during the semester. There were some exams towards the beginning of the semester, but no final exam. The final project was only given during the last approximately two weeks, so there was definitely a ‘crunch time’ there. However, the product was great. My team designed a device that would basically use serial communication, a stepper motor, and LabVIEW amongst other tools to follow a light source and output live graphs with information such as temperature, battery voltage, and device angle.
EP 394 is mostly a project class. We still had weekly lectures on topics ranging from control systems and class mechanics to spaceflight dynamics and orbits with mini quizzes, but our main grade stemmed from our project. We had free reign to choose our space-related project topic and our group, and then any resources we needed were provided by the Physics department and lab. This class also took into account that many of our projects were large endeavors and could only get a certain amount done within a semester. Overall, lots of work, but it was super rewarding, fun, and the grading scale was very reasonable. My team was designing a floatable platform that would use a camera for vision processing and microthrusters to control and test and vehicle with a control system that could be used for satellite attitude control in space. We received a very good grade for our progress including simulations, CAD models, vision processing code, communication systems, and pneumatic systems among a few things.
ME 200 was very fun. Grades were purely attendance-based, and this was something I never wanted to miss. It was once a week for about 2-3 hours and consisted of learning then doing all sorts of things like riveting, drilling, band saw usage, and more.
SYS 560 was a good class. I was taking this one to count towards my masters degree. No big exams were given, just about one homework per week, some in-class activities, and a final project. The final project was not too large, and it combined what we learned fairly well. We basically had to draw out a schedule plan for eight different programs with overlapping resources to be finished as efficiently and quickly as possible.

Overall, it was a good semester! I am writing this from a location (TBA in the next post) where I am visiting family before my internship begins. A few days ago, I also finished up my research job remotely and plan to find out what my next research project (for next semester) will be over the Summer.
For now, I’ll end this here and save my next blog post to tell more about what I have been doing since the semester has ended and things to expect this Summer!

New Perspective

Posted on February 9, 2023 by Chloe

Whether you are a student, parent, or alumni, there’s a high probability you don’t know me yet. Allow me to introduce myself! My name is Chloe Christovich and I am in my second year of studies here at Embry-Riddle. I am currently pursuing my Bachelor’s degree in Aviation Business Administration, concentrated in Aviation and Aerospace Marketing. I am from Jacksonville Beach, Florida, which is just far enough away to define my own sense of individuality, but also have my family close enough to visit. Speaking of family, I am one of 8 children, 2 of which have earned their degrees from ERAU! While Jacksonville Beach may not be so far from Daytona Beach, my lifestyle in each respective place is pretty different. I am here to tell you all about my life at Embry-Riddle. I intend to share with you things like what a normal day looks like for me, what I do on campus, how I deal with stress and anxiety, where and when I hang out with my friends, and what I do outside of being on campus, among other things. I am so excited to be sharing this with you all and can’t wait to tell you all about My Life at Riddle.

Outside the O’Maley College of Business (O’COB) where most of my classes are held and also where I do work during my office hours for the Social Media Marketing Team.

A normal day for me could be entirely different than the day before, but most days look about the same. Just about every day, I wake up around 7 am. Living on campus means I don’t have to worry about commuting time, but I still like to give myself at least an hour in the mornings before I have to go anywhere. Depending on the day, I start classes at 9 am or 8:15 am. One of the benefits of getting to pick your own classes is getting to tailor your schedule to your needs and wants. For me, I like to get through all of my classes as early as possible, that way I have more time in my day to participate in extracurriculars or just sit back and relax.

This semester, I have class at 9 am on Mondays, Wednesdays, and Fridays. This class only lasts about an hour, and then I don’t have class until 1 pm! I use my break in between these two classes to grab a bite to eat, socialize in the Student Union, catch up on school work, or sometimes just take a nap. Once I’m done with all my classes for the day, I head back to my on-campus dorm and usually watch an episode or two of my favorite TV shows (These change depending on the day). I do this to relax and unwind from a day of work. After taking some time to relax, I like to clean up my room a little bit just to make sure I can be at peace there. Sometimes, I like to go to the gym in the evenings or I’ll go hang out with some of my friends – It really just depends on the day!

