My entire education has come within a five-mile radius.
I didn’t mean for it to happen that way, though, I promise. But as I tried to make my decision on which university I would call home over the next four years (as far away as possible, please!) the University of Miami came out on top.
Needless to say I initially wasn’t the happiest of campers. My parents forced me to live on campus, so Stanford it was. On came communal bathrooms and Chartwells. And a SportsFest defeat.
As fate would have it, during one of my first days of orientation, I saw a banner about joining The Miami Hurricane. Ever since I was a little girl I’ve wanted to write about sports. This was finally my opportunity to pursue my dream after spending high school playing on the field.
This, I thought, could be my place to fit in at UM.
Soccer was my first beat. I had played it practically my entire life and Stacey Arnold, the sports editor at the time, thought that would be a good starting point. At the end of my first semester, I got the chance to be on the sidelines for the final Orange Bowl game, though many of us would like to forget it.
Coming back on the Metro that night, there’s no way I could’ve imagined one day becoming editor-in-chief of the school paper. Or how four years could fly by faster than a Firebolt.
Sure, I had already heard that you make your lifelong friends in college. You also get to discover who you are.
So for those of you with more time left at the University of Miami, enjoy every moment of being here. This school has so many possibilities for you. Find your niche like I did when I asked to write for the student newspaper.
You can perform onstage at the Ring Theatre or intern with the Miami Heat. You can run for student government or take up research projects. Heck, hang out at the Rat’s new location as much as possible.
Whatever you do, leave your mark. You chose the University of Miami for a reason. Now back up your decision by making the most of it.
Christina De Nicola is a senior majoring in print journalism and sport administration. She will be an associate reporter for MLB.com covering the Florida Marlins after graduation. She may be contacted at cdenicola@themiamihurricane.com.