Veronika Bordas
Harvard University
NSHSS Student Council and Claes Nobel
Academic Scholarship Recipient

The Memorial Church's bells toll noon as I rush out of the lecture hall along with the hundred-some other students in my math class. Hoisting my bag onto my shoulder and trying to zip up my jacket at the same time, I fight for a place at the turnstile. Maybe I should have gone to the doors at the far end instead. Outside, I feel the wind and realize that, despite the clear skies I had seen when I left my dorm but an hour ago, it's pouring. I pick up my pace, not only to get out of the rain faster, but also because I need to get to class, and I need to cross Harvard Yard to get there. Upon reaching the Yard, I see the great challenge before me: so many people blocking my way, many of them with cameras and directing others as to where they should stand. The walkways are crammed. I'd cut across the grass, except, since it's raining pretty hard, the unpaved areas are more like muddy swamp. Yes, it's Friday, but why are tourists here when it's raining? We should get more than seven minutes to get from class to class on rainy Fridays.

In case you're wondering whether I ever got to class that day, I won't keep you in suspense--I did. One thing that still amazes me as I walk around campus is how many tourists there are on any given day. I'll see them walking about, usually in pairs or small groups, on weekdays. Then on Fridays and on weekends there are the huge groups, 30-plus people. Though not typical of many college campuses, I'd call tourists a part of a Harvard student's everyday life. But there is more to my life here than tourists.

Back in September and October, I had felt strange referring to myself as a "college student," for I hadn't really gone through the college lifestyle. By now, I guess I am more of one. One way I find college different from high school academically is that I get to choose my own classes--and not just some, but all. Harvard has a core curriculum, so I'll have to take a course in some specified areas, but even then I have the freedom of choosing the class among the many to satisfy my core requirement, and can choose when to do so. I really enjoy my classes right now. What's also very different is how few grades count for the majority of the final grade. For example, my political philosophy class grade largely depends on three papers and a final exam. Also a change is that when reading is assigned, it's not like in high school, that you know you will be quizzed on it the next day. And although I'm in the classroom less frequently than in high school, I have much more work to keep me occupied. I like this flexibility of my schedule: for example, each day I have my first class at 11, so I'll usually wake up at 10:45, then go to lecture. Some days I'll only have class from 11-12, then 12-1, and I'll have the rest of the afternoon completely free for studying.

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