Georgetown University’s Newspaper of Record since 1920

The Hoya

Georgetown University’s Newspaper of Record since 1920

The Hoya

Georgetown University’s Newspaper of Record since 1920

The Hoya

Thriving Together

In the Adam Sandler movie, “Bubble Boy,” the main character is forced to go about his life enshrouded by a large plastic bubble due to an underdeveloped immune system. This prevents any unwanted germs from entering his body, but it also separates him from society and makes it difficult for him to form relationships.

Occasionally, it feels like graduate students live in a big plastic bubble, separated from all other students — metaphorically, of course. I personally interact with undergraduate students in multiple areas of my life, including work and classes. Upon first meeting my peers, our conversation flows quite naturally. And then I am asked the question: “What year are you?”

For whatever reason, this has become one of those “Twix: Need a Moment?” occasions. Do I lie and say I am a senior? Am I truthful, but chance the immediate judgment that accompanies such a confession? Or, do I go for the classic “point-and-run-away” and hope I never see said companion again?

As I am an authentic and sane individual, I typically go with the second of these three options. The response I receive has become a near script. My companion’s eyes widen in disbelief (most likely due to my overly-youthful appearance) and then quickly narrow in suspicion. They then tilt away, almost as an attempt to widen the distance between themselves and this strange half-student, half-adult in front of them. After asking the obligatory questions regarding the subject of my studies and my undergraduate institution, my once-companion withdraws to interact only with their fellow undergrads.

I would like to point out that I am not some bizarre person that has this effect on many people, nor am I the only graduate student that has experienced this type of reaction from undergrads. In fact, it was another graduate student describing this occurrence to me that spurred me to write about this topic.

I would not be so bold as to say the same thing does not occur in the opposite direction. I lived with undergraduate students my first semester at Georgetown, and my graduate colleagues would often look at me incredulously when I described this somewhat peculiar living situation. They also continued to (good-naturedly) tease me throughout the semester about this fact.

Regardless from which side this separation buds, the disassociation between the two student groups is completely inane and misplaced.

When my fellow graduate students asked how I liked “living with undergrads,” I reminded them that we were undergraduates ourselves just a few months ago. The difference between most seniors and me is less than a year, and frankly, I probably have more in common with an undergraduate student a year my junior than someone my same age who is working. An undergraduate student and I can both sleep in until 10 a.m. on a weekday, complain about homework and consider fifteen hours of class a week a full-time commitment. There are certainly some differences, but the similarities far outweigh any professed disparity between us.

Upon further consideration, it is actually this one-year difference that should encourage rapport between these two groups. We graduate students are (or have friends who are) essentially exactly where many seniors will be in a year from now. Who wouldn’t want to be able to look into the future? Graduate students have made the decisions a senior is currently pondering and are usually more than happy to discuss the maddening process of deciding what to do after you toss your graduation cap in the air.

Moreover, being a first-year graduate student is very much like being a first-year. We feel slightly out of place, and feeling distanced from much of the student body does nothing to alleviate this feeling. As much knowledge as we may be able to share with an undergrad regarding future decisions, an undergraduate can effectively advise graduate students on Georgetown policies and traditions, as well as DC’s hotspots like popular restaurants, good running trails and underappreciated music venues.

The structure of Georgetown’s course listings actually encourages this mingling of students. By providing a range of courses, and allowing both graduate and undergraduate students to enroll in “over-under” courses, the two groups are easily able to meet on the same level and interact with each other. I’ve been lucky enough to get to know some really fascinating undergraduates who definitely add a lot to classroom discussion.

I do not mean for this to come across as overly dramatic. This is not a Montague-Capulet type of situation by any means. I have become friends with many undergraduate students and appreciate these connections just as much as the ones I have made with my fellow grads, and I know many other students with a similar friend mixture. But this segregation certainly does exist on some level, and, as I said before, it is senseless. We can only gain from interacting with each other.

So, undergraduates, I ask that you open up to us graduate students — let us into your Georgetown club. I promise we are relatively normal. And my fellow graduate students: do not behave condescendingly towards undergraduates, as you were in their position just a few short months ago. We are all living in the same city, studying at the same university and trying to figure it all out. We have nothing to lose and everything to gain by thriving together, not just coexisting.

Rebecca Childress is a master’s candidate in the Graduate School of Arts and Sciences. Gradually Getting There appears every other Friday.

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