My First Year Story

S2E3. UConn Leaders: Qianqian Chen, First Year Experience Mentor & TA

On this week's episode, Tomaso welcomes another student leader, Qianqian Chen, a previous First Year Experiences (FYE)  mentor and a current FYE TA. Being an international student from Wuhon, China, Qianqian has faced many challenges such as homesickness, the language barrier, and culture shock. However, through her experiences in the FYE program, she was able to find her place on campus. Now, she is giving back to the program, mentoring first year students and other FYE mentors. Qianqian stresses the importance of getting involved, especially for international students, and how the FYE program allowed her to explore campus. She also shares how much she cares for her mentees and wants to see them grow. If you are participating in the FYE program, are an international student, or interested in learning about both, make sure to tune in to this episode! 

S2E2. UConn Majors: ACES with Micah & Ashley

This week, we are kicking off a new series with our host Tomaso: Every other episode this season will focus on a major or college at UConn. To kick off this series, we felt it was only right to have guests Micah Heumann & Ashley Gospodarczyk talk to us from ACES: the Academic Center for Exploratory Students. Ashley was once a transfer student with Micah as her mentor, connected through his class, “Making Major Decisions.” Both Micah and Ashley emphasize some important takeaways about college majors in general with nuggets of wisdom from their own experiences, breaking down the common misconception that students who enter college looking to explore are at a disadvantage or can’t make up their minds. Be sure to tune in to listen to the ins and outs of the ACES program through a student and longtime Advisor perspective.

Listener Note: Conversations in this episode mention Suicidal Ideation and the Holocaust.

S2E1. UConn Leaders: Mason Holland, Undergraduate Student Government President

The “My First Year Story Podcast” is back for season two, and we are starting the season off with UConn’s Undergraduate Student Government (USG) President, Mason Holland. In this episode, listeners get the inside scoop on Mason’s decision to come to UConn (and how he pivoted from his original plan of majoring in Business). He talks about his experience in ScHOLA²RS House, and the impact it had on his first year. As his discussion with Tomaso continues, Mason also touches upon his decision to run for USG President and how he selected his running mate- or rather how his VP candidate chose him! This episode has a strong theme in diversity and intersecting identities, as Mason encourages all voices and re-imagines relationships on campus. You don’t want to miss this season-opening episode!

Introducing Season 2 of My First Year Story

Season 2 of the My First Year Story Podcast is just around the corner!  Join returning host, Tomaso Scotti, as he continues his journey at the University of Connecticut. With a focus on highlighting the variety of academic majors offered by UConn, this season, Tomaso will be sitting down with professors, advisors, staff, and other student leaders as they share their insight into their respective fields and offer advice for navigating all that UConn has to offer.

Schooltime Survival Guide #6: Navigating Mistakes & Your Academics

Wherever you are in your life story, we hope you’ve enjoyed our Schooltime Survival Guide about living (or commuting), learning (in-person or virtually), and thriving at the University of Connecticut. This final episode is going to focus on how you can practice academic resilience and learn from challenges and mistakes you might make along the way. Make sure you check out our Season 1 episodes if you haven’t already, and don’t forget to stay tuned for Season 2 which is coming soon!!

Schooltime Survival Guide #5: Living, Eating & Working at UConn

As the start of the fall semester nears, we have a special surprise for our listeners this month: we’ll be releasing one more episode, so make sure to come back for the final installment of the Guide! This episode of our summer Schooltime Survival Guide features tips from our staff about University life: from living in a residence hall with a roommate, to working as a student employee, to finding the best dining hall or local spot to eat. Tune in and take note as you make final preparations for the semester!

Schooltime Survival Guide #4: Getting the Most Out of Your Time at UConn

With the start of the semester being so close, we have a special surprise for you this month: We’ll be releasing two more episodes before the semester begins, so make sure to come back next Thursday for another episode! In this fourth installment of our Schooltime Survival Guide, we wanted to focus on some of the ways you can maximize your UConn experience while navigating the complexities of such a large university.

Schooltime Survival Guide #3: Making Storrs Feel Like Home

This episode of our Schooltime Survival Guide is all about Storrs!! The UConn Storrs campus is the largest, most residential of our campuses, and we know that adapting to living and learning in rural Connecticut can be a huge adjustment for some students. This part of the Guide will give you a little glimpse into finding community and your sense of place among Horsebarn Hill, the Wilbur Cross Building, Gampel Pavilion, and everything in between. Tune in for tips on how to make Storrs your home away from home!

Schooltime Survival Guide #2: Our Favorite Advice for College Students from Season 1

Welcome to our special advice episode of our summer Schooltime Survival Guide! In this part of the Guide, you will hear from our Season 1 guests as they impart wisdom upon our listeners. To hear more from these guests, make sure you check out all our full-length Season 1 episodes. We hope you enjoy!

Schooltime Survival Guide #1: Our Staff Reflects on COVID-19 & College

With Season One of our My First Year Story Podcast complete, we are excited to introduce our summer BONUS series, the “Schooltime Survival Guide.”  Some of you, our listeners, have followed along as first year students yourselves without ever having stepped onto UConn’s campus because of COVID-19. Others might just be discovering this podcast and are getting ready to start their own first year stories in the fall. Wherever you are in your own life story, join us this summer for some tailored content about living (or commuting), learning (in-person or virtually), and thriving at the University of Connecticut. Our Guide will give you tools for jumping in as a valuable part of UConn Nation come August. You’ll hear from our host, Tomaso, our staff, and some of our past guests on a variety of topics we’ve compiled specifically to provide perspective about UConn, with all its quirks and opportunities.

Our first installment in the Guide is a special reflection from the My First Year Story staff. In our last episode of Season 1, Tomaso spent time talking with Producers Casey and Hannah about his first year, but we wanted to flip the script completely for this first summer episode and allow you to hear from members of our staff about their experiences with this past school year.