Be Here Now

Lauren. 20 yrs. From NJ, I go to Syracuse University. Don't follow me if you aren't ready to hear how much I love my school. This is my random blog, purely for my own enjoyment. I have a more serious photoblog here: http://laurenmurphyphoto.tumblr.com/

Jan 10th at 9PM / tagged: personal. / Notes
It’s finally happened. The pain is finally over and a new chapter is beginning for me. I don’t like to write long posts like this, but this is probably the most important thing that has happened to me in a while. I’ve finally been able to switch into the photojournalism program at my school. Switching majors sounds easy and simple, right? Absolutely wrong. You see, at Syracuse, to switch into different schools within the university, it’s a lot more complicated than asking your advisor to change your major. No, for me it wasn’t complicated actually. GPA. That is as simple as it was. Who has the best GPA? Rank each applicant from highest GPA to lowest and we’ll cut it off wherever the numbers lie. It’s the most screwed up way of determining who can be admitted to a program such as photojournalism or graphic design, but that is just how the system is. And for over a year and a half I’ve been struggling to meet this standard. Before coming to Syracuse, having a decent high school GPA was not acceptable, even if it meant you were connected to a notable alum, built your own website, or even traveled with National Geographic. None of that mattered. Rejected. Fast forward to summer after freshman year, a 3.7 GPA wasn’t good enough. Rejected again. And the heartbreak so awful I thought I would be stuck majoring in something I felt much less than passionate about. Maybe your major doesn’t really matter in end. But to be so close to being able to say “Yes, I major in photojournalism and I’m damn proud” was all I could think about.  So for the past month I’ve been waiting to get that third rejection. And to turn this post into a positive one, I can say that rejection never came. I received a welcoming call the other day, telling me I was in. I’m so very happy and ready to start something new.

It’s finally happened. The pain is finally over and a new chapter is beginning for me. I don’t like to write long posts like this, but this is probably the most important thing that has happened to me in a while. I’ve finally been able to switch into the photojournalism program at my school. Switching majors sounds easy and simple, right? Absolutely wrong. You see, at Syracuse, to switch into different schools within the university, it’s a lot more complicated than asking your advisor to change your major. No, for me it wasn’t complicated actually. GPA. That is as simple as it was. Who has the best GPA? Rank each applicant from highest GPA to lowest and we’ll cut it off wherever the numbers lie. It’s the most screwed up way of determining who can be admitted to a program such as photojournalism or graphic design, but that is just how the system is. And for over a year and a half I’ve been struggling to meet this standard. Before coming to Syracuse, having a decent high school GPA was not acceptable, even if it meant you were connected to a notable alum, built your own website, or even traveled with National Geographic. None of that mattered. Rejected. Fast forward to summer after freshman year, a 3.7 GPA wasn’t good enough. Rejected again. And the heartbreak so awful I thought I would be stuck majoring in something I felt much less than passionate about. Maybe your major doesn’t really matter in end. But to be so close to being able to say “Yes, I major in photojournalism and I’m damn proud” was all I could think about. 

So for the past month I’ve been waiting to get that third rejection. And to turn this post into a positive one, I can say that rejection never came. I received a welcoming call the other day, telling me I was in. I’m so very happy and ready to start something new.



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