My ideal study setup – Complete with inspirational quotes, my favorite drink to give me some energy, and a wax melter with my favorite scent; Very dorm friendly!

On Tuesdays and Thursdays this semester, I have class at 8:15 am, then 9:45 am. After I’m done with my first two classes these days, I grab lunch from the Union and then head back to the O’Maley College of Business (O’COB), where I have office hours as the manager for the College of Business Social Media Marketing Team. Setting aside office time to work on content for the social media pages was one of my best ideas, and these 2 hours are absolutely my favorite part of the day. Once I’m done with my office hours, I head off to my last class of the day, and then I’m done with everything by 3:30 pm! This gives me plenty of time to do schoolwork, hang out with friends, and anything else I set my mind to.

A photo I took while observing a friend’s flight after classes.

Besides going to classes every day and hanging out with my friends, I am involved in a few other organizations here on campus. I have just recently taken over as the manager of the College of Business Social Media Marketing Team, which is one of my favorite things to be a part of! I love getting to use my creative skills in a way that benefits my fellow students. I am also a Resident Advisor for Housing and Residence Life. I am currently an RA in New Residence Hall 2, where my community is made up of first-year students. In addition to this, I am also a member of Greek Life. Being a member of all these different organizations keeps me on my feet, but I love the opportunities that are provided to me because of it.

Working for the Social Media Marketing Team during one of our Career Expo Headshots Sessions.

I’ve discovered, in my almost 2 years at ERAU, that there’s always something to do every day, which is why my schedule changes all the time. Sure, my classes are always the same every day, but everything else depends on what I find to do around campus! I am so excited to be sharing all about My Life at Riddle with all of you!

Spring Semester & Scheduling

Posted on January 11, 2022 by Merrick

Happy January everyone! I am currently blogging from Fairbanks, Alaska where I spent my winter break resting and relaxing in the snow! I am about to start traveling back to Daytona Beach and I had such a good break I miss my family already! My only complaint is that it was too short.

One of my favorite memories from winter break – snow shoeing with my favorite person!

I have exciting news! I am about to begin my last semester of my undergraduate education, I graduate in May! I am so excited after 5 years of working towards my B.S. in Aerospace Engineering to be so close to having my degree and starting a new chapter of my life. As always, this semester will be a busy one but I am excited for all the growth to come. I have big plans for staying busy and going full speed ahead, with rest of course, until graduation.

Current academic progress one semester away from graduation!

At the start of every semester to help plan and best organize my busy times I create a schedule! I suggest utilizing your class schedule as a base to start building off of. From there I add in my commitments in order of priority, including ROTC obligations, RA duty and meetings, Peer Mentor work for UNIV 101, scheduling in my work hours for my job at the Eagle Flight Research Center, and of course all other obligations besides work. For me, this includes time to do homework, study, do yoga, eat breakfast/lunch/dinner, and a workout schedule for when I will be at the gym in fitness classes, doing cardio outside, working out in my room, or resting. This semester one of my goals is to be more mindful and take more time for myself by scheduling in walks at least once (but hopefully more) every week. Taking walks is nice because it also allows for time to catch up listening to some of my favorite podcasts!

This semester I also have a goal to get more sleep. I typically go to bed very early on days when I don’t have RA obligations such as staff meetings, which are scheduled late in the evenings to ensure all RAs are out of class, which keeps me awake past my usual bedtime. Another RA responsibility that concludes late in the night is RA duty, which requires staff members to perform building rounds, answer phone calls for lock outs, and sit at their residence hall lobby desk. Typically RAs have duty one weekday every two weeks, in addition to about 11 weekend duty days spread across a semester. RA duty days are assigned at the beginning of each semester based off of responsibilities like class schedules, ROTC, and labs or flight blocks.

I have come to realize I function best on a lot of sleep, especially when I’m busy with classes and working out regularly. Thus, when I wake up early for ROTC obligations like PT or LLAB, I try to go to bed as early as possible.

I am exciting to make my life schedule for this upcoming semester and look forward to having everything planned to set myself up for success. Good luck this semester, will report back soon folks!

The Week Before Finals Week

Posted on April 22, 2021 by Carly

Carly slamming face-first into an inflatable go brr.

