John Dewey once stated, “We do not learn from experience… we learn from reflecting on

experience.” I feel that Dewey’s idea about reflecting upon experiences and the growth that

comes from the reflections connected to the ideas and goals of the Honors Program at Minnesota

State University, Mankato. With that being said, I have chosen to remain in the Honors Program

because it pushes me to take part in things that I may not normally choose to take part in as well

as grow the necessary traits to better my personal and professional goals through reflection.

Specifically, my experience at MNSU has been greatly impacted in a positive manner due

to my participation in the Honors Program. The Honors Program has allowed me to meet new

people, deepen my education, grow communication and leadership skills as well as experience

different events that have pushed me outside of my comfort zone. With the idea of getting as

many experiences as I can for the Honors Program, I have had to take part in different settings

that I normally wouldn’t find myself in. Prior to the Honors Program, I was very nervous to go to

events/groups alone. Since being in the program I have been pushed to attend events alone in

order to achieve different competency experiences. Thus, going to events that I normally

wouldn’t go to has allowed me to branch out and meet others at different events. Additionally,

attending different events/groups has allowed me to learn about a variety of different topics.

Specifically, I have attended a variety of cultural events where I was able to deepen my

knowledge about cultures different from mine. Not only has the Honors Program pushed me to

attend various events on and off campus, the Honors Program has introduced me to many like

minded people. I have formed great friendships with multiple people from the program that I met

in class or at the Honors Program events.

 Furthermore, I hope that the Honors Program continues to help me grow personally and

professionally throughout my undergraduate career. I believe the Honors Program will continue

to push me outside of my comfort zone. By remaining in the Honors Program, I hope that writing

the reflection will help to better my writing skills as well as encourage me to think deeper about

my experiences. Through the support of the Honors staff, I believe I will be constantly pushed to

engage in various campus activities. By attending different events, I am able to build

connections/network with students and adults that will benefit me professionally down the road.

Due to the Honors Program pushing students to actively participate in research projects and

leadership roles, I am able to continue to grow my social and communication skills as well as

increase my knowledge about various topics/ideas. I believe by accomplishing all necessary

competency area experiences, I will have the tools and skills necessary to succeed in my future.

Each area pushes students to explore different avenues that will allow us to obtain various skills

to help us grow personally as well as be more successful professionally.

In the future, I believe I will use my Honors experience in a multitude of ways.

Specifically, the experiences I have completed for the leadership competency area will extremely

benefit my future. Not only will my experiences look good on resumes and job applications, I

hope to have gained important and necessary skills to perform well in my career. I believe I will

be able to gain the skills by achieving all experiences within each competency area. Each

competency area requires a little different approach which encourages me to use and develop

skills for me to succeed within that given area. Additionally, I believe the honors program classes

itself will help me in the future as the program aims to encourage me to think deeply and better

my writing. I believe being able to not only think deeper about experiences but put it into words

will help me in my future as well. The portfolio and the experiences added to the portfolio will
also help my marketability when applying to graduate school and/or looking for a job in the

future.

Overall, I chose to remain in the honors program to continue to help me grow personally

and professionally by gaining different experiences as well as working with other like-minded

students and staff. I am very excited to see how the honors program continues to challenge me

outside of my comfort zone.

How do you envision using your honors experience in the future?