Whenever my name shows up in Brown-related print, it's inevitably followed by a decimal more appropriate for the Richter scale than a graduation year: '08.5. I surely brought it upon myself, but like the threshold for a degree in honors (you wrote a thesis, right?), I'm stuck at the midpoint between - not an A and a B but - 2008 and 2009.
Apparently Commencement is a chance to commemorate four years of problem sets and PowerPoint presentations, a few well-organized thesis paragraphs and the occasional jazz combo performance. There might have been an art opening along the way, a published article, a vocal recital or even an Ivy League championship football title.
But for me, it seems, Commencement will be more of a clumsy comma than a full stop in the narrative that is my Brown education. Indeed, I'm excited to celebrate the accomplishments of my friends and classmates, but I'll inevitably dodge the occasional "Congratulations, Jon" or "What are you up to next year?"
How did I get in this lovely predicament? I took a semester leave last spring to pursue history-related research in Delhi, and along the way, I ended up reporting and writing for some newspapers and magazines. I have plenty of justifications in case you're interested: something about being a professional student for upwards of 17 years - blah, blah, blah - and a new sense of perspective, which money can't buy. Not even $180,000.
I might not officially be in the Commencement program, but I'll surely enjoy walking back out the Van Wickle Gates, rounding off my (not quite) four years at Brown. I worry, though, that the symbolism will be lost on me: if I've walked out the gates into the world, where will I be next semester?
Well, I imagine I'll be working at my carrel on the fourth floor in the Rockefeller Library. Don't pity me, though; I only have fifteen more weeks. Which is 108 days. But who's counting?
Okay, I admit it: no matter how awkward Commencement will be this weekend, I don't regret my decision to take time off, and in fact, I believe it was one of the best decisions I've made in my life. And in all seriousness, I cannot imagine an environment that could have been more supportive and critically engaged than Brown.
That there are about 100 mid-year graduates like me suggests that Brown might be a little different from other colleges. The reasons for taking time are tremendously varied, but broadly speaking, many of the students I know pursued interests that complemented their academic careers. One friend volunteered at an orphanage in South Africa, another wrote for the Chronicle of Higher Education. One traveled through South America, while another pursued film production.
We hear it often, I think, but it's true that we learn as much outside the classroom as inside. My limited education in journalism came from reporting and writing for The Brown Daily Herald, and I honed drum playing in groups and bands over the years. It goes without saying that it is important to have intellectually energetic students within a seminar, but it is also important to have smart friends around when you're discussing the World Series or a New York Times feature.
The University, through it all, was not only supportive of taking time off, but seamlessly fit me into the administrative apparatus. One dean meeting - and bam! - I was off to India; a quick e-mail and I began pre-registering for my homecoming semester. Sure, there are the slight snags - basically that I'll only walk through the Van Wickle Gates in May - but it's been a relatively painless process.
We've heard all the clichés about Brown and Brunonians, but I think there's truth to be found in them. That Brown does not have a rigid core curriculum means that its students are not limited to courses that fulfill a prescribed code. Rather, we have the liberty to expand on courses of interest and investigate areas that might seem far-flung from our usual emphases of study.
It is a peculiar thing to be surprised, regularly, by the insight and accomplishments of a group of people, but I say it with all sincerity. Congratulations class of 2008 (and 2008.5) - you deserve it.
Jonathan Sidhu '08.5 was a Herald senior editor and arts & culture editor. A development studies concentrator, he will finish a concurrent master's in the same field next fall. Assuming, of course, that he doesn't take another semester off.