Sooooo finals week is coming, but there’s been no shortage of stuff to do. This weekend, we had EagleFest, which was moved indoors due to the rain. However, the Touch-N-Go, the entertainment division, pulled off a great event. There was free ice cream, cake on a stick, candies, donuts, plants… anything!

And the capstone: sets of inflatables plus an outdoor zipline. The inflatable obstacle course I went on was modeled on Wipeout’s big red balls, and we’ll just say that I wouldn’t win Wipeout.

*The physics professors are having a field day: if Carly launches herself at a 30-degree angle at 2 m/s, then how long does it take her to fall flat on the ground?* *Brownie points to anyone who solves this.*

I was a little too short to get back on top, so I ended up walking along the sides. A few of my other friends chose to do the inflatable obstacle course race, and it was pretty fun to watch.

That’s when we headed over to the zipline. Touch-N-Go had somehow gotten a portable zipline company, so I was able to zipline down Legacy Walk towards the Henderson Welcome Center. It was raining during part of the day, so the zipline had to shut down at points, but it was so worth it to wait in the line.

It was a fun weekend.

As for the rest of this week, I’ve been anticipating finals. I’ve finished two classes already, but I do have more work to do. I’ve turned in and had my EGR 115 project graded, and I’m happy with the grade I got. I also took my chemistry lab practical on Tuesday, and there’s no more work in that class.

I’m still working on my HON 250 class, which is about video games. The final assignments relate to our project, where we design our own video game based on ERAU, Daytona Beach, or somewhere significant in Florida. Our video game is about a fictional ERAU campus on a fictional world. I’m in charge of the narrative.

I’m also working on my EGR 101 project. Our team is making a tennis ball launcher for dogs, called the Fetch for Fun! ball launcher. If I had a dog, and it was for sale, I would totally buy the ball launcher: it’s cost-effective, designed by a small business, yet still hand-built with care. We show it off to the professor next week.

As for my other classes, math and physics, we haven’t been doing any projects. In physics, we’re talking about rotational motion, and my professor brought a spinning circle to class. It proved his point well and also made us dizzy.

*Wheeeeeee! And yes, those are cats on my mask.*

When I stood on it and slowly spun, I’m not going to lie, I felt like a video game character. Either way, it’s been a fun week here at Riddle. See you in the next post, and hopefully at Riddle! (:

Day to Day

Posted on January 30, 2018 by Maddie

Hello everyone!

I wanted to discuss a bit about what the average day looks like on campus. I know for me, before coming to school I was very curious about what college is really like. So I decided I would speak a little on my schedule to help out those other curious people like me.

At Riddle we have an alternating schedule of fifty minute Monday/Wednesday/Friday classes and one-and-half hour Tuesday/Thursday classes. Every once in a while a class, typically a lab, will be offered in a three hour time block on one day of the week. For example, I had my airport management class from 5:15-8:00 pm every Thursday.

I normally schedule my classes back to back and earlier in the day. This means I get up and get classes done. Others prefer breaks so they can do homework, socialize, or get lunch in between. And one of the best parts of college is being able to choose classes that start later – sleeping in is truly the best! I also prefer the shorter classes, but I now choose to only have two on Monday/Wednesday/Friday and three on Tuesday/Thursday. This just seems to make the weeks go by faster in my opinion!

In class I usually bring a snack and a drink. I live off caffeine so the baristas at Starbucks and I are on very good terms. I also take notes on my laptop, but it’s all up to your professor. Some classes you’re in a lab with a computer provided and other times you have a professor who prefers no electronics. To me, classes feel very similar to high school. The sizes are small and the professors truly get to know you!

After class I head to work or to grab lunch. I usually find myself back in my room studying or in a lounge in the dorms. Resident Advisers (RAs) do contact hours where we are required to be available to our residents. I do mine after class. Also for this job, I have duty Wednesday nights. Duty is when RAs sit at the dorm’s front desk and walk around the building periodically. We are here to solve any problems in the dorms and be of help to all! On Monday and Wednesday I work as a Student Assistant in the Office of Development, which is basically fundraising for the university.

