So, for those of you who don't know me very well, I feel like a little introduction is in order. My name is Christopher. I graduated from Vanderbilt University in May with a BA in Classics (for those of you who don't know, it is NOT the study of Charles Dickens and Herman Melville. I learned Latin, Greek, Roman History, etc. Much cooler). When people find this out, they almost without fail ask, "What are you going to do with that?" I'm always tempted to tell them I want to invent a time machine and give tours in ancient Rome, but so far I'm restrained my smart mouth.
My career plans have vacillated a lot. I came to college wanting to be a doctor (I'm diabetic, so that makes sense). I declared a chemistry/classics double major as soon as I could--after all, Latin was my favorite subject in high school--but my sophomore year I realized sitting through chemistry lecture was exactly as much fun as mowing a yard with fingernail clippers--that is, not very. At least I assume so; I've never tried to cut my yard with anything besides a lawnmower. So that shot my plans to be a doctor or a chemist. Next, I decided I wanted to be a Classics professor. So I took a LOT of Classics classes. As in, I could have graduated with two complete Classics majors. Graduate Latin courses and Greek, with a little French mixed in for fun and some German for good measure (yes, you have to know 4 foreign languages to get a PhD in Classics).
And then I applied to grad school. I sent in applications to 6 PhD programs and 1 Master's. I also sent in an app to the Teaching Assistant Program in France, which has nothing to do with Classics but sounded fun--I had an older friend who had done it (I'll explain more about it later). The spring semester of 2011 started rolling and the letters started coming from my prospective grad schools. The results weren't what I had hoped for, especially since my GPA and GRE scores were both quite good. I did get one acceptance, from the Master's program I had applied to, but I was starting to think maybe this wasn't the way I should go. In April, I heard back from France: I'd been accepted! Guess which one I picked?
I took my first French class in 12th grade to fill in a free period--the other option was Art I, and anyone who knows me knows why I didn't take that--and ever since I've been interested by the French language. After 4 years of reading high school Latin it was nice to be able to carry on a conversation in something other than English. A 2-month stint in Aix-en-Provence solidified my fascination with French, not to mention my ability--at the end of my time there I was able to order a sandwich without the cashier switching to English. Food tastes so much better when ordered in another language.
My career plans have vacillated a lot. I came to college wanting to be a doctor (I'm diabetic, so that makes sense). I declared a chemistry/classics double major as soon as I could--after all, Latin was my favorite subject in high school--but my sophomore year I realized sitting through chemistry lecture was exactly as much fun as mowing a yard with fingernail clippers--that is, not very. At least I assume so; I've never tried to cut my yard with anything besides a lawnmower. So that shot my plans to be a doctor or a chemist. Next, I decided I wanted to be a Classics professor. So I took a LOT of Classics classes. As in, I could have graduated with two complete Classics majors. Graduate Latin courses and Greek, with a little French mixed in for fun and some German for good measure (yes, you have to know 4 foreign languages to get a PhD in Classics).
And then I applied to grad school. I sent in applications to 6 PhD programs and 1 Master's. I also sent in an app to the Teaching Assistant Program in France, which has nothing to do with Classics but sounded fun--I had an older friend who had done it (I'll explain more about it later). The spring semester of 2011 started rolling and the letters started coming from my prospective grad schools. The results weren't what I had hoped for, especially since my GPA and GRE scores were both quite good. I did get one acceptance, from the Master's program I had applied to, but I was starting to think maybe this wasn't the way I should go. In April, I heard back from France: I'd been accepted! Guess which one I picked?
I took my first French class in 12th grade to fill in a free period--the other option was Art I, and anyone who knows me knows why I didn't take that--and ever since I've been interested by the French language. After 4 years of reading high school Latin it was nice to be able to carry on a conversation in something other than English. A 2-month stint in Aix-en-Provence solidified my fascination with French, not to mention my ability--at the end of my time there I was able to order a sandwich without the cashier switching to English. Food tastes so much better when ordered in another language.
I think the underlying thing is, I really like being able to communicate in languages other than English. I enjoyed German, too, and I hope to keep learning it, but French is my first living, breathing love. Before I learned how to say "Je m'appelle Christophe," I was something of a language necrophiliac. I am still fascinated by Latin, and (I begrudgingly admit) Greek has its moments, but you can't exactly Skype with Constantine or Alexander. At least not without that time machine I'm going to invent.
So what exactly am I doing? I'll be at a high school, teaching English to French students. My job is only 12 hours a week, so I'll have lots of time for other projects, too--practicing French, reading, traveling, sports, etc. My contract is initially for 7 months, although I have the option for extending it another year. I don't know if I'm going to do that yet; it depends on how my French learning goes and how much I like my situation. But it's definitely a possibility. I'm not sure what direction this will lead me, but I'm hoping to find some career that lets me travel and use my French. Maybe something education-y? I'm also considering going into the ministry, but more about that later.
So that's me. I should have posted this a long time ago, but I didn't. I'll hopefully be more punctual in the future. Expect more posts in the next few days; there's a lot to tell.
