Plagiarism and How to Avoid It

                Plagiarism is a very important topic to consider when composing anything academically-related. I am no stranger to the parameters that entail plagiarization of academic compositions, it was something that was deeply ingrained into my high school brain. Although many of us have had encounters with plagiarism, either directly or indirectly, many of us (including myself) had not been properly informed of the possible consequences of even the most minor or accidental forms of plagiarism in college.

                Plagiarism was always something that was extremely frowned upon in high school; we were always advocated against using the work and thoughts of others without direct citations. However, the consequences of plagiarism were very minor at best—maybe a failed paper; sure, this was something terrible for our grades and possibly our overall GPA, but it never had the consequences that plagiarism in a college environment entails. In college, if you are caught plagiarizing the work of another person, you can have everything taken away from you. Through the articles that were given to us in class regarding plagiarism, we learned many ways to avoid unintentional plagiarization. One of the biggest ways to avoid plagiarizing the work of others, in addition to preventing major headache on late-night homework sessions, is to make sure you cite your work the instant you insert it into your paper. By citing all necessary and pertinent information when you actually type it, you save yourself from having to go back later and cite those items, and possibly forgetting one accidentally.

Thoughts on Discovering Your Passion

                At my last INT 95 class lecture, a librarian was the guest speaker. She had a very unique childhood, growing up under a father whom was an established author. She spent a lot of time traveling the world, and had always love the library as a peaceful and comforting area. This was very appealing to me, because it shows how her childhood influenced her to pursue the career path that she ultimately chose.

I think that this is the case with many of us—our childhoods play an immense role in what we choose to specialize in later in life. We spend a lot of time searching to complete a part of us that is missing. By narrowing our focus to a particular career or lifestyle that we love, we can satisfy that yearning for dedication to a particular passion that invokes a certain happiness within us. For me, that passion is traveling. I love traveling, but traveling is often a costly and demanding expenditure. However, through pursuing a career that is entwined completely and naturally in travel, I can follow my dreams while simultaneously securing a future for myself.

Sometimes, discovering what makes you happy is easier said than done. So much emphasis is placed on certain careers, we often forget what is out there. You could be following a route that so many others have taken before you, and perhaps it just doesn’t feel right. At UCSB, my INT 95 class and I visited a career counseling building. Understandably, some may shy from the idea of seeking career advice. At first, I was apprehensive to seek out the information that they provided. Sometimes, doesn’t it feel like we should absolutely know exactly what we are doing? We are adults, after all. However, this is not the case at all. As I continue to grow, I continue to realize that everybody else is in the same boat I am in. Though some of us may be more or less prepared for what lies ahead, it never hurts to have a little bit of direction and advice. The Career Services building can help with resume building, finding jobs, internships, or even discovering careers that you never even knew existed—all for free. It is an excellent service, and one that I can see myself using often in the near future.

Major/Minor Academic Fair

Today I went to the Major/Minor Academic fair in order to learn more about my major, and possible directions I can take in order to further my education, and eventually settle in on a solid career path. Unfortunately, I could not locate any booths dedicated to my major—Linguistics. However, I was still able to find a substantial amount of useful information for the future.

                I learned a lot about the EOP—Educational Opportunity Program. These are services that are tailored for students in order to help them find direction, assist students in issues with regards to school, future prospects, and even personal concerns. In addition to learning about the EOP, I discovered a lot of information about the study abroad program, which I am planning to incorporate into my junior year. I believe that traveling abroad is a perfect way to meet new people, and familiarize myself with, and amalgamate myself into different cultures.

                Speaking of meeting new people, a common issue that people have when starting college is making new friends. There are many ways to make new friends, you just have to know the right places to look. There are various clubs you can join, such as the UCSB Adventure Club, various major-related clubs, dance clubs, and of course sports clubs. In addition to joining clubs, you can meet people in your dorms, the dining commons, and school-sponsored activities to name a few. Making many friends is one of the key parts of having an amazing time at college. 

Introductions and Formalities

Hello everyone! My name is Pedro Perez. I am currently entering my first year of college at the University of California, Santa Barbara, and I could not be more excited! I am attending arguably one of the most beautiful campuses in the States, have already made many great friends, and I have had many memorable experiences in my first few days here.

I am a Linguistics major, as language has always been a fascination of mine, and would love to pursue a career dealing with the science behind languages. I believe that my love of languages originated from being born in Mexico, and being taught both English and Spanish, with no distinction between the two, other than which parent I was speaking to. This provided extremely confusing to me at first. Although I began speaking some extreme form of Spanglish, I slowly grew to realize the differences between the languages, and the patterns, appropriateness, culture, and applicability behind each. To this day, I have taken 5 years of Latin, and 3 years of German, in addition to remaining bilingual. I have pursued my love of languages quite a bit, and plan to continue to learn more about language, and eventually learn even more languages, to help better amalgamate myself with the various world cultures.

Although Linguistics is my primary focus, I also like to spend a lot of time playing my guitar, and longboarding (and if there are any longboarders in the SB area who slide, I would love to get together and hit up some local hills!). I also play soccer, and rock climb. I love going on adventures, be it hikes, road trips, or even traveling. I am thankful to live on one of the most beautiful beaches in California, and am thankful that the biggest complaint I can voice is that the beach is often closer than my next class. 

I am excited to make many new friends, and I hope that everybody has a great time, and takes advantage of all the fantastic opportunities we are given here. Through this blog, you will get a glimpse into the life of a fresh college student. Hopefully my posts will be enlightening, put a smile on your face, or at least help you avoid some of the mistakes that are so easy to make upon entering college.

Cheers,

Pedro Perez