Freshman year was full of core memories, challenges and growth, says two BYU–Hawaii seniors
Reminiscing their first year in college, Ke Alaka’i: The Podcast hosts Abbey Adams and Myco Marcaida said their freshman year shaped the rest of their educational journey, helped them discover their identity and found their circle of friends who made them feel they belonged.
Adams, a senior from California, majoring in biology said her impression of college was based on coming-of-age movies. “I always see college as the next step into life,” she said. She imagined college would be full of new experiences and adventures. However, she said she realized that college life was lonely. “I was away from my family for the first time and everything. But I also found who I am as I met friends.” For Marcaida, a senior from the Philippines, majoring in communications, media and culture, studying, working and travelling in between made her discover herself.
Freshman favorite memories
Marcaida said her first expensive purchase at the Polynesian Cultural Center was a soprano ukulele. She said she had no idea that it cost more than $127, which was all of the savings she received from tips working as a server at Gateway Buffet. “At first, I thought it was a bad purchase because I didn’t think it through but I’m seeing the benefits now because I’m putting it to good use like whenever there’s a presentation in class, I use it,” she expressed.
Adams said she had an embarrassing moment when she was asked by a co-worker if she could sing and was asked to sing in front of everybody,” she said. Adams said through her experience, she learned not to tell people that she knows how to sing.
Remembering the first day of class as a freshman, Marcaida said, she felt lost because of the amount of people on campus. She said there were about 500 students in her batch. Marcaida continued she also felt nervous talking to people because she can no longer use Tagalog, the national language in the Philippines. “It’s a diverse university, a diverse class where you have to speak English so people can understand you.”
In connection to feeling lost, Adams said she cried after she dropped off her mother at the airport. “I think it was either the first day or second day of class. I have been crying on the way to school from the airport,” she said. As she continued to her class, she said her professor could tell she had been crying. “That’s why she’s been extra nice to me during our religion class,” she continued.
Managing time and workloads
When managing classes and workloads, Adams said freshmen should not focus on their grades but on obtaining knowledge from the classes they are taking. “I feel like throughout my college experience I would just be doing assignments for the sake of it but I wasn’t really taking in any information,” she explained.
Marcaida said she wished someone told her not to waste time exploring different minor courses. She said during her sophomore year, she found out her initial interests did not work out. In addition, Marcaida said she wished she was brave enough to have applied to Ke Alaka‘i during her first year. “When I was already applying for the job, they made me write a 500-word article and I said to myself, ‘I don’t have time for that,’ and I let the opportunity go,” she shared.
Making friends and doing self-care Adams said, “Many of the best things from my college experience have come out of this job, making me jump out of my comfort zone and be willing to interact with people I don’t know,” she shared. Adams said what helped her get out of her comfort zone and make new friends was by saying yes to people whenever she is being invited to do activities with them.
Whenever things get difficult for her, Adams said journaling was her self-care. “I do it especially when I have big emotions that I have to process,” she shared. For Marcaida, she said she writes letters for her future self. “I have a letter for me every year, and the last one I’ll be opening will be in June 2026, which is when I graduate,” she shared. Marcaida said writing a letter to her future self gets things, such as anxiety, out of her head
Marcaida said one advice she wanted to share with freshmen was to not let embarrassment get in the way of meeting new people. “I would tell my younger self, it's okay to be nervous and afraid, but don't let that fear stop you from making new experiences and meeting new people,” she explained.
Adams and Marcaida said they were proud of their freshman self because they never expected to make friends that created deep connections with them. Adams said coming to BYU–Hawaii, she developed friendships and found people who she gets along with. “I think my younger self would just be so surprised and so proud of where I am now,” she continued.