Homework-wise, because I know everyone is wondering, it seems as an Aviation Business major I have about a couple hours each night. This of course varies. I try to get a lot done on the weekends because after a day of classes, work, then clubs… I’m exhausted! There are jobs on campus where you can do homework during your shift and RA is definitely one. Some nights I will have nothing but others I feel very busy. It’s all about time management. The best advice I ever heard for college was to treat it like a 9-5 job. That means if you get out of class at 1 pm, sit and knock out your homework until 5 pm. When you get caught up in Netflix bingeing, it gets hard to get motivated again. It’s better to take that focus you had during class and burn through it in one sitting. Again, the amount of homework all just depends on your major, class, and professor.

Around 5:00 pm is when all the clubs get started. The campus is still bustling with involved students this late in the evening! I do have clubs that meet at 9:00 pm but those meeting are typically an hour. That was the weirdest part of transitioning from high school to college, seeing everyone out late studying and going to meetings! I love coming back to my room after a busy day and relaxing or even being super productive and cranking out homework. I live in the new dorms and they are very nice and a quick walk to and from classes!

Overall this is a rough outline of my schedule:

(Notice: your schedule will change every week and no day will be the same but you will always have time to relax and have fun!)

Weekends are genuinely open for me to do homework or spend time with friends. While campus is a little emptier on the weekends, there is still a lot going on. Many times I am invited to volunteer opportunities or events with the clubs I am involved in!

Curious about how this schedule actually plays out? Preview Day is coming soon and is a day where you get to experience college classes and learn about the clubs and activities on campus! Mark your calendars for Saturday, April 7, 2018, 8 a.m.– 4 p.m.!

Maybe see you then?!

– Maddie

Back to School for My Last Semester

Posted on January 18, 2017 by Lindsey

Classes just started back up again and it’s time for me to get back into the swing of things. It’s my last semester of my undergraduate career at Embry-Riddle, and it is definitely bittersweet.

I am taking four classes, one of which is the capstone class for the Aviation Business Administration degree. Going into this semester I was excited to have completed some of my leadership roles, as well as only be taking four classes, so that I could take more time to enjoy my last semester in Daytona Beach. However, things don’t always go as planned! I ended up taking a few more positions, and my classes seem to be a lot more time consuming and involved than I had anticipated.

With that being said, I am so excited for this semester! Some things I’m stoked about are:

Living in the new residence hall: I was lucky enough to be moved into the brand new residence hall as an RA for this semester. The hall is gorgeous, and I’m so happy to be able to be one of the first to experience it. I’ll write about the New Hall separately in another post coming up!

My classes: I know it sounds nerdy, but I am loving my classes so far. I’m taking Management of Production Operations, Project Management in Aviation Operations, International Aviation Management, and Strategic Management (capstone class). Each of these classes are super interesting to me, and I feel like I will learn a lot this semester. At the end of the Project Management class we will be prepared to take the certification test to become a Certified Associate in Project Management, which is a internationally recognized certification that we can put on our resumes (how cool is that?!).

Travel: As always, I am excited to experience new places, as well as visit some familiar cities. I’ll be traveling to Seattle, Los Angeles, and Denver to meet with students who have been accepted to ERAU. Additionally, I will be making a trip out to Dallas to find my new home there! I can’t wait to go back to Dallas and look for the perfect apartment, as well as get a better feel for the city. Lastly, I’m hoping Spring Break will take me to a new destination. It’s still in the works, but I’m sure I’ll find somewhere to spend my last Spring Break.

Of course, there is so much more to look forward to over the next few months. Overall, I am just focusing on enjoying my last few months in Daytona, learning as much as I can in my classes, and continuing to foster great relationships with friends.

Until next time,

Lindsey

It’s Almost Summer!

Posted on April 29, 2016 by Nicolas

Last Thursday was the final day of classes of the Spring 2016 semester. Friday is a study day before the first day of exams starts. The Hunt Library is providing donuts and other snacks to students in the evening in an event called “Cram With Cookies.” I have no idea why “cookies” is mentioned because they mainly serve donuts…strange.

Finals will begin on Saturday and continue from Monday to Wednesday evening. I was lucky this semester to be exempted from a few final exams. In my Airport Management class (BA 310), we did not have any quizzes nor exams throughout the semester which was fun. Instead, the professor gave us four assignments related to the airport industry, such as airport security. At the end of the semester we were assigned a large group project and a take home final exam consisting of four short essays which were quite similar to the assignments.

