JAKE DANKERT
My name is Jake Dankert, and I am a sophomore from Hamilton. I went to Talawanda, started college at Michigan State but then transferred here for an education closer to home and my family business! I am a Chemical Engineering major with paper science engineering Minor and am currently working on getting into the College of Engineering MS/BS program for my Master's Degree in (hopefully) Environmental Engineering!
As a commuter, one of the biggest challenges is balancing life off campus with school. I feel commuting students aren't surrounded by this 'University' atmosphere all of the time and are more subjected to the challenges and problems faced in a moreso 'real world' atmosphere. I think it gives us an upper hand though, because it teaches you to balance these things at an age and caliber higher than the average student (in my opinion!).
I enjoy being able to talk with and spend time with other commuters in the Commuter Center, having fruitful discussion and debate. I enjoy the level of friendliness that everyone shows, and how welcome everyone in this facet of the Miami Community is to new people! Other than that, my schedule outside of school is pretty crazy, so I just try to do what I can to be a positive factor to others, as that gives me the most value in my commuter experience.
I believe taking personal responsibility for your own commuter experience is important because as a generality, no one else is ever responsible for your actions, choices and enjoyment out of your life experiences. It becomes a personal responsibility to ensure you get the most of an experience, in this case that could mean being a good student, making good friends, learning new ideas etc. I want the most of my education, I pay for it. That is enough of a reason for me to take responsibility for my commuter experience and ensure that I enjoy it and get the best out of it!
The best advice I have is to never be afraid to fail. Try everything you can, new ways of thinking, new learning experiences, new job experiences, using breaks to learn more about things that interest you, and fail at them as you may or may not. Failure in my life is the one thing that has taught me to be responsible for my actions, for my future. However all too often people stay away from the risk of failure and settle for mediocrity just to avoid that, to avoid truly taking the reins. This really disables anyone from making the most of their time in school and really in life. So never be afraid to fail! Take those chances when you need to but are not sure!
