Where do I start? Well I should probably start with introducing myself. My name is Cody Arreola and I am a first-year student at Antioch College. I am currently engaged in my first co-op job. I’m here to tell you about my experience working in the College’s Office of Admission. Now that that’s out of the way, I can go more into detail as to what the Office of Admission is, what its goals are, who runs it, and why it plays such an important role in our community. But most importantly, I want to explain why I’m here.
I’d like to start be explaining what brought me to this work and how I came to be writing this story. There were several factors that played into my decision to do a co-op at the Office of Admissions. Like most co-op students, I reached this point through a combination of factors reflecting events, personal issues, and even people who helped me make my decision. One pivotal event was the Antioch Victory Festival, which was a cool new idea that drew quite a few people’s attention. I wanted to play a role. Through my work at Admissions, I felt I’d be able to bring more people in and focus more outside attention on the College. Another factor in my decision was that I simply wasn’t ready to leave Antioch for the Spring Quarter. I wanted to experience my first co-op in a familiar environment. So I stuck around campus and stayed with my friends for another 11 weeks. This is where the story leans more toward my personal relationships. By staying in Yellow Springs, I had the opportunity to meet extended family members I haven’t seen in years. I figured if I’d stay in Ohio I would have a better opportunity to visit them once in a while.
I bet you want to hear what Admission work is like. I’ll gladly tell you about it. I settled on a schedule that had me in the office from 10:00 in the morning to 5:00 in the afternoon. The setting for me is much like a typical office job. I’m not playing any big roles like our Dean of Admissions, Shane Creepingbear, who is in a constant battle trying to get more students to apply to Antioch. I’m just an assistant. I give tours, run some errands, help manage the inbox for admissions, and answer calls directing people who want to know more about the school.
But how does this fall in line with my professional goals? Prior to this, I had almost no work experience whatsoever. I probably helped out a few relatives here and there; but that’s about it. So I saw this co-op as a perfect opportunity to get an idea of what work is like, figure out what I could do, make progress with skill development and various professional goals that I could work on, and avoid making mistakes in a job later on down the line. As part of my education, I view this co-op job as being for my growth and to help prepare me for future opportunities.
So here I am sitting at a desk reminiscing about the past few weeks, thinking about the various people I’ve met, and considering what kind of impressions I might have made on them. I know quite a few people have encouraged me to think about my career path and view things from new perspectives. I’m not just meeting random people; I’m meeting potential future classmates who could be in the same class room with me just a few weeks from now. There are going to be people who meet me in this office that I’m going to know for the next few years. I’m glad to be able to help them understand this place and think about what they want to learn. Looking back at this, I could definitely use this as an inspiration for my writing. Perhaps this kind of work can help bring focus to my education and even guide my future more as I reflect on the opportunities ahead!