In my Airline-Operations class, we had a total of two exams during the semester, excluding the final. The professor would drop the lowest grade of the three exams so you didn’t have to take the final if you were satisfied with your current grade in the course.

This semester I have to take three finals: International Aviation Management (BA 426), Corporate Finance I (BA 332), and Managerial Accounting (BA 312). Like my colleague Jack mentioned in his latest story, most of the finals in the College of Business are just a regular test and are not cumulative. My only cumulative exam is in my Finance class where I will have to refresh my mind with the material we studied back in January.

This weekend, I plan to study for finals obviously and enjoy my last days in the beautiful sunny and warm weather of Florida before heading back home for the summer. On Monday, I am taking a study break as I will be flying to Atlanta to be onboard’s Delta’s inaugural passenger flight of the Airbus A321 that was just delivered over a month ago. The airline has ordered a total of 82 airframes. The first flight is scheduled to depart Atlanta (ATL) at 8:55AM and arrive at 10:19AM in Orlando (MCO). Stay tuned for a summary of the flight and some pictures!

Photo Credits: Delta

In the meantime, I wish all of the students from our Daytona Beach, Prescott, and Worldwide campus good luck on their finals. Go Eagles!

Until next time!

Nicolas

Contact the author at berniern@my.erau.edu

5th Week Update

Posted on February 9, 2016 by Skye

Happy Monday everyone! Or should I say one of the busiest Mondays ever! I hope your weekend was great! Congratulations to the Denver Broncos on their Super Bowl 50 win! It was really an amazing game. Defensive and offensive. I don’t really follow football, but I did go for the Carolina Panthers solely because I liked the color blue on their uniforms. Anyway, it’s the 5^th week of school! One of the craziest weeks scheduled so far! As for today, I had class from 8:00a – 12:00p. I lucked out and did not have a quiz in Physics today. Everyone was exhausted and I am assuming the teacher was too. From 12:00p – 5:00p it was studying after studying for my calculus exam tomorrow. 5:00p – 7:00p was an officers meeting for Society 4 S.P.A.C.E. We got a lot accomplished! We decided on our trip to NASA’s Kennedy Space Center, the website, and also decided to host a fundraiser next Tuesday! Progress!

Unfortunately this is not the end of my day. 7:30p – 8:00p dinner, 8:00p – 9:00p studying for calculus, again, 9:00p – odd hours of the night studying calculus with a friend – whenever I sleep is humanities homework. So a very packed and crazy Monday/Tuesday. However, I really am excited for this week because I have my first NASA Solar System Ambassador (SSA) telecom with NASA! Super exciting! I have to complete my Orientation and Training tomorrow along with my other homework. At this rate, this week may never end!

BUT it is a holiday week! A double header…almost! Valentine’s Day is on Sunday! A time for love and love and more love. I am a very crafty person and have a lot of fun creative gifts for my boyfriend. I also plan on making cupcakes for my friends. For all of you Valentine’s Day celebraters, have fun! Love and give someone a hug! Or a cupcake! President’s Day is on Monday and we do not have school. Yay break!

Almost a break for me, I have a research meeting, lunch meeting, fundraising meeting, and officer meeting on Monday so looks like more going and going. I will tell you this, one thing about Riddle that I love is that it doesn’t matter if it is the classes, or the clubs, you will ALWAYS be busy. For a person like me, who loves being busy, I absolutely love it. If I am not busy, I will find something to do whether that is to finally start my Russian Rosetta Stone, read, or watch Netflix. When I am busy, I feel like I am creating the best out of life. I am in college, this is the time to work your butt off for the career you want, and I feel like I am fulfilling that to the max! It makes me happy.

Speaking about college and career, registration for summer classes is on Wednesday! For the crazy people like me, I will be attending Summer A and B. However, for those of you on the fence about summer classes, here is some advice from someone who took summer classes last semester, me. I personally LOVE summer classes. It is tough and condensed, but you get the chance to get ahead and leave the “not so fun classes” for the summer, therefore you knock them out a lot quicker. It gives you a quicker graduation date, which means starting your career quicker. Think about it.

Anyway, it’s off to dinner and more studying/homework for me. Have a great week everyone and study hard!

My Life @ Riddle

Daytona Beach Edition

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