As their senior year comes to a close, we asked members of the Johns Hopkins University Class of 2013—What's the one thing you would advise members of the Class of 2014 and beyond to do before they graduate?
Here, in no particular order, is what they told us.
1) Don't fear, just do
2) Do something non-academic in every academic building on campus
3) Explore Baltimore. As in, really explore Baltimore.
4) Have a slumber party with friends in the library M level
5) Go to every building on campus and introduce yourself to a fellow Hopkins student
6) Get to know someone new and explore all of campus
7) Take a course well outside of your major or discipline. I studied Political Science and Environmental Science, yet one of my favorite courses was Cosmic Evolution, an astrophysics course.
8) Don't use your spring break to catch up on work
9) Go to Brewer's Art
10) Don't miss out on going to the Spring Fair beer garden once you're of age. The spirit there is alive and well.
11) Go to the National Aquarium
12) Go to a concert in Baltimore. Once it's ended, wait at the back of the venue or at the venue itself to meet artists. Baltimore has such a vibrant music scene which many people aren't aware about, and it's been incredibly easy to meet musicians, because the venues are small and cozy. I've met many of my musical idols here.
13) Discover your passions! Enjoy life!
14) Go to the Waverly Farmer's Market and eat brunch at Pete's Grille. It may be early on a Saturday but it's worth it!
15) Take some classes outside of your major(s) in your last semester
16) Go stargazing at the Bloomberg telescope
17) Go stargazing at the Science Center for free on Friday nights. Two crazy old scientists will show you anything you want to observe in the night sky.
18) In the spring, take a run to the tulip garden in the Guilford neighborhood north of campus—if you have some time, stop by to see Professor Macksey's book collection on the way.
19) Before graduating every Hopkins student should take a stroll on Hampden's "Avenue" and check out the thrift shops, art exhibits, great restaurants, and friendly locals. It's such a great way to spend a sunny weekend afternoon.
20) Make a list of your top 20 things you ever wanted to do at JHU—go on a JHOC trip, climb the rock wall, etc.—and do one each of your final 20 weeks of school.
21) Go to student night on Friday nights at Camden Yards
22) Visit all of the different neighborhoods in Baltimore and try out restaurants/bars in each
23) See a movie at the Bengie's Drive-In Theatre
24) Eat a slice of Mobtown Brown or Baltimore Bomb pie at Dangerously Delicious Pies
25) For Pete's sake, GO TO THE MUSEUM OF ART. 26) Complete an internship to gain experience in your field
27) Get to know&mdashand I mean get to know well—the character of every Baltimore neighborhood
28) Visit ALL the FREE museums in Baltimore (BMA, Homewood, Garrett, Evergreen, Walters). Oh, and try to visit the Poe gravesite if you can.
29) Climb Federal Hill at night with a significant other for a romantic view of the Inner Harbor
30) Explore Baltimore with an Inner Harbor sailing trip through Outdoor Pursuits
31) Go skydiving in D.C.
32) Appreciate and take advantage of the great faculty and staff. Networking is key and will last after you graduate.
33) Go to a Final Friday Baltimore Bike Party. It allows you to dress up, see the city via bike, meet people in the city, and enjoy a random venue afterwards.
34) Host a dance party on D-Level
35) Make a point to try a new restaurant once a month, outside of your routine. It'll bring you to new parts of the city and open you up for an awesome, spontaneous college memory.
36) Captain Crunch french toast at the Blue Moon Café
37) Go out to events around Baltimore. Soundstage, Rams Head Live, The Preakness, The Face-Off Classic. My experience at Hopkins has been made by integrating myself with the surrounding communities.
38) Enjoy the view from Gilman Tower (legally)
39) Go to a $2 crab and beer night at Riptide by the Bay in Fells Point
40) Go swimming in the president's fountain
41) Go to the beer garden during Spring Fair
42) Make a real connection with someone in the Baltimore community
43) Explore the Inner Harbor and especially try the dragon boats
44) Take in a ballgame at Camden Yards to watch the hometown O's. Enjoy it with a local Natty Boh.
45) Travel to at least one country in the developing world about which you may have read in an economics/politics/science class
46) Go to the Gilman bell tower
47) Crabs and Natty Boh at LP Steamers
48) Before you graduate, meet up with your freshman year dorm friends and look back at the beginning of your Hopkins experience. Re-sparking the connection between those whom you bonded with when you first arrived brings great perspective on your four years since.
49) Explore the greater Baltimore area. Baltimore has loads to offer, especially during the summertime months.
50) Give your favorite professor a hug
51) Eat that jumbo turkey leg from Spring Fair ... all at once!
52) Go tubing down the lazy river in the spring
53) Visit the Evergreen Museum
54) Go take a weekend and study at the Peabody Library instead of MSE
55) See an astronomical event from the telescope at Bloomberg
56) Lay on the Beach
57) Karaoke on the quads
58) Look at stars through the JHU Morris W. Offit Telescope at the Maryland Space Grant Observatory
59) Have a photoshoot in the stream area behind the San Martin Center
60) Slip n' slide down the Beach
61) Relax and take it easy. Graduation's going to come whether you stress out or not—you might as well enjoy your last year!
62) Visit Washington for the Cherry Blossom Festival
63) Explore every level of the library
64) Go on a random road trip
65) Enjoy being student-loan-payment free for another year
66) Focus on what Hopkins has done for you, not what it has done to you. This had made all the difference
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