Hullabaloo U – Statistics

Hullabaloo U – Statistics

 

Established in Fall 2017 as the Statistics Scholars and renamed to join the university’s first year program initiative in Fall 2019, Hullabaloo U serves to create a greater sense of community in our small department, provide resources and mentorship, connect students to opportunities, explore graduate school and career paths, and create a professional and academic network in Statistics. Statistics majors will enroll in SCEN 289 in STAT major only sections during their first semester. Programming for Statistics majors will encompass their whole first year with mentorship, events, advising, and community socials.

 

Learning Community Highlights

  • Cohort community social events
  • Assigned undergraduate Statistics major peer mentor
  • Regular faculty interaction and mentorship
  • Specialized advising with early intervention
  • Workshops focused on professional development, academic skills, and campus resources
  • Recruiter talks and guest speakers
  • Increased sense of connectedness to the department

 

 

Testimonials

Here’s some past thoughts, comments, and reflections on being a part of the learning community:

  • “What benefited me the most were the dinners where everyone got together so I could hear from different people, and the meetings with my peer mentor where I could talk to someone who’s in the same boat as me.”
  • “My peer and faculty mentor meetings were always extremely useful for me and were always something I looked forward to during my weeks. I really liked my faculty and peer mentor; they both have helped reassure me that I’m not in this college thing alone. They always answered any questions I had for them and definitely made me feel “in the loop” with all of the things going on at the Texas A&M statistics department.”
  • “Being part of the learning community was very beneficial to me as it provided opportunities to meet new people who have similar academic interests as me, and through the mentorship, provided guidance as I transitioned into college. I also enjoyed the people who came to talk to us about how statistics are used in their line of work. These were helpful in seeing what career interests I may want to pursue, and I would like to see more of these speakers/presenters in the future.”
  • “I think my first semester would have different without this learning community because I wouldn’t have met the people I have met at events this year and wouldn’t have gained valuable advice from my mentor.”
  • “The workshops helped me a lot in the professional aspect. They explained how and what classes I should take, depending on my interests, and even showed me how to get involved and successfully network with others.”
  • “The dinners/workshops were a great way to meet people in the major and get helpful information. The mentor meetings were also very helpful, and relieved a lot of stress”
  • “I think without the learning community, I would have struggled a lot with knowing what to expect from my classes, and I would have felt much more isolated without being able to relate with people who are doing the exact same thing I am. Since we are such a small major, and I’m not the most social person, I could see myself being much more isolated without the help of the learning community, which would have probably affected my motivation towards getting a degree in statistics.”

 

Peer Mentor Highlights

 

Lacee

Hometown: Plano, Texas
Favorite class taken: MATH 304: Linear Algebra
Favorite college experience: My favorite college experience has been attending a Texas A&M baseball game. The fans and the energy made it so fun. Plus, TAMU has great traditions in their baseball program. They’re always a fun team to watch.
Why you chose to be a Peer Mentor: I chose to be a Peer Mentor because I wanted to be involved in the statistics department. I wanted to get to know my peers and faculty in my degree. I also wanted to have an impact in the statistics department. It created a stronger emotional attachment between me and the department as a whole.

Lauren

Hometown: Tyler, Texas
Favorite class taken: STAT 211 with Keith Hatfield
Favorite college experience: Serving as a Staff Assistant, Committee Member, and Executive for The Big Event
Why you chose to be a Peer Mentor: I chose to be a Peer Mentor because I believe in helping others to the best of our ability.  Freshman year of college is hard and not enough people talk about the things that make it hard.  I hope to make the transition to Texas A&M and Statistics smoother for incoming freshmen by sharing my experiences as well as my mistakes.

Gianluca

Hometown: Montevideo, Uruguay raised in Houston, Texas
Favorite class: STAT 485 with Dr. Raymond Carroll
Favorite college experience: Being able to meet and work with faculty in the statistics department. Meeting and working with Dr. Carroll since my freshman year has been a blast and continues to excite me for the future.
Why you chose to be a Peer Mentor: My relationship with my own peer mentor made me realize how important it is to give back. I choose to be a part of this program because I felt there were a few things I could do to support the department and trying to help freshman who were like me is the best way I could think of.

Minjee

Hometown: Seoul, Korea
Favorite class taken: MATH 220 and STAT 404
Favorite college experience: SUSA socials
Why I chose to be a Peer Mentor: I was part of this community as a freshman. Through this program, I not only learned about valuable resources, but I gained confidence through support from peer statistics majors and faculty members who I would not have met otherwise. I thought it was only fitting for me to become a mentor this year to allow incoming students to have the incredible experience I was lucky to have. 

Steve

Hometown: San Antonio, Texas
Favorite class taken: STAT 404
Favorite college experience: SIBS program in the summer of 2018
Why I chose to be a Peer Mentor: As a freshman in the statistics major I really struggled with making concrete goals and planning my future. Without some incredible mentoring from the faculty here, there’s a good chance I would have either left the major or settled for ‘just’ getting a degree. New students go through a lot of struggles, from tough classes to college life and future planning, and I was motivated to step into the role of mentoring because I knew firsthand how much of an impact a mentor could make.