Jefferson Van Wagenen

October 11, 2015

Honors 100A Assignment #1
Speaking generally, my path to UW was nothing special. Coming from Spokane,
Washington, in pursuit of a Computer Science degree, I found UW to be a decent choice, and the
reception of a scholarship for in-state students made it an easy choice. As for Honors, I did not
apply freshman year, concerned its competitiveness and what I perceived to be too poor
performance on my part to have a chance. However, when I learned about its focus on
interdisciplinary and otherwise outside-the-box education, I was motivated to apply at the end of
freshman year. As pursuing a Computer Science degree already required diligent study and high
performance in my coursework, and as I was able to meet those requirements already, I found the
competitiveness of the program not to be too intimidating. Still, I was excited to receive an email
of acceptance into the program.
Now, I am eager to utilize the Honors curriculum to further my goal of a well-rounded
education. I am currently in the Computer Science program, so perhaps that is my primary focus
in my studies. But I have other interests. History is probably my favorite subject outside the
major, and though I am still undecided as to whether I will pursue a minor in it, I plan to make
time for a course in it at least twice a yearthough I was not able to fit one in my studies at all
last year, lest I miss a prerequisite to my major. This quarter, I am taking a course on Tudor
England that both serves as a linked writing credit and simply a fun thing to learn about. The
Honors program course I am in this quarter is actually on Japanese immigrant literature in the
20th century. Though I do enjoy literature, its focus on the history of the past 110 years or so
provokes similar interest. It also helps that that course also provides linked writing credit, which
means I should satisfy that portion of my almost-complete prerequisites by the end of the quarter.
Winter quarter, I plan on taking at least one CS-major course, Math 308, and of course
one course in the Honors program. Frankly if I could find one that counts for diversity credit I
would be pleased, as that would leave me to take CS and Honors courses in the future, along
with whatever electives I choose to pursue. Further along in my education, I believe I will apply
to be a FIG leader to satisfy one of my experiential learning requirements, and maybe for the
other Ill spend a summer volunteering or, more lucratively, with an internship.
All of this will be in pursuit of employment with some tech company. Perhaps Ill find
myself working for a startup, or maybe a large company like Google or, more locally, Microsoft.
Personally, my preference would be for the latter simply because, at present, it seems like I
would have greater job security working for a well-established corporation rather than a startup
which could potentially fail at any moment. Plus, I generally prefer Seattles cool and rainy
environment to that which is, at least in the summer, less pleasant down in Silicon Valley.
But after all of that, I do not wish to abandon my other interests. A statistic commonly
presented in high school classrooms gives some large percentage of people (exactly what I do not
remember) who, after completing their education, profess to having not completed a single book.
I hope not to be lumped into that percentage, as I love reading, whether it be of the history of
some people or one of fiction presented as a classic of literature. In fact, a reread of Don Quixote
Im currently doing is the principal influence on the strange grammatical structures I am using in
this reflection. Regardless, it is a hobby I expect to have throughout my life.