Emma reminds us to talk to strangers and stay curious.

Name, School, Major, Hometown: Emma Burris, Barnard, Psychology & Human Rights, Richmond, VA

Claim to fame: Barnard student you know but don’t remember how you met. Also I was Bwog’s News Editor during the Encampments…

Where are you going? To Trieste, Italy to do a Fulbright research grant! I’m studying their city’s model of mental healthcare, which is known as the gold standard for mental healthcare provision worldwide by the World Health Organization. 

What are three things you learned at Columbia and would like to share with the Class of 2030?

1. For a lot of people, this is the only time in your life when there’s nothing holding you down. You can decide to do any major, join any club, pursue any career, and move to any city of your choosing—and then change your mind again and again. You don’t have a marriage, or a mortgage, or a child. Your future may seem like it’s on a predetermined path—you have to take xyz classes, work xyz job, and have xyz publications in order to get into xyz graduate school. But take a moment for a second and think about all the other possibilities that could be. You could pack everything up tomorrow and go to the moon. You can make anything happen for yourself, and you can change your mind as many times as you want. Follow what makes you happy and fulfilled. (But will I myself follow this advice? Maybe after grad school…)

2. Be transparent and don’t be afraid of tension. If you have conflict with a friend or a roommate, don’t try to sweep it under the rug—let your feelings be known (kindly) and talk things out, or else everything that goes unsaid will boil over in the future. You’re allowed to have disagreements with friends and still talk openly about them without taking it personally. The same goes for relationships with professors. Afraid to ask for a letter of recommendation? Ask anyways, what is there to lose? Same goes for anything else. Oftentimes, you’ll find that disclosing things will lead to a whole lot stronger relationships. 

3. There are many things here as important—if not more important—than classes when it comes to your education and development. Make friends.* Take advantage of all the random opportunities and perks you get here before you graduate and they run out.** Talk to strangers and stay curious everywhere you go (you’ll always learn something new). Join The Skint newsletter. Learn to enjoy doing things by yourself. Go do karaoke at 222. Also, networking is actually everything (even if you keep telling yourself otherwise), and it’s as simple as cold emailing/dm-ing people and asking them to chat. 

*Also, if you’re in the same circles as someone who’s just mean, petty, and treats you like you’re below them, then don’t be around them any longer. It’s not worth it.

**Namely, spend lots of time in the Design Center learning how to do cool things (e.g., 3D printing, woodcutting, bookbinding, screenprinting, etc). 

“Back in my day…” There was weekly COVID testing, Snock lived and died, Nightline still had their office in the basement of [redacted], Barnard banned door decorations, Bwog’s site crashed with thousands of visitors the night everyone thought the National Guard was called to Columbia, President Shafik resigned via a 3 am email, and Zohran Mamdani won as mayor! 

Favorite Columbia lore? That before the 116th and Broadway campus was Columbia’s, it belonged to the Bloomingdale Insane Asylum. (If you study psychiatric hospitals you’ll learn a thing or two about local history…)

What was your favorite class at Columbia? Many. I’ll name a lot. Millennium, Apocalypse, and Utopia with Elizabeth Castelli (unfortunately, she’s retiring and this was her last year teaching it). Data, Race, Power, and Justice with Brian Luna Lucero. Science Writing with Alexandra Horowitz. Introduction to Linguistics with John McWhorter. I’ve found that my favorite classes have been ones I’ve taken for my own pleasure and curiosity, as opposed to things required for my major and career path. It’s great to be able to take a class and be motivated solely by passion and not obligation! Besides this, your enjoyment of a class really comes down to the professor themself. Find professors who will value you as people. Choose seminars over lectures. 

Whom would you like to thank? As I said in my thesis acknowledgements, thank you to everyone who has ever believed in me. A list would be exhaustive, but you know who you are!  

One thing to do before graduating? Thank the professors and Barnard staff members you love. Hug people. Do those big things with friends—walk the length of Manhattan, pull an all-nighter traveling all across the city, push your mattresses together and have a big sleepover. That’s what I’ll be doing! 

Any regrets? I don’t think so, I think even bad experiences or things we may call “regrets” are important in shaping us as people. I try not to look back with negativity (and spend that energy worrying about the future instead…)

Emma via Emma