Journal entry regarding my Student Ambassador experience

Student Ambassador

in Reflective Thoughts on 10 August 2018 at 15:25
Last updated 12 August 2018 at 14:34

As I've said previously, one of my personal aims at university was to challenge myself and to put myself into new and uncomfortable situations. In doing so, I wanted to give myself a chance to grow.

We are so used to being comfortable. Well, of course right? Why would you want to put yourself in a situation filled with uncertainty? In a situation where you can't control the outcomes?

But this past year, I've realised its in those situations you really surprise yourself with your capabilities - perhaps you didn't even know you had them.

I set out to become a student ambassador. Stop, rewind - yes I really did that. The first surprise is that I even considered myself for the role. If you know me, you know that's not me. But yep, this was my year of challenges and not allowing myself to be comfortable, so on I went with this idea.

The process consisted of an application, interview, a ton of reading and memorising facts about the university, giving a practice tour and then the real thing.

Every step of the way was filled with doubt and uncertainty, but I surprised myself that I was still going. The interview was perhaps the most nerve-wracking experience of my life but (I think we've grasped the theme here) I did it! I got through it and here I am. I still often ask myself "What did they see in me?". But going back to the point, in uncomfortable situations you surprise yourself.

Once you've passed the interview you are given a book with all the information required when giving a campus tour for prospective students and their families. This had to be learnt and perfected in time for a practice tour you'd give to members of the ambassador team so they're certain you know your stuff and can give a tour unsupervised.

The weeks leading up to the practice tour were challenging. I had a number of essays I had to submit just days before the tour so I feared I wasn't putting enough work into learning the tour route and facts. At the same time, I didn't want to slip up on my academic work because of that's why I'm here.

It was a few intense weeks of trying to juggle both responsibilities. I made sure to get as much of my uni work completed during the day and set aside a few hours in the evening each day solely for the campus tour prep.

The practice tour didn't go as smoothly as I would have liked, I fumbled and I forgot a number of key points. Unfortunately, it wasn't enough to get the thumbs up. I was shattered, I thought I did enough and I could balance both but I was spreading myself too thin. The Ambassador team gave me another opportunity a few weeks later. This time I didn't have as many deadlines, so I could put in those few extra hours for the prep. And those few hours made all the difference.

My essays, however, got pretty decent marks, so those few difficult weeks did pay off well.

I'll leave you will this short quote, "Doubt kills more dreams than failure ever will" (Suzy Kassem)

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