Maria Coy

Hi, my name is Maria Coy and I am a freshman at Ohio State.

My top five strengths from Strengths Quest include: relator, consistency, restorative, individualization, and communication. I find that I relate well with most of these strengths. Specifically, I find that I can identify well with the strength of restorative. Being restorative means being able to solve any problems in a practical way. I find that I enjoy solving problems, and am excited in the face of a new challenge. Being restorative impacts my academic life because I am very motivated to get school work done, no matter how big the task. In my personal and social life, being restorative helps me to help others, which is something that I enjoy doing. I enjoy working with others and helping them with problems of their own. Eventually, I hope to become a physical therapist, a career in which being restorative will come in extremely helpful.

My favorite tradition here at Ohio State is singing our alma mater, Carmen Ohio, after every swim meet.As a member of the varsity swim team here at Ohio State, I take great pride in representing our school. One way that we show our pride and love for our great university is by singing our alma mater, Carmen Ohio, at the end of every meet. Both the men’s and the women’s teams circle up together as one and share in the joy of singing our alma mater. Whether a win or a loss, the team is able to come together at the end of every meet and sing together. I look forward to it during the meet, because I love the feeling of unity and pride that we all share while singing. This is a truly special tradition and one that is very important to me.

Five lessons that I have learned during my first semester here at Ohio State include:

1. Study Sooner- learning how to really study for exams in college.

2. Planning Ahead and Time Management- learning how to budget my time in order to finish all of my homework and studying.

3. Don’t Complain- no one likes a complainer! In the pool and the classroom, I have learned it is best to maintain a positive attitude in everything that I do.

4. Getting Enough Sleep- I have learned that I need to get enough sleep in order to perform at my best both academically and athletically, even if it means sacrificing some social aspects.

5. Missing Home- homesickness is something very real, but also something easily managed with the right support.