HC: Hello Amara, it’s great talking to you today. Could you introduce yourself?
Amara: Hi, I’m Amara Cut and I am a freshman at University of Illinois at Chicago.
HC: And what are you studying?
Amara: I’m studying Psychology right now.
HC: Do you know what you want to do after college?
Amara: Yeah, I really want to be a child psychologist.
HC: Is that something you have always wanted to do?
Amara: No, I wanted to be an architect when, I think, I was about 12 and then when I started to learn about psychology when I was about 15 I got really into it and wanted to learn more about it and yeah, I’m really passionate about it.
HC: That’s cool, and why did you choose to come to UIC?
Amara: Well first of all I’ve always loved Chicago. I’ve heard a lot of good things about UIC and they also gave me a scholarship and this school back in Omaha (my hometown) wasn’t really that great and so I thought why not go to Chicago for the diversity and have some change in my life.
HC: Yeah, and do you like Chicago still?
Amara: Yep, I do.
HC: Is there anything that you are involved in at UIC outside of the academics?
Amara: Yeah, I’m currently in a club called AASIA, it stands for Asian American Students in Alliance, it’s basically a club that unites a bunch of Asian Americans as well as non-Asians an we just discuss things that are happening in our lives.
HC: Has it helped you transition at UIC?
Amara: Yeah, it really has helped me transition because I’ve made some friends from there and we do a lot of activities that help us de-stress and it’s really cool.
HC: Do you feel like your culture is really encouraged here at UIC and like you are helped to become in tune with it?
Amara: Yes, definitely. I feel really accepted here and it feels great to be here.
HC: That’s good. What’s one piece of advice that you wish people would have given you before you started here?
Amara: Um, I think people need to really emphasize getting involved, because I know people told me “oh you should join ‘blah-blah-blah’” but everyone was emphasizing that I turn in my homework on time and do all of my work but they didn’t really stress how getting involved can really help you feel like you belong.
HC: And do you feel like the clubs that you are in have really helped you feel like you belong here?
Amara: Yes
HC: Good. Do you think you’re going to stick with UIC?
Amara: Definitely.
HC: And what’s you’re favorite thing about UIC?
Amara: Well first, the diversity, and second, the classes they offer. I really enjoy my classes and overall the environment is just really nice. People are nice here and really accepting of others and I love it.
HC: That’s awesome, and what is one thing about college that is different than you thought it would be?
Amara: That for every hour of time in class, you need to spend an hour studying outside of class. This isn’t true, I just study as much as I need because each class has a different level of difficulty and amount of homework that needs to be done so I just study at my own pace.
HC: I definitely agree. Well thank you Amara, it was great talking to you!
Amara: No problem, thank you.