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The Do’s and Don’ts of Georgia Tech

December 15, 2022

Written by Aparna Arul and Ayushee Kalura

As rising 4th years reflecting on our time at Georgia Tech, we were curious about other students’ experiences and the advice they would give the past version of themselves who were entering college bright-eyed for the first time. While we have enjoyed our college experience so far, there are a lot of things we’d do differently given the chance. 

Reflecting On Our Own College Experiences

Ayushee: For the first 18 years of my life, I was used to a routine that remained unchanged daily. I would wake up, go to school, attend classes for 8 hours, come home, do homework, sleep, and repeat. I thought that routine would last me throughout college, and that is when I was in for a rude awakening. College was very different from high school and for the first couple months I had a hard time establishing a routine. Even now, my routine depends on my semester schedule, which is always changing. My first and greatest piece of advice to incoming college students is to create a schedule and stick to it. Admittingly, giving up is very easy and skipping classes is a slippery slope that is very hard to climb up. Take time to familiarize yourself with campus and add in times to eat, sleep, and work accordingly. Balance is very important and it’s really easy to overdo yourself with school and neglect self-care. Personally, ‘me time’ is very important because I need time away from work. Tech’s campus is located in Midtown, meaning there are plenty of places outside campus to explore. Atlanta is a very diverse city, and a lot of it is a walkable distance, so I would recommend taking time for yourself to explore the campus and city. 

In these past 3 years, while I do wish I did some things differently, there are a couple opportunities I took that have made college much more enjoyable. I joined Alpha Omega Epsilon my first semester, freshman year and I have met some of my best friends from it. I was initially opposed to the idea of joining Greek life, however I wanted to take risks in college to put myself out there, and it ended up being one of the best decisions of my life. College is a fresh start and you’re going to be surrounded by people you’ve never met. This is the time to take the leap of faith and put yourself out there, join new organizations, and even try out things you thought you’d never try. Most of my regrets stem from not taking advantage of opportunities earlier on and feeling like I missed out on a lot. Finding a niche in college really gives you a space of comfort and identity, and for me, that is AOE. While I didn’t heavily involve myself in many other student organizations, AOE is like my home on campus, where I can go to escape from my college work. I think it’s important to have a space in college outside of academics and your major, some place where you can unwind and relax with friends who share similar interests as you. Again, I think that the most important aspect of college is having a work-life balance that incorporates enough time to study, explore academic endeavors and rest, hang out with friends and have fun. 

Aparna: The best opportunities I took advantage of in college are the extracurricular organizations and resources available at GT. For the first 18 years of my life, I learned to prioritize classes and grades above almost everything else, but in my opinion it’s important to reevaluate this principle during college, especially if you’re planning to enter the workforce immediately after graduation and not considering higher education and paths within academia. College, for me, is the stepping stone from education to my career, and I wish I had prioritized things like internship hunting and personal projects relevant to my career goals, even at the expense of my grades. 

One student organization I joined is Bits of Good, where teams of students develop software for local nonprofits for free to promote social good. Through Bits of Good, I got to become friends with like-minded peers and get exposed to projects that have real-world impact. On the other hand, I briefly joined other student organizations that were not particularly beneficial experiences, and my time would have been better spent elsewhere. So I would recommend consciously recognizing the intent behind committing your time to each organization, whether it’s for career development or for fun, which is also important. 

Georgia Tech offers VIPs, Vertically Integrated Projects, that are an in-between club and course, that can be valuable to take advantage of. VIPs tend to be smaller groups that work on real projects, and allow for having a closer connection to professors and meeting peers in different majors with similar interests. Becoming a teaching assistant, aside from looking amazing on a resumé, also lets you build connections with upperclassmen and professors. GT has free 1-on-1 peer tutoring if you are struggling in class, and GT Library offers workshops to explore software you may be interested in. Taking advantage of these opportunities also builds confidence in yourself to meet your goals.

Finally, I want to emphasize the importance of being organized, because it really does make your life easier. When you start college, plan out your courses for your entire degree and per semester until graduation in a spreadsheet at the very beginning and keep updating it as things change so that as registration rolls around each semester you have a good idea of what classes you’ll be taking. Having this degree map written out helps you optimize your degree so you can try graduating early, adding a minor, studying abroad, doing an internship/co-op, working an on-campus job, doing research, or doing a BS/MS. With BS/MS I am able to finish my Bachelor’s in 3 years and add a Master’s degree immediately after. Without my degree map, applying for my BS/MS wouldn’t have been such a smooth process. Being organized with your time and selective with your commitments also lets you use your spare time for your social life, which everyone needs to prioritize at college.

