Introduction
Seattle University is located in Washington in the United States and is headed by Father Stephen Sundborg, who is also the university’s president assisted by Timothy Leary, who is the vice president, and Isaiah Crawford acting as a provost. This university comprises over 7,000 students and about 1,000 members of staff and faculty. The mission of our university is “to educate a person as a whole, to professional formation and empowering leaders for a just and humane world” (Seattle University Para. 1).
The vision is aimed at attaining education independence, as well as promoting spiritualism and corporate responsibility. I am proud to be a student of this university, which propagates knowledge and justice to society and sharpens leadership skills. Nevertheless, the university offers both graduate and undergraduate courses, with options of full time, part-time, or online schooling. In order for one to complete his undergraduate degree in Business Finance, a minimum of 180 credits and an average point of 2.25 are required (Seattle University Para. 2).
“My philosophy of life and education as I graduate”
This is the most crucial time of my life, since I am almost through with my course work, thus trying very hard to attain my targeted points. Students are usually happy as they head towards completing their studies, but my main focus at the moment is the honors I will achieve, given that, although every student is capable of completing his undergraduate degree, it is the grade that will take one place. Therefore, the main goals in my life at this point are;
- to graduate with first-class honors,
- to be able to obtain a well-paying job,
- to enroll for a master’s degree after a year of work experience.
The reason why I would like to graduate with first-class honors is that I will be marketable in the competitive world out there.
At this point, many graduates still struggle to attain quality employment, and sometimes, grades can tell a lot about a person. My aim is to attain competitive advantage as compared to my fellow graduates in the process of seeking employment. This is because my aim is not only to acquire a job but a job that will help me diversify, learn, and progress upwards. Having acquired those factors, then I will be ready to pursue my master’s degree, which will be much easier, as I will have an experience that will contribute to my effectiveness. We as individuals are supposed to make the world a better place for everyone to fit in. In fact, it is our responsibility that, as we leave this world, we leave it better than we found it.
Therefore, in the next fifty years, it is my hope that there will be fewer carbon emissions in the air, thus reducing the chances of mortality, pollution, and global warming (resulting from the effects of the dangerous carbon emissions). In fact, my wish is that wind energy would be encouraged around the world since it is cheap and affordable. Secondly, poverty should be history in the next fifty years; my main concern is how poverty can be eradicated across the world, such that, food, shelter, clothing, education, and jobs are available and accessible by the citizens of each country.
Donations are meant to reach out to the poor and assist them, but it would be better to travel to the most poverty-stricken areas and organize for a way that the adults in such communities can earn income. This can be a success if agriculture is introduced and the market for the produced products established.
Thirdly, I would hope that all countries would be democratized since it is the only way that grievances of the common citizens are heard. Democracy allows the freedom of having more than one political party, hence each vote cast count in an election. This way, citizens are able to dethrone the lazy, corrupt leaders and dictators from power. My only fear is that some countries like China may take long before they are democratized and such an issue can only be handled by the country’s leaders.
During my time of study in this university, learning takes place in many forms; first, there are the lectures which are a form of active learning, whereby, note-taking is required and response to lectures given. Sometimes, we are required to engage in cooperative learning, which involves the group’s engagement, thus learning more from each other. The lectures hand texts and assignments to test our progress; this particular method of learning has been effective for me. I regard the issue of random as one of the best ways to remember what one has learned in class and to also motivate one to study at all times. The lecture encourages us to ask questions in case any detail was not understood. Group discussions are also highly encouraged, and in my case, group work is very fruitful and encouraging.
When studying my major, finance, my interest was on money management, and this has always been my aim since it is evident that most businesses, government institutions, and firms have a problem when cash management is involved. When cash is not handled well, there is a possibility of the collapse of a business. Throughout my learning, I have realized that finance is a wide field and there are varieties of positions that one can apply for job that revolves around finance.
Nevertheless, during my study, the issue of the financial crisis was the most interesting topic. In addition, one of the influential books that explain how the financial crisis can be foreseen and avoided is the ‘Big Short’, which is written by Michael Lewis. This book has encouraged me on being wise when it comes to money, and it also teaches how one can make a difference if he notes a problem and finds ways to solve it.
One of the biggest lessons I have learned in life is that success comes after failure, such that, the many times one falls do not make a person weak, instead, the experience makes one more determined to achieve his targeted goal. In the past, I had to babysit my neighbor’s kids for about two hours, since I needed some cash urgently. However, since I had never worked all my life, I had no idea of what a job entails. From this experience, I learned to be patient and to enhance communication. These are the traits I hope to carry with me to any employment in the future.
Education varies; however, liberal education is one of the effective forms of education. This education is broad and provides students with wide knowledge and in-depth information on society, culture, and science. This kind of education also concentrates on a student as a whole, in terms of communication, problem-solving, and application of skills in real-life scenarios. During my study here, I can confess that I have been liberated, since most of my coursework is based on reality; for instance, financial crises, taxes, balancing of accounts are real processes in employment. Therefore, with such knowledge and skills experience, I am sure that I can handle tasks effectively in my place of work.
Finance mostly deals with the management of funds; hence, a lot of accounting is involved. Having majored in finance, my main aim would be to enroll for a graduate course in the future; however, I have overtime thought about how I would establish an enterprise in the future since with the skills and knowledge that I have acquired, it is possible to establish a business and run it effectively. Harold James’s ‘The creation and destructions of value’ and Andrew Sorkin’s ‘Too big to fall’ are some of the best-selling books that I hope to read in the future since they mostly concentrate on the financial crisis.
Conclusion
My mission statement is, “To maximize my knowledge and skills for a better outcome, always focusing ahead and never raging behind; always ready to be challenged and choosing honesty as an ethic; to build a reputation of dedication and hard work to every goal I choose to pursue and succeeding both professionally and personally; to always cherish every moment in my life and never ignore anything that makes me smile everyday.” However I am also aware that success alone teaches one nothing, but failure is the key to success. This should be knowledgeable to all graduates, that life is a journey, and the only way to attain one’s goal is through commitment and hard work, which is not easy; however, with a little more effort and self-esteem we are capable of beating all odds.
Works Cited
Seattle University. Seattle University Website. 2011.