My Winter Break Plans

We are only a few days away from officially starting winter break here at South, and I am so excited for the chance to relax and spend time with friends and family during Christmas.

Christmas time for my family is very busy and lively. We have parties called posadas almost every day leading up to Christmas, and a lot of my family members have birthdays in these next few weeks. That means that there will be plenty of family parties to attend during this break. I actually have a huge wedding to go to this weekend after finals, so that will be a nice way to start my break.

I'm also excited to spend time with my friends and my boyfriend. They all live back home, so I don't get to see them very often, especially recently. I'm really excited to be able to have more free time to spend with my friends without stressing out about having deadlines and exams to worry about.

I'm also excited to go Christmas shopping for all my loved ones. I haven't had the chance to shop for anyone, but I can't wait to buy and wrap presents for everyone. I also have plans to go see the Christmas lights with my friends and boyfriend. There's a Christmas festival back home that always has really pretty displays, and we might come see the displays here in Mobile.

And Honestly, the most exciting thing about going home for Christmas will be not having to drive long distances for a while and having nice home-cooked food for every meal.

Merry Christmas everyone! I hope everyone has a wonderful holiday season with their loved ones.

-Paola

Being a Communications Major!

Today I'll be sharing my experience as a communications major. I haven't been a communications major for very long. I actually left the nursing program last spring and have only been a communications major since summer 2018. So far, I do not regret my decision at all and have fallen in love with my new major. In this post, I'll be sharing some of my experiences as a communications major.

1. At USA you can select your major concentration and focus your curriculum in a specific area of communications.
 Students can concentration in strategic communications, which focuses on PR and advertising. That is my concentration, and I absolutely love it. Other concentrations include, journalism, digital cinema and television, and communication studies. Each concentration has unique courses in their curriculum.

2. As a Communications major, you do a lot of projects and presentations. 
Of course, this wouldn't be a communications degree if you didn't have to write papers and prepare presentations. Our assignments are always interesting though. Like today, I presented a group project in one of my classes, and we chose to rebrand the restaurant Applebee's for the project.

3. Classes always involve interesting discussions about current events
In most of my classes, we will spend time discussing current events as they relate to the topic at hand. I've been a part of discussions about so many different topics. It's so interesting to see how pervasive and relevant the field of communications is to society.

4. Even writing can be creative and fun. 
In fact, I'm currently working on writing a case study for my media ethics class on a crisis that cosmetics company faced earlier in the year. I love that I get to research about any topic that I want and still make it applicable to the field. 

5. You get to learn more about inner workings of advertising and public relations. 
Advertising and PR are much more complex than some people imagine. I've loved learning about all the different approaches to each field.

-Paola 

A Typical Week in my Life as a Jag

Today, I'll be sharing a typical day in my life as a student here at USA. I don't have a very exciting life; most of the time I stick to my typical routine of going to school and work during the week, and will go out with my friends or boyfriend on the weekends whenever everyone is available. Other than that I generally like to stay home and relax with Netflix or a book. I am very much an introvert, so I definitely prefer to stay at home most of the time. Nonetheless, here is a small glimpse into what my life is like here.


Sunday
Usually I'll just go to church with my family on Sundays. Then I'll drive back to Mobile to come to work in the afternoon. After work, I'll study and prepare for the upcoming school week and watch TV.

Monday
I only have two classes on Mondays that don't start until 10:00. I usually get to sleep in a little and I get out of class by 12:00. After classes, I usually will go grocery shopping if I need to. Then I go to work in the afternoon, and when I come back in the evening, I will study and do homework.

Tuesday
Tuesdays are a longer day for me. I have classes from 9:30 to 2:00 and work after that until 7:00. After work, I will do any homework I may have and watch Netflix if I have the time.

Wednesday
Wednesdays are my favorite day. I have the least amount of classes, no work, and I get to watch American Horror Story in the evening. Usually, I'll spend the day cleaning my apartment and doing laundry after class. If I have any homework or studying to do, I'll usually do that later in the evening.

Thursday
Thursdays are much like my Tuesdays. I have class until 2:00 and work until 5:00. After work, I sometimes have club meetings at 6:00. After I get home, I'll watch Grey's Anatomy and study.

Friday
On Fridays, I only have one class. After class, I'll go back to my apartment, and relax and enjoy my free time. I'll go to home on Fridays if I don't have anything to do in Mobile during the weekend.

Saturday
On Saturdays, I'll spend most of the day at home relaxing and watching Netflix. If I'm home, I'll help my mom around at the house and spend time with my siblings during the day. In the evening I'll go outwith my friends and/or boyfriend.

5 Interesting Facts About Me

 Hi My name is Paola, and here are some interesting facts about me. 

1. I am from Mexico
I am originally from Guadalajara, Mexico. I only lived there for 2 years after I was born, but I go back nearly every year to visit family. I love my culture, the food, the traditions. I do speak Spanish fluently and have a strong connection to my culture. 


