Masland Library Blog

Not something I expected to hear from my professor. Research? Me? Does she KNOW me? I had no comeback except a surprised look on my face. Yet over the next few days I couldn’t get what she said out of my head. What made her say that about me? Being at school for 5 years allowed me the opportunity to write a lot of papers and do a lot of research. I never thought I enjoyed doing Google searches online, scouring through databases, or searching the shelves for books on that particular topic that I needed. But somewhere in the process I realized I began to like it.

I benefitted from knowing which online database to pick and how to put the exact combination of keywords together so that I would find just what I wanted. I relied on the library’s alphabetical system to point me to the right section that would have all the books I needed. I can know anything I want about any topic, at any time. I realized I enjoyed learning, but more importantly, I enjoyed knowing how to learn. Maybe the professor saw something in me that I had not seen in myself: a true satisfaction in research. She was right after all.

And when I graduate, I will actually be able to choose those research topics myself.

Alexa H.