Opinion
Entering life on The Hill: The Jan experience
By Leigh Gelotte ’19
February 11, 2016
Tags opinion
I chose Hamilton for its distinctly welcoming community. When I first discovered Hamilton, I was struck by how the school was not just a place to learn, but also a place to grow. After my first visit to The Hill I knew it was where I wanted to go to college. My decision to attend was easy and quick, but my journey to Hamilton’s campus was unlike the journeys of many of my classmates. I chose Hamilton over two years ago as a junior in high school and as one of the January Admits in the class of 2019, I have been waiting to arrive on campus for what feels like ages. It’s been a long time coming, and now that I’m here it feels necessary to reflect on my recent transition.
I would be surprised if there were a single Hamilton student who would argue that they did not experience some difficulty in transitioning to college. Any transition is demanding and requires a fair amount of energy. Even so, I feel like many of the Jans would say we are particularly ‘transitioned-out.’
I, along with 30 of the 33 January admit students, spent my first semester in London studying at Arcadia University, an American University affiliated with Hamilton College. Reflecting on the ‘freshmen abroad’ experience is the first notable ingredient of the transition to Hamilton. Moving to a foreign country was an unforgettable experience for an 18-year-old first-year who had never been away from home for more than two weeks at a time. It was quite the change. The difficulty involved in this experience bonded many of the Jans together, which allows us to act as each other’s support system now that we are changing territory yet again.
The transitory quality of the Jan experience is what sets us apart from “regular” Hamilton College first-years. We enter second semester with strong connections to a small number of students. I’ve heard repeatedly that many Jans feel as though they are the new—and only—first-years at Hamilton. Despite the widespread welcoming and friendly atmosphere, it’s difficult to avoid the feeling that the first-years who arrived in September are no longer at the bottom of the food chain. I see other first-years recognizing some of the struggles they might have had upon arrival in our experiences and jumping on the opportunity to recognize their own progress at navigating Hamilton life. Unfortunately, this also produces a sentiment that Jans are a group of outsiders. We were admitted in a different way, we are not versed in the social climate of the College, yet we are overly excited about finally being on campus (and Yik Yak doesn’t fail to point that out).
Despite the initial struggle, the arrival of the Jans seems like the arrival of the freshman class. It is uncomfortable for both Jans and other students. It takes a while for Jans to be integrated into the community, but past Jans have explained that after a few weeks of friction it was like they had been here all along.
After discussing the transition with both upperclassmen and fellow Jans, it seems like both parties are equally overjoyed for the Jans to finally arrive on campus. However, I’ve observed that neither group realizes the extent of this mutual delight. It is akin to the classic pre-teen style crush.
I’ve overheard that the ‘Jan Squad’ can seem impenetrable because we travel in a pack. However, from our point of view, the sheer size of this community and the daunting task of making new friends makes traveling in groups a comfortable approach.
In the most obvious ways, there are a lot of aspects of Hamilton that are different than life in London or off campus. The academics here are much more challenging. The campus is an isolated environment that contrasts the experience of living in a city and commuting everywhere. The drinking age is 21 and the social scene is entirely different. In many ways, we were expected to be adults while abroad and now we are somewhat restricted by rules and boundaries. However, we no longer have extensive responsibilities such as cooking for ourselves and navigating a large cosmopolitan area. The size of the community at Hamilton is relieving and the support system available is enormous.
There have been huge changes in our lifestyle, but ultimately, arriving at Hamilton is what the Jans have been waiting for longer than any other first-years. We chose Hamilton and were sent on a very circuitous road to get here. Whether the community is excited to have us, annoyed by our lack of campus skills, or unaware of our presence at all, I—and most of the other 33 Jans—have been waiting to arrive on The Hill for a long time and the difficulty of the transition is dwarfed by the end of a long wait to be a part of the Hamilton family.