Choose Your Own Adventure

The best thing about being a student at William & Mary is that no day is the same. As one of my friends always says, William & Mary is constantly providing you with opportunities to “choose your own adventure.” Of course, I have my routine schedule of classes, lunch with a group of my friends referred to as the “Lunch Bunch” in the Sadler Center dining hall, and my weekly Student Assembly meeting on Tuesdays at 7pm. Outside of this basic structure, each day is whatever I make of it. On some days, I find myself taking a little bit of extra time after Life Drawing class in the Matoaka Art Studio to take a walk down to the Matoaka Amphitheater or through one of the W&M’s nature trails. On other days, I visit my professors’ office hours to chat about what they did over the weekend, go for a run down Duke of Gloucester Street, or grab mid-afternoon coffee at The Daily Grind with some friends. Some evenings I’ll be at one of my social fraternity’s mixers and other nights I will have a movie night with my housemates (we highly recommend Interstellar.) The best part of daily life in Williamsburg is that I have the ability to go where the day takes me and experience diverse activities with amazing people put on by one of our many clubs or organizations.

William & Mary is a school where anyone can fit in and find their niche. Part of life at W&M is the ability to design your own day-to-day schedule, fill it with the people you care about, manage your time wisely, and most importantly, enjoy learning in each and every minute. I am lucky enough to meet new, intelligent, inspiring people (yes, even as a senior) on a daily basis, whether it is through a group project in one of my classes, while I’m studying in Swem Library, or during a Senior Class Gift Mug Night at the Green Leafe Cafe. I’ve had some of the best days of my life to date here at W&M and in all honesty, some of my hardest. Looking back on the past 3.5 years, I can confidently say that I wouldn’t have it any other way. When it comes down to it, one of the things I will miss most when I graduate is the ability to make meaningful memories on a campus and in a city that I consider home.

William & Mary is a school that will support you through the ups and downs of day to day life. So, imagine yourself waking up to the Wren Building every morning, making life long friends, and growing into a better version of yourself. W&M is waiting for you to call it home too!

-Mark Bland ’16