NSOP-2016

Dear class of 2024,

As August quickly approaches, I share the dread that the other 2,000-something Columbia incoming first-years must feel: Course registration is almost here. The magic of post-graduation summer dissolves. Do I go pre-med, or do I major in political science? How do I leave the option to do music open? What about 4+1 programs? 

I first met Maddy Harden, CC ’20, in 2016 during an NSOP pregame. Probably in Carman. We had a very nice, albeit brief, conversation. Then we didn’t speak again for three years.

New Student Orientation Program is going to go by in a flash. Yep, though it may seem long at first, it’s only a week. In the many years you’re going to spend at Columbia, NSOP may seem to be just a small portion of that time. Nevertheless, it is your first true experience as a student at Columbia, so how should you look back on it?

Welcome, baby Lions and Bears, and congratulations on your acceptance to Columbia and Barnard! We know you’re probably thrilled to be spending the next four years of your life in NYC, learning both from inside and outside of the classroom alongside brilliant peers from all backgrounds.

Welcome, Columbia class of 2023! You’re probably feeling a mixture of intense excitement and nervousness right now as you prepare to graduate high school and look forward to the upcoming school year. Don’t worry; we’ve all been there, and you’re going to be more than fine. One of the choices that you’ll soon have to make is whether you want to participate in one of Columbia’s three pre-orientation programs.

Chinese and Japanese mythologies share a belief based on legends involving a “red thread of fate.” According to this belief, people who are meant to meet at some point in life are bound together by a red string tied around their ankles or little fingers. The two people on both ends of the cord may meet other people, travel the world, or cross paths without noticing—tangling and knotting the red string numerous times, but never breaking it. Although this belief is most often used to refer to an inevitability of romantic partnerships—the “soulmate” idea—I personally consider it reflected in my most valuable friendships.

The night before NSOP, I spent an entire dinner explaining a TED talk to my parents. I think that offers a kind of karmic explanation for the rest of the evening.

I closed Americanah three years ago. It was my first time reading a novel in which I could see myself through the main character. Just like the protagonist Ifemelu, I had struggled with my kinky, untamable, and frankly, impossible hair. Just like Ifemelu, I had been subjected to microaggressions from my peers. And just like Ifemelu, though I didn’t know it back then, I would also set foot in the United States three years later.

Two days before classes were due to begin, in September 2017, I realized my Music Humanities professor had assigned us a reading. And as I was in the middle of printing it, of course, the power went out in the Carman lobby. Standing there all spazzed out and disoriented, I was unsure if the printer would continue printing after the power came on or if I would have to reprint everything from scratch. At that very moment, as I sat anxiously on the Carman steps, this scrawny blonde kid who I had briefly met a few days prior sat down beside me. As is the norm during NSOP, we reintroduced ourselves, and began talking about the one thing I knew we both had in common: the upcoming semester.