The Day I Decided to Come to Illinois

The Day I Decided to Come to Illinois I’ll be honest, Illinois was not my first choice when I was applying to colleges. My mom was an Illini, which was one of the biggest reasons why I applied. Also, I had visited Chicago a few times and thought it would be better to start my career there over New York City. Sorry, Connecticut friends, I just did. Anyways, I liked the school but was certainly not sold on it. After applying, I ended up getting into the business school and was invited to the admitted business student’s day. The day is intended to give you a feel for the college and see all of the wonderful opportunities they have to offer. Things like majors, study abroad opportunities, career support, and student organizations. When I went, I’m pretty sure it was in late February or early March at the latest. What I do know is that it was a pretty miserable Illinois day. Must have been low thirties, slush on the ground, flurries throughout the day. That kind of day happens here. Simply put, the experience is a massive reason why I came to Illinois. And frankly, through reflecting on my four years here, it is surprisingly accurate to what your experience here will be like. I’ve changed my major once or twice, studied abroad on the other side of the world, completed multiple relevant internships, and had the privilege of being president of a business student organization. Through Illinois and the Gies College of Business I have been able to travel around the world to places like Kyoto, Japan. I remember being in the Espresso on Sixth Street sitting across from my Mom talking about the day. It was the moment I decided I was going to come here. I had no idea what I wanted to do with my career, but after attending to the Business Experience, I knew I wanted to figure that out here. One of the best experiences Ive had as a student was through a business student organization on campus. I’m not saying you should know for sure whether or not you want to go to Illinois after you attend to the Business Experience yourself. But I am saying our college is a truly wonderful place, and this event is the best opportunity to see that firsthand. Information on the Gies Business Experience (March 30) can be found here. If you can’t attend, or even if you can, feel free to reach out if you have questions or want to learn more about the Gies College of Business (email: ssinger2@illinois.edu). I’m more than happy to chat. Talk soon. Steven Class of 2019 I’m from New Canaan, Connecticut. I'm studying Management Entrepreneurship in the Gies College of Business and Political Science in the College of Liberal Arts and Sciences.