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Explore Your Passions During Jan-Term

Explore Your Passions During Jan-Term
2/15/2013
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Mike Sheffey

This week, I’d like to talk about something that your prospective college might have to offer. We at Wofford call it Interim but most schools refer to it as January Term (or “J-term” or “Jan-term”). Colleges, especially those focused on the liberal arts, like to give students the opportunity to explore whatever might pique their interest, regardless of their majors! Wofford’s lies between first and second semester and is a month-long class that lets students have fun, relax and dive into a hobby or passion that has yet to be discovered.

Colleges offer classes ranging from photography, hiking, trips within the U.S. and abroad, horseback riding or chess and can get as specific as a class entirely about The Beatles. I’d suggest looking into Interim options early on, especially if you have an idea and a class is not yet offered with that topic. Many colleges will allow you to propose an interim project all your own: Several of my friends developed an app for Android and iPhone this past January!

My favorite Interim class that I’ve taken in my three years here at WoCo has got to be American Punk, Hardcore and Emo. As I stated in my first post, music is a pretty big deal to me and this class allowed me to take my interest to a whole new level. We learned about the great bands and movements of the punk scene and for a month out of my stressful and hectic college career, I got to study the music I love. There’s always the option, however, of taking classes or internships related to your major. My roommates all took internships this past interim – one dentist shadowing and two relating to finance. They loved them and view the experience as invaluable.

So whether it’s traveling, music, writing, fishing, the intricacies of pro wrestling or a useful internship, I suggest looking into your school’s options and taking full advantage of every opportunity a Jan-term could bring!

Mike Sheffey is a junior at Wofford College double majoring in computer science and Spanish. He loves all things music and has recently taken up photography. Mike works for an on-campus sports broadcasting company as well as the music news blog PropertyOfZack.com. He hopes to use this blogging position to inform and assist others who are seeking the right college or those currently enrolled in college by providing advice on college life, both in general and specific to Wofford.

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