My Experience as a Soph and Why You Should Do It
Written by: Macey Whiteside, 3rd Year MIT
Photo by: Western USC
Being a Soph at Western offers a one-of-a-kind experience filled with energy, fun, and unforgettable memories, unlike anything you'll find elsewhere. It's a chance to participate in a unique and fun initiative and rich culture. I truly believe you won’t find the OWeek energy of Western anywhere else, and that is why you should be a part of it.
Last winter, I applied to be a Faculty Soph for FIMS. Going into it, I wasn’t sure if I was cut out for it and didn’t know if I was going to go through with it. I always imagine Sophs as super outgoing, lacking any sort of social anxiety, and that was definitely not me. But, I thought if I did get chosen, that means that the Leadership Soph Team (LST) believed that I would be a good pick for the position, and that maybe I was cut out for it after all.
The Soph experience is broken into two weeks. The first is N-Week, a week before the first years get to Western where all of the Sophs get to know each other and receive training for OWeek. OWeek is the big week when all of the first years arrive and you are on campus until extremely late hours of the night keeping everyone safe and assisting with programming.
Which week is better will depend on who you ask, but they are both great fun. On N-Week, you have socials with your team every night where you bond with teammates and get to know everyone. Some teams even do socials with other faculty teams as well. N-Week consists of sitting in lecture halls with other teams for six to eight hours of the day and getting training for different aspects of OWeek. Then, everyone gets time to meet with just their team, then goes home. After that, is when you will have your team's socials before heading to bed, ready to do it all again the next day.
OWeek is just as fun, but definitely more tiring. While each faculty is different, in my experience we had most of the day off and then had to be on campus for dinner time to meet with your team before the nighttime programming starts. After 7:00 p.m., you’ll either be scheduled for a specific event where you will go to make sure everyone is having fun and it's running smoothly, or, you’ll have a free night. This could mean going around campus to do walk homes, visiting some of the programming or, going to residences and getting your frosh to come out.
For faculty Sophs, the only painfully long day on OWeek is faculty day. This day will go from 8:00 a.m. to around 1:00 a.m. Faculty Sophs are in charge of gathering their frosh in the morning, bringing them to their designated building, and introducing them to their faculty. Although it can be a stressful day, it is also the most fun.
Now, it's easy to walk you through the routines and day to day of Sophing, but experiencing it is truly something more. The traditions of the chants, the flags, the legacy items, the costumes, it makes OWeek what it is. Each faculty and residence has its own unique traditions which have been passed through the years. For example, FIMS does a dance every ceremony instead of a chant, Engineering refuses to speak until after opening ceremonies are over, and Science has a different plushie staff for each residence (which have their own Instagram accounts). The fun lies in the absurdity of the traditions, and the way students fully embrace them each year makes it impossible not to enjoy the experience.
Even though I wasn’t sure that this experience was for me, I went into it with the mindset of ‘fake it till you make it’. That is, I was going to channel all of my social energy into these two weeks and pretend I’m not anxious, pretend I’m the most outgoing person in the room, and go in with as much confidence as I can. And to my surprise, this mindset is what made this experience so enjoyable. I got so good at faking it, it started to become reality.
So, my one piece of advice is to apply, even if you think you might not be cut out for it. The energy of OWeek and the people you will surround yourself with make it easy to be outgoing and energetic. Sophing is truly a once in a lifetime opportunity that we are lucky to have at Western.
Soph Applications are open now and due on January 7th. Click here to learn more & apply!
Published on
