Senior Guest Blog: Robert Beeland

L to R: William Boor, Robert Beeland, and Patrick Hayes

            From the very beginning of my college search process, I knew that I wanted to go to a small school. I have always especially appreciated the close relationships I’ve made with my teachers and classmates at Holy Innocents' and couldn’t imagine experiencing anything else in college. I also had family ties to small schools – one in particular. Both of my parents, several aunts, uncles, and cousins attended Sewanee: The University of the South, so my upbringing was strongly rooted in adoration and fondness of the small Tennessee liberal arts school.

            Whether it is actually true or not, I like to consider myself a free spirit of sorts – and as my college search process kicked into gear, I decided that I was not going to allow myself to be pigeonholed into a state of resignation where I assumed that I would attend Sewanee: my parents’ alma mater and a seemingly logical choice. No! I would venture off to some distant land to experience the joys of higher education. I compiled a list of schools from Maine and Vermont to California and Washington. All of a sudden, my sophomore year arrived and I realized the true mediocrity of grades freshman year (those of you who are freshmen reading this: take note). It was probably time to take Harvard off of my list. Also, I realized that I wanted to stay in the Southeast. I liked the idea of being able to drive rather than fly to college. Also, I didn’t think I’d be able to stand the cold of a school in the northeast. I felt at home in the South.

            The next step was to go out and visit schools. Luckily for me, my experience with visits began with my HIES classmates on the school sponsored college tour. The first school we visited on our tour happened to be Sewanee. I had visited many times before with my parents to visit friends or stay for the holidays, but never as a prospective student. This time, seeing it for the school rather than just a place, I fell completely in love. Everything just seemed to click. From that point on, I found myself comparing every school I visited to Sewanee. I had to be careful not to dismiss other schools, though, so I made an effort to keep an open mind and see schools that I would have otherwise not considered. I had great experiences at places like Chapel Hill, Davidson, and the University of Richmond. After much thought, though, I ultimately decided that I wanted to attend Sewanee.

            I ended up applying to Sewanee, The University of Georgia, and Rhodes College (I’m not sure why). During the application process I tried my hardest to focus on what I thought could make the most difference (as obvious as that may sound). I figured that I had already done just about the most I could with regards to my GPA and standardized test scores. It was too late to do anything about the C’s I made in Geometry and Honors Biology that first semester freshman year, so I focused on the areas where I could still make a difference. I applied to Georgia under the Early Action deadline, which only required my GPA and test scores, so I didn’t have to do much there. For Sewanee and Rhodes, however, I had ample opportunities to bolster my application. I tried to make my essays as personable and natural as possible without sounding too casual. I also made every effort I could to visit representatives for both schools when they were in Atlanta. I was able to interview with a representative from Rhodes, which I thought helped give my application more personality, rather than it just being a set of my academic records.

            My best advice for the search and application process, as silly as it may sound, is to just be yourself. It will allow you to find what you’re actually looking for at schools rather than what your goody-two-shoes tour guide has to say about the a cappella group or the library. Every school has an a cappella group, so pay attention to what you really care about. If a school you’re interested in happens to not have one, you might just be the one for the job of starting one. Also, write your essays like yourself. Be creative and your own voice will come by itself. Finally, try to relax. The whole process can really be overwhelming and stressful, but you’ll get through it and everything will work out.