It was only eight months ago when around 7,000 freshmen came to Ann Arbor to start their first year of college at the University of Michigan. 114 of them were enrolled in this little learning community known as the “Health Sciences Scholars Program.” Since then, these 114 students have grown from perfect strangers into friends – family, even.

As a former Peer Advisor for HSSP (it feels so weird saying that), it’s been a wonderful honor and privilege getting to know these students and watching them learn the ropes here. The excitement of move in day feels so recent, but at the same time seems like a distant memory. The rising sophomore packing his things and moving out right now doesn’t seem like the same nervous freshman I was guiding to the dining hall at the beginning of the year. And the freshman who came to me, overwhelmed by all of the classes she STILL had to take to be pre-med will soon have her own mentees with their own crises.

Writing this, though, is more about the growth of these students over the last eight months than anything else. I really did nothing – every one of them grew independently and found their own place on campus, be it here in HSSP or somewhere else. I’ve watched musicians and dancers flourish in new artistic settings; I’ve seen researchers thrive and develop a passion for their topic, and I couldn’t be more humbled by watching them grow.

To those students who are reading – I’m so infinitely proud of how far all of you have come, and I can’t wait to see you all make a little dent in the universe one day. And remember – there’s always coffee waiting for you in the office!

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Since students have all now moved out, we’ll be taking a hiatus from publishing posts. Never fear - Once the next class of HSSPers is admitted, we’ll begin posting again!