Today we speak to senior Chemical Engineering major Jean Han from Fort Lee, NJ (Bergen County). Jean, who also minors in Math, transferred from Bergen Community College and is a part of AIChE.
What do you like to do off campus for fun?
I like to go into Philadelphia. I also enjoy riding my bike with my friends and just finding cool places to hang out with my friends. When it comes to dates there is a small coffee shop in Pitman that is nice as well as a winery for those of age called Summit City Farms and Winery. Before COVID we would also try out new restaurants frequently.
How has moving away from home benefitted you?
I always wanted to move far away enough to be isolated and have to integrate myself into a new community. I think if I went to a college more local I would of had all the same friends as before and I wanted a new experience. So, that’s why I think moving out of my hometown gave me that. It forced me to be more social and complacent instead of falling back on high school friends. It gave me a sense of independence by not having easy access to go home I had to start learning to take care of myself.
Do yo have any advice for someone who is going to school far but not too far from their home?
I would say embrace the change and really try to branch out. I talked to people I would not have to normally talked to. I joined clubs I would have never thought about joining in high school. I thought about a bunch of new scenarios and did them. Just be open minded and try new things.
Any other thoughts?
I think Rowan brought me an overall great experience. I also did not think there would be a lot of transfers here, but there are. I feel like that helped [with] my own transfer. I think that within my engineering classes we all grew together. That can be because of the small class size. Overall it is a smaller school but I have met a lot of different kinds of people. I had new experiences that I do not think I would have had being closer to home.
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Story by:
Stephanie Batista, sophomore music industry major