Taking my umbrella for the short walk to Willard, I embarked on a rainy trip to Professor Nichols’ office hours early in the morning. At first, I was nervous to enter the room for a one on one talk. However, this chat was actually one of the most helpful and casual chats with a professor I will ever experience at Penn State! Professor Nichols was full of advice and wisdom during our 15 minute talk together. The entire time, I felt as though I was having a casual conversation with a close friend. Going into it, I did not know what to anticipate. Leaving the room following our conversation, I felt refreshed and I feel like I got to know my professor a lot more.

The great thing about the real time chat was the range of topics she was able to cover with me. During the time, I informed Professor Nichols of my interests and the things I plan to get involved with during my four years at State College. One of these was community service and my professor was able to explain to me a number of ways I could get involved on campus, including a community service fraternity or groups such as “Habitat for Humanity”. In a number of ways, she highly encouraged me to give back to the community and I plan to take this advice with me for the rest of my life.

After talking about possible major choices, professor Nichols gave me information on a man named Jerry Rizzo. Jerry shares a love for sports and was able to land a fantastic job following college. Although he currently works for Verizon, I plan to contact him sometime in the near future regarding possible career paths after my time at PSU is up. I want to thank Professor Nichols for this wonderful insight and information, as it is sure to help me make connections.

I encourage every student, specifically the ones that have Professor Nichols, to take time out of their day to have one on one talks with their professor during office hours. My time with Professor Nichols was informative, very interesting and productive. Thank you so much Professor Nichols for all that you do!