Does every job and position you hear about sound interesting and fun this semester? Do you find yourself attending every info session you can get your hands on? Have you made plans for summer internships three years from now? Are you ignoring the possibility of overextending yourself and being stressed out of your mind?

Congratulations! You have finally returned back to Scripps College!

In my case, I am returning back from studying abroad in Osaka, Japan during the fall 2013 semester. While I truly loved my time abroad, I really did miss being a part of the Scripps community. It feels like so many things happened here without me, like a group of friends who all bonded around an inside joke — for which I missed its creation. Perhaps that’s why I’m applying to so many things this semester, because this is my way of coping. It reconfirms for me that I am present here in Claremont and that there are aspects of this college that depend on my interests and my decisions. I’ve felt so detached from Scripps recently that the only way to get that connection back is to try to participate in anything and everything, all of the things I dreamed of accomplishing while I’m in here.

Now I’m not saying that I am simply applying everywhere for the sake of overextending myself; every single position to which I’m applying sounds like an incredible and amazing opportunity. They are all extremely varied and range from volunteer positions at local hospitals (something you’ll probably hear a lot more about from me as the semester goes on) to on-campus leadership positions that will aid me in becoming re-engrained in campus life. But this doesn’t change the fact that, since I’ve been back on campus, I seem to consciously realize how little time I have left. Scripps has provided me with so many amazing opportunities and experiences and I guess I’m just trying to grab up as many as I can before I am forced to graduate.  I hope that we can explore all of the opportunities this rising senior has throughout the semester!