Somehow, in the most competitive place I’ve ever been, I quit planning and started enjoying myself.

Penn — or more precisely — the people I’ve met at Penn, have played a huge role in that process of discovery.

You don’t have to be a reporter to make the realizations I have during my time at Penn. Pursue your passions, whatever they are.

If there’s any lesson that I could hope to impart, it’s this: Don’t shy away from the things that you love, no matter how difficult or different they seem.

When I applied to Penn, I wrote my retirement speech for my autobiography’s page 217. Today, I rewrote that speech.

I could not have expected that the past four years would unfold as they did. And the narrative of my Penn experience has been full of surprises.

I can confidently say I’m sick of the “then” and the “now” — I’m ready for the “next.”

Penn has made me a suitable candidate to be a physician; the rest of the world has made me a well-rounded human being.

I’m certain that graduation is a time to turn uncertainty into opportunity and experiment as individuals with different paths for our lives.

I’m going to offer a little bit of advice. Take it, leave it, mock it, it doesn’t matter that much to me.

With my days at Penn numbered, I’ve become acutely aware that my time here is more like Chutes and Ladders than I’d like to admit.

From where I’m standing — not a student yet not a graduate — I have a unique view of life before and after graduation.

Despite knowing how important it is to find some place new, I have a hard time with the idea of leaving Penn.

Those who have impacted us seniors during our time here have already given us more than I could ever share.

I’m going to make a bold statement here and say I’m looking forward not just to senior year, but also graduation.

Now that Admissions is identifying LGBT applicants, it should take that extra leap and start inviting these applicants to Minority Scholars Weekend.

Sexual assault will always be a sensitive issue. But when it comes improving the efficacy of any justice system, a good dose of transparency goes a long way.