Successful Student Profile #1

Michelle

BEFORE LOYOLA

Michelle attended an all-girls Catholic school on the Northwest side of Chicago. Her father was a Chicago police officer for many years, and their neighborhood was home to many police officers and firefighters. Michelle loved her single-sex education where she feels she was given many leadership opportunities and she gained a lot of confidence in her academic ability. Michelle is the second eldest in her sibling group of five. She has a lot of responsibility in her family because her older brother has severe physical and mental disabilities. In high school, she did two years of independent microbiological research and was editor of her school’s newspaper. One of her passions is ballet, which she has danced for the past 16 years. Michelle was also valedictorian of her senior class.

FIRST YEAR AT LUC

Michelle decided to attend Loyola at the last minute. She planned to attend the University of Chicago, but felt that she wanted her education to honor and advance her spiritual life. From her interactions with faculty and staff before coming to Loyola, she felt strongly that people at Loyola genuinely cared about her. Here at Loyola, Michelle is in the Honors Program and lives on the Honors floor of Simpson Living and Learning Center. She made friends quickly because many of her floor-mates live and take classes together. She could have commuted to school, but being on campus has helped Michelle gain independence and start her own life in college. In the spring, Michelle started working as a Student Ambassador, and she is a note-taker for the Office of Students with Disabilities. She spent a month in Guatemala this summer and hopes to get involved in more service work next year. Michelle earned a cumulative GPA of 3.868 in her first year.

WORDS OF WISDOM

1. “Turn over a new leaf.” Instead of exploiting your new-found independence in college, Michelle sees going to college as a great time to start new habits and rededicate yourself to working hard in school.

2. “Get involved in your course work first.” Michelle she spent the first months of college engaging in her classes, talking with her professors and getting acclimated to her academic life at Loyola before diving into extra-curricular activities. That strategy helped her feel settled and on the road to success in her studies.

3. “Honors students: Hang in there!” Michelle agrees that the courses for the Honors program are challenging and at times frustrating, but without a doubt, she says the experience is well worth the effort.

Time	Monday	Tuesday	Wednesday	Thursday	Friday	Saturday	Sunday
6 a.m.	Sleep	Breakfast	Sleep	Breakfast @ Simpson	Sleep	Sleep	Sleep
7 a.m.	Breakfast@ Simpson Homework Shower Lunch @ Simpson	YOGA CLASS	Breakfast @ Simpson Homework Shower	YOGA CLASS	Breakfast @ Simpson Homework Shower Lunch @ Simpson
8 a.m.		Homework Shower Lunch @ Simpson		Homework Shower Lunch @ Simpson
9 a.m.						Shower Breakfast @ Simpson	Shower Breakfast @ Simpson
10 a.m.	HONOR'S DISCUSSION		HONOR'S DISCUSSION		HONOR'S DISCUSSION	STUDENT AMBASSADOR TOURS	Homework Cleaning Laundry Downtown Lunch and Dinner @ Simpson
11 a.m.	HONOR'S LECTURE		HONOR'S LECTURE		HONOR'S LECTURE
12 p.m.		BIOL 102		BIOL 102
1 p.m.	SPAN 251	THEO 180	SPAN 251	THEO 180	SPAN 251
2 p.m.	STUDENT AMBASSADOR TOURS	Lunch @ Simpson Relax	Lunch @ Simpson	BIOL 112	STUDENT AMBASSADOR TOURS
3 p.m.			Biology Discussion			Lunch @ Simpson Relax
4 p.m.
5 p.m.	Dinner @ Simpson	Homework (Echo Chamber in Library)	Dinner @ Simpson	Dinner   @ Simpson Relax	“Homework” Relax	Dinner @ Simpson
6 p.m.	Homework (Echo Chamber in Library)		Homework (Echo Chamber in Library)			Homework (Echo Chamber in Library)
7 p.m.				Homework (Echo Chamber in Library )
8 p.m.		Dinner @ Simpson
9 p.m.		HAS MEETING	TAIZE PRAYER				MASS
10 p.m.		Homework (Echo Chamber in Library)	Homework (Echo Chamber in Library)		MOVIE OR GOING OUT W/ FRIENDS		Homework (Echo Chamber in Library)
11 p.m.						MOVIE OR GOING OUT W/ FRIENDS
12 a.m.
1 a.m.	Sleep	Sleep	Sleep
2 a.m.				Sleep		Sleep	Sleep
3 a.m.					Sleep
4 a.m.
5 a.m.