2.  I am the oldest of 5 siblings 
 I have 3 brothers and 1 sister that are all between 19 and 4 years old. I spend a lot of time with the kids when I go home on the weekends. People sometimes even confuse my 4-year-old brother as my son because he is always by my side.

3. I love makeup :)
I looove to do my makeup and practice when I'm bored. I can spend hours watching videos of people putting on makeup and be mesmerized the entire time. I've been growing my collection the past few years, and I love seeing all the beautiful items I have.  
 
4. I want to work in the cosmetics industry
I am a strategic communications major, and my ultimate goal is to work in the cosmetics industry. I would love to work for a major cosmetics company as a social media coordinator or PR specialist or events coordinator. I love planning and organizing events and projects and would love to be able to do that in a creative industry.

5. I love interior design
I really enjoy getting lost in the home decor departments of different stores and find new items to decorate my apartment. I looooooove decorating for all the holidays, especially Halloween and Christmas. Our door is always decorated with some sort of seasonal or holiday decor. 
   

My First Time Visiting USA

The first time I ever visited campus was on Scholars Night in the spring semester of my senior year of high school. I had already been admitted to the university and was invited to this event in recognition of the Freshman Admissions scholarship I had received.

I had never really been to campus before that night, and I was excited to see a little bit of the school that I might attend in the future. I really enjoyed the event that day. We were treated to a meal during the program, and we got to learn more about the university. All the faculty that spoke at the event were so friendly and seemed so passionate about the university. They really made us feel like we belonged there. I actually still have some pictures from that night, so that you can see what it was like.

Paola in front of the College of Arts & Science banner

Paola and Evy with their USA T-shirts 

A partial group picture at Scholars Night 2015 

After that night, I could really see myself going to USA for my undergraduate degree, and USA became my first choice. I really encourage everyone who is interested in USA but hasn't visited campus yet to come to a USA day or tour the university. We just had an amazing USA day last weekend and it was so interesting to see all the information and sessions we offered to the potential students that came.


-Paola

How I Enjoy My Time Off

It's not always easy to balance taking care of yourself, school, work and social activities without feeling like you've neglected at least one of those parts. So, whenever I do have a break, like we do this week, I try to make sure I really take advantage and have some well deserved me-time. There are a few things that always make me feel better, and I hope that these tips can help you now or in the future.

At Home Spa Anyone? 
The one thing that I love to do is pamper myself when I've had a rough week or finally have a vacation. I love to just relax and give myself a little at home spa day. I'll paint my nails, shape my eyebrows, and load up on face masks and hair masks that will nourish my skin and hair. I also love to just light some candles and take a nice, long bubble bath.

Up for a good book?
I also love to read a good book. I will take any opportunity to read a good book that I've been waiting to have enough time to read uninterrupted. Once I get immersed in a book, I don't like having to constantly stop to do other things. That's why I always love it when I get a long weekend to just read.

How can I forget Netflix?

It definitely isn't a long weekend break without some designated Netflix time. I love to watch TV, but when you're so busy with work and school, it's very hard to make time for things like that. That's why I take any break from school as an opportunity to catch up on all the shows I have to watch on Netflix. I currently have a long list of shows that I want to watch and will definitely be catching up on this fall break.

-Paola 

Five Tips for First Time University Students

I know transitioning from high school to a four year university can seem overwhelming. I know when I was preparing to graduate from high school there were so many things that I had to do that I didn't even know where to start. In this post, I want to give you some tips that I learned to help ease the transition from high school student to university student. 

1.  Get to know your curriculum: Once you've decided what you want as your major, get to know the types of classes you'd have to take, especially for your first year. When I first started I didn't know anything about my curriculum until I went into orientation and had to make my schedule. Almost every major has a sample four year plan or course checklist that can help you figure out the classes you have to take each semester. That way you can plan ahead of time and not fall behind.
2. Make lists and checklists of everything you need to do: there are going to be a lot of things for you to do as you transition and it's best to organize yourself and make lists and notes. I made checklists for everything, from what I needed for my dorm to everything I needed to turn in to register for classes.
3. Get to know your school's website: Trust me the school website will be your best friend. I have all the different website bookmarked on my computer because every time I have a question the first place I look is the school's website. 
4. Take advantage of any friend's you may have that have already made the transition: When I was getting ready to go to South I asked all my older cousins and friends for advice and tips they had on what I needed to do to make my first year at university easier. Don't be afraid to ask people. I can assure you most of us are eager to share our experiences and knowledge on how to navigate college.
5. Get to know your campus: My biggest piece of advice is to get to know how your campus works. It is so important to get to know where all the buildings you will need are. I suggest you open your maps app on your phone and star/save the locations of all the buildings you'll need, like the student center, your class buildings, the library. That way when you're walking to class you can just follow the map and not be worried that you'll get lost. 

-Paola