Our Survey and Results

We surveyed 29 students across different majors about their experience at Georgia Tech.

The first pie chart shows a breakdown of the majors of the students surveyed. A large proportion of the students major in Computer Science, followed by Mechanical Engineering, which happen to be the two most popular majors at Georgia Tech.

We asked how happy students felt with their choice of major and school, as shown in the two histograms. When we compared the answers of both to each other, we found that the ratings of both generally went hand-in-hand. If someone felt unhappy with their major, they’d also be more likely to be unhappy with the choice of school, while if someone felt happy with one, they’d be more likely to feel happy with the other as well.

 

We also asked what aspects of Georgia Tech students found appealing, and of those, prestige/rank, distance from home, and majors/minors offered were the three highest ranked factors. When asked what was the single most influential aspect in attending Georgia Tech, prestige/rank ranked first, followed by cost, and distance from home. 

Advice compiled from all responses to the following questions:

  1. What are some tips you would give to an incoming student?
  2. What are some opportunities you took advantage of that made your college experience better?
  3. What are some things you would do differently if you started college over?
  • Plan out the semester early and don’t fall behind
  • Get involved to make friends and destress. You are more competent than you think.
  • Be yourself
  • Don’t feel like you don’t belong
  • Don’t be afraid to ask for help. Ask questions even if you think they’re stupid.
  • Be disciplined with your routine so you can have a social life
  • Don’t rush your degree
  • If the rigor college has negatively impacted your self-esteem, it’s not a reflection of your ability
  • Apply for things even if you don’t feel qualified
  • If you feel like you’re on the wrong path, look at your options immediately and don’t be afraid to change your path (including major, career goals etc.). Don’t put it off and regret just going with the flow later
  • Prioritize mental health, sleep, having fun, and exploring Atlanta. Take pictures for memories
  • Set boundaries with your commitments and spend time on your hobbies so you don’t burn out
  • Take it slow for your first semester since you’re getting adjusted to a new environment, so don’t commit to too many things
  • Use freshman year to explore your interests
  • Make upperclassmen friends in your major to learn about what it’s actually like
  • Use resources for academic support, like the tutoring center, academic advisors, office hours etc. and reach out for help early
  • Don’t compare yourself to others
  • Go to class. Study effectively.
  • Worry less about grades and more about learning
  • Make more connections with professors
  • Stay in touch with people
  • Join student organizations both related and unrelated to your major.
  • Take advantage of on-campus facilities/events such as the CRC, Stamps Health Services, and career fairs.

 

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About Author

Aparna is a 3rd year computer science major, focused on media and modeling & simulation. In her free time, she likes to doodle, read fantasy & mystery novels, and waste time on TikTok.

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  Timothy Durham was convicted of rape when a test showed his DNA genotype matched the DNA recovered from the crime scene. Eye witnesses testified that Durham was in a different state at the time of the incident, but he wasn’t exonerated from his 3000 year sentence until follow up DNA analysis showed that the preliminary forensic analysis used in the trial was misinterpreted (Thomas et al.). DNA testing serves an invaluable part in our criminal justice system, but it comes with complications and bias that can lead to wrongful convictions and misinformed juries.  

Background:

Forensic genetics aims to identify the origin of a biological sample. It can be traced back to Karl Landsteiner who discovered human ABO blood groups. With blood groups, suspects could be eliminated based on their blood type. For example, if a suspect had type A blood and there was type B blood left at the scene by the perpetrator, the investigators could rule out the suspect. Unfortunately, the reverse didn’t work. If the suspect and perpetrator both had the same blood type, it can’t be concluded that the suspect was guilty. Blood identifiers evolved into 8 distinct categories which improved the ability to eliminate suspects, but could only conclude that (if the system matched) it might be the perpetrator or this person might be related to the perpetrator (Jobling and Gill). The field evolved in the 1980s with the discovery of Minisatellites, lines of repetitive DNA that don’t encode proteins. Minisatellite patterns in DNA create what we know today as the DNA fingerprint, and it has a much higher accuracy rate than previous methods (Augustyn et al.). Around the same time, a breakthrough for victims of sexual assault was discovered. In the case of assault, bodily fluids of both the victim and the assaulter can get mixed. A process called differential lysis was created which could selectively increase the concentration of sperm in a fluid sample thereby allowing for accurate DNA testing (Jobling and Gill). Forensics evolved to use single-locus probe testing after several years because of its ease of interpretation. It looked at specific minisatellites that had high variability between subjects. This was the first DNA-based method to be used in a criminal investigation. Two murder homicides from several years apart were connected using DNA evidence. The evidence was then used to exonerate an innocent man, and the guilty party was found when he tried to evade mandatory DNA testing for all men in the small town. His guilt was then reinforced when the DNA profiles matched, and he gave a confession (Jobling and Gill). Finding DNA at a crime scene doesn’t guarantee that you’ll find a murderer. There are issues with non-pure samples and limited samples that make DNA work difficult, and accreditation of facilities and new techniques and take time (Jobling and Gill).  

