Why College Really Can Be The Best 4 Years of Your Life! By Sofie Ramirez, '22

Hofstra student and undergraduate assistant in the Office of Parent and Family Programs, Sofie Ramirez, '22, shares with us her experiences in and out of Hofstra classroom. How can she be an A student, work two jobs on campus, and be involved in 5 clubs?! Sofie shares her advice to your student:

My entire high school career I was just living for the future, for the resume, for whatever came next. I was incredibly busy with honor societies, clubs, music programs, anything that would set me apart in an application process. Don’t get me wrong I enjoyed what I did, but I could never fully appreciate it because I wasn’t doing it for who I was in that moment, I was doing it for whoever I wanted to be the next day. Everything was set up to something bigger and it wasn’t until coming to Hofstra last fall that I realized I didn’t have to live that way anymore. Don’t get me wrong I am still very busy (probably now more than ever!) but the things I’m doing aren’t to impress anyone else by adding it to my LinkedIn profile, for the first time ever, it’s for me! 

Since coming to Hofstra I have opened my eyes to a world of possibilities that I thought was completely out of my league. I thought I wouldn’t have the time or the resources and I thought that I might not belong. But Hofstra isn’t like high school, there’s no little cliques, no social rules that we have to abide by, telling us who we get to be. We really can be anything. Since coming here I have been a part of 2 academic programs, the Legal Education Accelerated Program (LEAP) and Hofstra University’s Honors College (HUHC), I have 2 jobs (an undergraduate assistant for Hofstra’s Parent and Family Programs and a Resident Assistant for the HUHC dorms), I am a part of 5 clubs, Hofstra’s Hillel (center for Jewish life on campus), Yoga Club, a pre-law fraternity, HOLA (Hofstra’s Organization for Latinx Americans) and the Rock Climbing Club, all while taking a full class load of 17 credits. 

This is a huge departure from who I was in high school, I was the complete band geek, nerd type who didn’t get out much and was either practicing one of my instruments or studying for an exam in the library. Now, I have such a diverse set of interests that I would not have been able to pursue had it not been for Hofstra’s extensive opportunities and inviting community. Every single club and program on this campus has the capacity to be a home for students here, a chance to grow, develop and change. The only caveat is that you have to be open to the experience. You can go from band geek to club athlete, from bookworm to student leader, you can come out of your shell and be the person you were planning to be tomorrow, today.