If you’ve been reading The Weather Vane recently, you’ve likely seen a feature series I started titled “Reflections from WCSC Students.” Well, I’ve been able to interview these students because I am also attending WCSC this semester, so I thought I’d share my reflections with you all as well.

Everyone knows all about the internships WCSC provides, but another huge aspect of WCSC is group living. When staying in DC, students live together, cook dinners with and for each other, share household chores, have individual group roles, and so much more. Well, I’m going to be honest and say that this aspect of WCSC was what I was looking forward to the least. I was happy to be working an internship in the city and to call DC home for a few months, but I was dreading the idea of shared living. 

I’m someone who’s been living alone for the past two years and I absolutely love it. I’m not the most social person, although I am great at pretending to be, so the thought of having to go into a group living situation with people I don’t know that well was a bit daunting. In my head all I could think about were the things that could go wrong. What if I have to have a roommate? What if everyone’s annoying? What if I don’t like someone or multiple people in the house? What if they can’t cook? What if they’re overbearing? The list goes on and on. Obviously this was mainly my anxiety rearing its head, but I also think some of the questions were valid. Anyway, all of these questions, and many more would go through my head when thinking about WCSC, but I can gladly say that my experience has been much better than expected.

My time in DC has been spent having random conversations with my housemmates, while also throwing in a few insightful conversations here and there. We’ve had various movie nights where we’ve watched some of the worst films in existence, and also a few decent ones. We’ve played games, traded playlists, recommended shows and movies, eaten great food, complained about life, endured the 2024 presidential election, endured the aftermath of said election, and so much more. The house has been filled with laughter, screams (good ones I swear), music, the smell of great food, and the sound of background music from Spongebob (no, I will not be explaining this any further). 

It’s crazy to think that you can get to know people pretty well after only knowing them for three months. While I knew three people in the house from classes I’ve taken at EMU, I didn’t know them all that well, so I basically started this experience surrounded by strangers. However, we’re nearing the end of our stay and I can say that no one is a stranger to me anymore. While I don’t know everything about everyone, and there’s some people I know better than others, I can honestly say that I’ve been able to get to know every person in the house in some way, shape, or form. This is something I never expected to happen, but I’m glad it did. 

I could not imagine having to live in a home with people I don’t like or really know for a semester. That would be miserable, and that’s where all of my pre-WCSC anxiety stemmed from. I think a successful experience at WCSC has a lot to do with what you make of it, but also the other people you’re experiencing DC with. So, this random group of people that have come together for a semester could very well make or break the experience. Lucky for me, my group has helped make this experience. 

We’re less than a month away from leaving the city and I’m unsure of what’s to come. Will we all continue to be friends and talk semi-regularly? I’m not sure, but no matter what happens, I know that I will look back on WCSC and our experiences fondly, and hopefully they’ll do the same.