Subjectivity of DNA Interpretation:

In a 2009 publication, the National Academy of Science discusses the possibility for subjective influence in lab based forensics. The interpretation bias happens in complex cases where, for example, there could be a mixture of DNA. A study published in 2011 looked specifically at this issue. A gang rape happened in Georgia, and the mixture in DNA from the case was used to prosecute one suspect after another suspect took a plea bargain to testify against him. With DNA mixtures, there are three possible conclusions: suspect excluded, suspect cannot be excluded, and inconclusive. If the suspect is excluded, it means that there’s little to no possibility that his DNA is part of the sample. If the suspect cannot be excluded, it means that there’s a possibility that his DNA is part of the sample. In the trial, the DNA examiners who knew the context of the case concluded that the suspect being prosecuted could not be excluded. The 2011 study gave the DNA evidence from this case and the DNA profiles of the suspects to 17 forensic examiners. These examiners had no context of the case, and they all worked independently. Of the 17, only 1 came to the same conclusion (suspect cannot be excluded) as the examiners who knew the context of the case. Twelve of the 17 concluded that the suspect who was prosecuted and convicted had no relation to the DNA found in the sample. Not only does this show that subjectivity occurs due to the context of the case, but the 17 examiners came up with different findings based on their past experiences meaning that not all DNA analysis is objective. Some organizations like the Scientific Working Group on DNA Analysis Methods say that quantitative statistical evidence should be presented with every categorical conclusion, but the US doesn’t require this (Dror and Hampikian).

False Positives:

There are two categories that cause wrongful identification in a DNA report: coincidental matches and false positives. Coincidental matches are DNA matches between two unrelated people. The probability of these matches is about 1 to 500,000 for white individuals and about 1 to 350,000 for black individuals. This small probability of coincidental matches makes people feel confident in DNA evidence. False positives, on the other hand, are matches between DNA and test DNA that result from issues in the forensics lab. There have been multiple cases of forensics labs accidentally switching victim and suspected rapist DNA which lead to convictions that were later overturned when the lab realized the error. There are also cases of misreading or misunderstanding a sample. In a case from 1993, a man was convicted of rape because someone interpreted a mixed sample of victim and perpetrator DNA as an individual sample. The conviction was again overturned. To prevent false convictions, retesting DNA is allowed, but it’s not an efficient solution. Many people are pushing for statistical information on the probability of false positives, so that the jurors can make accurate judgements based on DNA evidence (Thomas et al.).  

Conclusion:

DNA analysis is a useful tool for the criminal justice system, but subjectivity can be an issue in forensic testing. To combat wrongful convictions, there are organizations like The Innocence Project who use DNA testing to free the innocent, but reformed forensic testing standards should be put in place to prevent subjectivity and to ensure juries are correctly informed during trials. https://www.innocenceproject.org/    

Citation:

Augustyn , Adam, et al. “DNA Finerprinting.” Encyclopedia Britannica , 26 Apr. 2018, www.britannica.com/science/DNA-fingerprinting#ref153186. Dror, Itiel E., and Greg Hampikian. “Subjectivity and Bias in Forensic DNA Mixture Interpretation.” Science & Justice, vol. 51, no. 4, 2011, pp. 204–208., doi:10.1016/j.scijus.2011.08.004. Jobling, Mark A., and Peter Gill. “Encoded Evidence: DNA in Forensic Analysis.” Nature Reviews: Genetics, vol. 5, no. 10, Oct. 2004, pp. 739–751., doi:10.1038/nrg1455. Thompson, William C, et al. “How the Probability of a False Positive Affects the Value of DNA Evidence.” Journal of Forensic Sciences, vol. 48, no. 1, Jan. 2003, pp. 1–8., doi:10.1520/jfs2001171.