Graduation is on the horizon. This weeek I sat down with Catherine Vogt and Jenn Klix to talk about their time at Hamilton.
How do you feel with graduation nearly four weeks away?
Catherine:
“I feel like these past four years went by, especially comparing now to my freshman year, it was COVID. It just feels like a very different world. When I was abroad, it felt like going into the real world, so I have a taste of that, but I’m also going to miss being on a college campus, seeing my friends every day.
Jenn:
“I feel similarly. I think I’m ready to go, but definitely trying to soak it all in before we leave. I’ve changed so much as a person here and I just really value the time I’ve had here and the friends I’ve made and the wonderful things I’ve learned about people. I’m excited to take that knowledge and apply it somewhere else.”
Do you feel like you’ve changed over the course of your time at Hamilton?
Catherine:
“I’ve definitely changed over the past four years. I’m definitely much more secure than I was my freshman year. I think it ’s really interesting looking back on freshman year me how different I was and how much my personality’s grown. I was very quiet and anxious in high school. So I think Hamilton and being in this environment has really allowed me to grow in that sense.”
Jenn:
“I mean, absolutely. I think the core is still there but I’ve gained so much knowledge about people and neuroscience. I’ve fallen in love with the field I’m in. I just, I feel like I picked the right major. Thinking about freshman Jenn — she didn’t even know what research was. I’m so privileged I’ve now done a thesis and worked in different labs and like I’m going into this field which is something I could not have even imagined freshman year.”
What advice would you give to students in the grade below you about how to get the most out of their Hamilton experience?
Catherine:
“I think Hamilton has a lot of great opportunities, but you can’t just wait on them to come to you. You have to actively seek them out. Take the initiative to join a club. Pretty much just like, exploring what you want to explore and not just sitting back and waiting for things to happen to you because that’s just not how you’ll change or grow.”
Jenn:
“I think my biggest piece of advice is talk to as many people as you can. Everyone here has a story and they’re all interesting. You would be doing yourself a disservice to not be friendly. Say what you mean. Compliment people. Ask questions, professors, students, faculty, staff alike. There are so many cool people here. We’re all in such a concentrated area too. Now is the time.”
What has been a meaningful extracurricular experience for you at Hamilton?
Catherine:
“I think WHCL. I’ve had a radio show since my freshman fall, and I’ve been on the E-Board since my sophomore fall, and I’ve met so many cool people through that. Musicians on campus, people who are just interested in music separately. When I was a sophomore, being able to become friends with seniors who kind of served as role models for the brief year we were together. I also really enjoyed planning events and coordinating the radio station with people who are so passionate about music and sharing that space with so many different faces of campus since the E-Board is a new group every semester.”
Jenn:
“Working for res life, and I also got to be a first-year course mentor. I was a freshman in both the FYC mentor position, and I was an RA my sophomore year. I just really enjoyed being able to help people transition because I had a pretty abrupt transition into Hamilton myself. To meet younger students and know they’re going to grow into something so different in four years. It’s just cool to see people at the beginning.”
Is there a particular moment that you remember when you realized that Hamilton was a place that you belonged?
Catherine:
“I remember my freshman fall. We all left early in the beginning of November. I remember a few days before I left, I went out on Minor Field and just kind of laid out there like at sunset. I just had this poignant moment of like, even though it was a very COVID filled semester, like I was still able to make connections and make the most of what I could. I just kind of reflected on how much I had grown even in those past three months compared to high school.”
Jenn:
“Not a specific moment but when I first met my close group of friends sophomore year. I remember, like, kind of the period of time where we had gotten past talking about situational things like, high school COVID.We just kind of started to talk about our thoughts. They were just the first friends I’d ever had that I could just talk about truly anything with. We talked about our theories and what we thought about the world. I just remember we were walking on G Road, and I was like, this is it. Like, these are the coolest friends I’ve ever had. And I’m so excited to get to grow with them.
What are your top three favorite memories at Hamilton?
Catherine:
“One of my favorite memories is my club soccer senior day. The underclassmen made posters for us. We got roses. It was a full circle moment. Another memory was in this suite in August when it was like a hundred degrees and we all hung out for the first time until like 4:00 a.m. just spewing whatever nonsense that we spew. It was really just like the first time we all hung out and connected and I think it was like the first ‘Kiki’ as I would call it. Then my junior year the fall concert of Peach Pit was super awesome. They’re one of my favorite bands and I got in the front row and they crowd surfed over me.”
Jenn:
“I remember it was in an education class my sophomore year. It was my first really interesting Socratic seminar style class. I just remember sitting there and being like, wow, I really like learning. It was the first time I ’ve felt inspired by school in like a really, really long time. This suite as a whole has just been really awesome. I, like, we are truly the best. I think this is really part of the beauty of Hamilton, too. We are the most random group of people, maybe ever. And we have had such a blast. Another one is that my friend group abroad took a trip to Dingle, Ireland. We had the best time. It was in the middle of nowhere, like a tiny little colorful town. We were sitting with this beautiful view of the water, and we had gotten watercolor stuff from a craft store, and just like painted stupid little pictures, and I was like, ‘God, I love these people, and I love this place.’”
