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Rebecca Swift checks out her newly embroidered honors stole at EmbroidMe, Wednesday, May 7, 2008. Swift is graduating from the University of South Carolina with a Bachelor of Arts in Spanish.
Posted on Thu, May. 08, 2008
‘New beginning’ nears: College grads reflect, advise as diplomas await
By JAMES T. HAMMOND - jhammond@thestate.com
• SOUTH CAROLINA Health crisis showed pre-med student how much USC meant to her
Rebecca Swift has more to celebrate at this year’s USC commencement than most of the graduates who will receive degrees at the Colonial Center on Friday and Saturday.
An athlete and runner, the 22-year-old pre-med student survived a heart attack just before her 21st birthday. Today, she’s not only looking forward to graduation but marriage to a Navy officer, a move to Seattle after the wedding, and probably entering medical school next year.
Her health crisis “was just an awful experience,” she said. But after completing cardiac rehabilitation, she not only is healthy again, but she has resumed running in races. And she said she learned just how much USC meant to her.
“I really got to see the support network I have here at USC, as well as my family and friends,” Swift said.
She coaches elementary-school runners in a program called Girls on the Run. Even though she already was interested in medicine, Swift said her own health crisis helped her focus on her career goals.
She is certified as an emergency medical technician and has served as a medical first responder on campus. She traveled with 100 students to Biloxi, Miss., to do post-Katrina service work during her sophomore year.
During her undergraduate career, Swift has been a student in the South Carolina Honors College. She is president of Carolina Service Council. She earned a Magellan Scholarship, which grants money to undergraduates for research. And she has been an Honors College Research Fellow and a Palmetto Fellow.
“My heart attack shaped where I am and who I am as a person,” Swift said. “It forced me to step back and look at the big picture and realize that life is more about relationships than anything else. It strengthened my interest in cardiology and helped me understand the physical and emotional changes that result from a health experience.”
Swift has been accepted at the Medical University of South Carolina in Charleston. She is putting off enrollment for a year while her husband completes a one-year assignment in the Navy in Seattle.
Her advice for new students at USC:
“Get involved in a variety of activities your first year, and then focus on a few by holding offices,” Swift said. “Find balance in your studies and activities, and don’t get overwhelmed or scared. Stretch yourself as a person, and remember that we are in this together.”
The State asked students from other colleges to reflect upon their undergraduate careers as they look forward to graduation this weekend.
• CLEMSON UNIVERSITY
Boston-bound grad urges freshmen to get involved as soon as they hit campus.
Michael Garcia, 21, is a marketing major from Aiken.
“Graduation day means to me the ending of a four-year experience of a lifetime. When I look back on my four years, I wonder where the time has gone and why has it had to end so quickly.”
Garcia has landed a job with Procter & Gamble in Boston. And he is graduating debt-free.
“Thank you, S.C. Lottery Scholarship,” he said.
His advice for new freshmen: “Get involved as soon as possible on campus and to branch out and meet new people as soon as they arrive on campus.
“The biggest lesson that I will take away from college is that internships are key to success in receiving a job offer. I find that those friends that I have that participated in internships have an easier time finding a job than those that did not have an internship.”
• BENEDICT COLLEGE
Student from South America 'had to grow up quickly' on his own here
Camilo Esquivia-Zapata is an environmental health major from Bogota, Colombia.
Esquivia-Zapata said graduation will “fulfill my life’s goal. It will be a great day for me.”
He had accepted a position in graduate school at the Monterey Institute of International Studies, Monterey, Calif., to study environmental international policy. But because of financial issues, he accepted a position with Turningbird Consulting, an environmental consulting firm that works with colleges for environmental compliance.
He has avoided debt, receiving a full scholarship and other grants to help pay for his undergraduate education.
His advice for incoming freshmen: “Stay focused, set goals, and never lose focus of your goals. Think outside the box, and find opportunity to seek new knowledge, not just what’s taught in the classroom.”
Being on his own in this country, he said he’s learned self-reliance.
“Since I was an international student, I had to grow up quickly and deal with the consequences of decisions without the help of my parents. I learned to solve my own problems and follow my own advice.”
Shaniqua Harden is a biology major from Atlanta.
Harden represents many Benedict College students who are first-generation college students.
“I am the first of 17 great-grandchildren to go to college. It means opening the door for my nephews and nieces to aspire to go to college. It’s the beginning of my future.”
She plans to attend Mercer University’s physician assistant program to pursue a master’s and doctorate in biology.
“Plus, I just left the career planning and placement office, where I was applying for jobs online. I plan to have a job in less than two months. I’m going back to my home to Atlanta, Ga., to work in the medical field.”
Harden said she has accumulated about $50,000 in debt as an undergraduate.
“I’ve educated myself (about) how to pay my loans back. I had a few grants and scholarships to help pay for my education.”
Her advice to new students: “I was on my own before coming to college and I just took a chance coming to Benedict, and it worked out. Sometimes you have to take chances.”
College has taught her life lessons, she said.
“I had to grow up fast and was tired of working on my own without a solid future. Now I feel like I have a real foundation.”
• COLUMBIA COLLEGE
Student ready to celebrate end of a four-year growth process
For Danielle Gillard graduation day represents a watershed moment in the life of the 22-year-old communications major from Goose Creek.
“Graduation day is a time to celebrate how I have grown physically, mentally, and spiritually over the past four years. The best part is that I get to share this day with my family, friends, and mentors.”
In the fall, she plans to enter the master of communication program at the University of North Carolina-Charlotte.
“The program has offered me a graduate teaching assistant position, so I will have an opportunity to teach during both years that I will attend the program.”
Her debt amounts to about $5,000 for her undergraduate education.
“I’ve been blessed to receive a lot of academic scholarships and to have a mom who is financially disciplined enough to handle my remaining balance.”
Her observations for new students: “The college administration, faculty, and staff are all in place to help you, so don’t treat them like the enemy. They provide so many resources and opportunities that will help you to not only leave college with a degree but with an education and a deeper understanding of your own identity.”
Amanda D. Bowers is a 21-year-old business administration student from Goose Creek.
“Graduation to me means a new beginning, a chance to meet new people, learn new things, and make new experiences.”
After graduation, she plans to move to Atlanta and work in the Enterprise Rent-A-Car management trainee program.
She has avoided debt while an undergraduate.
Like many other graduates, she advises new students to get involved on campus “as fast as you can.”
Her most important lesson from college: “I can do anything I put my mind to; if I can do everything alone, I am not doing enough; and it is OK to ask for help.”
Reach Hammond at (803) 771-8474.
