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My entire life has been a series of plans, carefully constructed and executed to the letter. When I entered UCLA as a freshman, I decided on an English major along with taking the pre-medicine curriculum. I also applied to the Daily Bruin, mainly because working at a newspaper felt comfortable and familiar after my high school experience with journalism. I soon became wrapped up in classes, extracurriculars and my prospects of going to medical school.

But the great thing about UCLA is that it allows you to learn from experience, if you so choose. I began research with a cardiologist, loaded up on chem labs and contemplated which quarter I should take the MCAT.

Instead of getting more excited and motivated to carry out my plan, I found myself beginning to “lose focus” (or so I thought) – putting off studying for Life Science 3 to read more Donne, Keats and Woolf; beginning to dread the lifestyle that lay ahead of me; and most significantly, starting to write more articles for the Daily Bruin.

I no longer saw The Bruin as one more pursuit in an endless list of activities but rather as something I was truly passionate about. And as my involvement grew so did my enthusiasm for writing and editing. (The free plays and art exhibition tickets were pretty sweet, too.)

Working at the Bruin has been above all a learning experience for me. As a writer, I learned something new about an individual, event or topic with every article I completed.

As an editor, I learned new information vicariously through other writers but also mastered the art of formulating story ideas.

I gradually realized this position allowed me to excel at one of the things I do best: plan. In this case, plan my pages each week from start to finish. And while the process itself often wasn’t easy, the end result was always rewarding.

One highlight of the job occurred when I interviewed one of my favorite writers, Joan Didion. As our conversation turned to journalism, she told me, “When I started doing pieces, it just opened up a whole new world to me. It was just interesting to see things and try to make sense of them.”

I intend to chart more of this new world after I graduate. Next year I will work for a nonprofit organization in Washington, D.C. But beyond that, I no longer have much of a long-term plan, except to seek out those experiences and opportunities that make me feel excited and fulfilled.

For once in my life, that’s exactly how I want it to be.

Share your post-graduation plans (or lack of them) with Tate at

ntate@media.ucla.edu.