Every Thursday, Simran Singh hops onto Zoom at 6 p.m. from her single in Warren Towers. The regular Zoom meetings are for BU Student Government’s Communications department, where she serves as Marketing Officer in the social media team. Singh always bright and energetic during meetings, despite juggling her full course load, numerous extracurricular activities, and an internship.
At Boston University, most students are heavily involved in clubs and on-campus organizations. Singh is the perfect example—in addition to student government, she is an RA at Warren; a peer mentor for Transition to BU, CAS FY101, and BU Global Programs; a fellow at both Marsh Chapel and the Boston Interfaith Leadership Initiative through Hebrew College; treasurer at the BU Undergraduate World Languages and Literature Association; as well as a member of the Undergraduate Psychology Association and the Psi Chi International Psychology Honor Society. Her long list of activities might sound intimidating to most, but she credits her activities as essential to her growth.
“All of these involvements have helped boost my leadership, interpersonal, and time management skills,” Singh said. “They’ve taught me about myself, my goals, and other people.”
“As soon as I got started,” Singh said, “I was excited because I was put on a case receiving a lot of media attention that was an intersection of the law, public health, as well as patient-client-attorney relations.”
She was initially drawn to the opportunity to do work in areas in which she hadn’t had any experience—she has been able to get that experience and loves it.
Still, first and foremost, Singh is a student. She is a junior studying Middle Eastern and South Asian Languages and Literatures. Her path to the major has been an unpredictable one. Singh started her college career as a biomedical science major at a Philadelphia-based healthcare specialty school.
“After realizing I wanted more than what the university could offer me,” Singh said, “I took the leap of faith and came to BU as a psychology major.”
It took a while for her to find her passion, but sure enough, she did.
“Last fall I took a literature class for the first time and fell in love with the subject,” Singh said. “This coupled with my penchant for learning languages such as Arabic led me to explore the Middle Eastern and South Asian Languages and Literatures major. This semester, I decided to only take courses for this major and ended up loving them all and officially made the switch from psychology.”
For fellow students struggling with their academic journey of discovery, Singh recommends trying not to let other people bring you down.
“Study something you love and you will definitely see the fruits of your actions come to life,” she said.
As for involvement, she recommends just putting yourself out there.
“You have no idea who you might meet, what you might learn, or what you might do!” Singh said. “Attend Splash, go to random BU events, talk to people in classes and to your professors! Every person has something valuable to offer in your life whether that be as a friend, a colleague, or just a buddy you say ‘h’” to while walking down Comm. Ave.”
She also suggests taking full advantage of BU resources and programs, like the Educational Resource Center and Center for Career Development.
With a busy schedule like hers, it’s extra important to remember to recharge and rest! Singh likes to put some music on and stroll down the esplanade.
“If the weather isn’t cooperating,” she said laughing. “I also find solace in playing music out loud and just sitting down in my bed and taking time for myself to just be me and reflect.”
Self-care has been brought to the forefront in this hybrid semester, and Singh admits it has been a very different experience from prior semesters. She likes to look on the bright side though—the trials of LfA are a great thing to bond over. As for advice, she recommends to everyone to “be honest with others because even if you feel alone, a lot of the time the people around you and your professors can understand how you are feeling.”
Singh is looking forward to a more normal semester in the fall, but in the meantime, she’ll keep juggling her commitments, enjoying her Arabic classes, and recharging with scenic walks—weather permitting—and musical reflections.
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