Christine Corcoran is Loving College
Safely ensconced back on the University of Delaware campus and immersed once again in weighty studies, Christine Corcoran, a member of Huntington High School's Class of 2009, recently reflected on her first year of college.
"The past year has been great," Ms. Corcoran said. "I loved my freshman year at Delaware. The freshman roommate selections were random, but I ended up becoming best friends with my roommate, Megan, and we are living together again this year in a suite on one of the newest and nicest parts of campus."
At Huntington, Ms. Corcoran was an Advanced Placement Scholar and a member of three different honor societies. Huntington's teachers found her to be bright, thoughtful, well-spoken and a constant contributor to class discussions. Classmates held her in high esteem, too.
More recently, Ms. Corcoran has spent considerable time contemplating her future academic pursuits. "I came here undecided on a major, so I just took some general classes like calculus, English, psychology, philosophy, etc.," she said. "However, by the end of the school year, I decided I really wanted some more direction in my classes, so I went to career counseling to get some help picking a major." After giving it some thought, the Huntington alum declared a double major in psychology and criminal justice. She might even minor in Spanish.
This past summer was a "super busy" time for Ms. Corcoran, who in addition to socializing with her Huntington area friends, worked three or four nights a week at Outback Steakhouse and was a counselor at Camp Bay Club during the day. "I absolutely loved being a counselor there and I'm considering doing it again next summer."
This fall at Delaware, Ms. Corcoran is enrolled in child psychology, a criminal justice related course, Spanish, introduction to sociology and anthropology. "I absolutely love my classes," she said. "They're all very interesting and I'm glad I'm taking them because they're helping me think about what career I might be interested in pursuing in the future."
One of the most rewarding freshman experiences for Ms. Corcoran was her participation in the Smyth-Harrington Activities Counsel, which operates as a type of student government. "We planned events for our building, like a Halloween party, as well as study breaks during finals," she said. "I really enjoyed it so I'll probably be involved in my building's branch this year."
The Huntington grad hopes to contribute to Delaware's community service club this year, something she didn't find possible while adjusting to college life as a freshman. "In the spring I want to participate in a human emotions lab, which studies young children and interviews their parents," Ms. Corcoran said. "It would be a good experience for me as a psychology major and sounds really interesting."
Currently hunting for an on-campus job, Ms. Corcoran hopes to land a position as a Blue Hen ambassador and give campus tours to prospective students and their parents. "The Blue Hen ambassador program is competitive to get into, so I'm not banking on getting that job," she said.
After experiencing a fun summer back home, Ms. Corcoran has once again settled into college life. "I've only been at school for only a few weeks, but I feel like I never left from freshman year," she said. "I am loving my sophomore year so far and am so excited to see what this year will bring."