I’ve always hated numbers. For one, I can’t do math. When I tell you that I’m horrendous at math and that I struggle with basic numbers, I’m so serious! I wish I was joking. But anyways, enough about my number struggles.

 Long story short, I picked Fairfield because from the minute I stepped onto campus, I did not feel like a number. I felt like an individual who had found her place to pursue her own dreams, aspirations and goals, which include running for a position in the Inter-Residential Housing Association, getting involved in service opportunities on campus and in the greater Fairfield area, finding a role in campus ministry and becoming a shadow host and tour ambassador for future Stags.

 I felt like I had finally found my “home away from home,” which is saying a lot since I live pretty far away from Fairfield (shout-out North Carolina!) 

All of this pretty much sums up my reasoning behind my decision, but I consider myself a storyteller and a little bit of a chatterbox, so here are the details, events and reasoning behind my decision to become a Stag. 

My senior year of high school was by no means an easy year, and the college application process did not do much to help my troubles. I have always been indecisive, and so I applied to fifteen different schools, simply looking for a fresh start. The application process, albeit repetitive, proved to be very difficult to me because I did not yet know what I wanted and needed from a college. I found myself scrambling to apply to as many schools as I could, all of which were completely different from one another. I had no idea what I was looking for, and I wanted to have options! The only thing that I knew, without a doubt, was that I needed a place to grow. 

With each college application sent out the door, I was beginning to feel more confident, but I was not 100 percent confident in my college search until I visited Fairfield. Fairfield was the only place that I visited where I did not have to convince myself that I belonged there. Instead of having to convince myself, Fairfield convinced me that I belonged and that I could be a valuable aspect of their community. After visiting a multitude of colleges, I was fully convinced that the only way I was going to find the “reset button” was to immerse myself in a completely different environment that still prioritized my well-being and overall happiness. This different environment ended up being Fairfield University, and I could not be happier with my decision.

Connecticut is arguably very different from my hometown, and, in my opinion, it is arguably one of the best places to be in the entire country (two miles from the beach and an hour away from NYC? Yes!). But there were other reasons why I chose Fairfield that had nothing to do with the location. 

I am somebody who wants to fully engage with, understand and connect with the people around me and to connect with my community. In order to meet these needs, I originally thought that I needed to go to a large school with thousands of students per class and a ginormous campus. I soon learned that this was not the case. 

Before I even became a student here, Fairfield demonstrated to me that personal connections and individualized conversations, both inside and outside of the classroom, are the most important thing. From the minute I arrived on campus, I was, and still am, surrounded by a community of hardworking individuals who foster intellectual growth and “cura personalis,” or care for the whole person. My tour guide tailored my campus tour to fit my needs, which was something that a lot of colleges did not do, and I was able to speak with people on campus . I truly felt as though I, as an individual, was a forethought in the minds of the Fairfield admissions office, and they demonstrated to me that I belonged by personalizing my tour and admissions experience. Fairfield proved to me that I did not need a large number of people to make deep and meaningful connections, and also proved to me that I am not just a number in a sea of tens of thousands; I am a student who has found her rightful place at home. 

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