Here’s something we need to talk about: What are the differences between freshmen, sophomores, juniors and seniors? What are the differences between undergraduate and graduate students? What are the needs and developmental tasks of our young alumni? How might a greater awareness of and sensitivity to the developmental realities of each of these cohorts inform our educational vision, within Hillels and among post-college organizations that foster Jewish identity?
I am not the first to notice that, in general, a major shift tends to occur around the beginning or middle of a student’s junior year. Their maturity level increases. They seem to grasp that their academic work isn’t simply about getting good grades or writing the paper they think their professor expects, but that intellectual life can have its own intrinsic rewards. Often times this correlates with a study abroad experience or moving into their first apartment.
In Jewish terms, what strikes me the most is that students at this stage often move from a discomfort or resistance towards traditional modes of Jewish expression–text, ritual–to a greater curiosity or embrace of it. I tend to get many more juniors and seniors interested in study and conversations of meaning than I do freshmen and sophomores.
There’s nothing new here: I like to say that I didn’t really figure out how to go to college until the middle of my junior year (it’s a shame the first two years cost as much as they did). But do we take these developmental realities into account in our assessment of success, or in designing meaningful Jewish experiences? What does it mean to educate a Jewish student at each of these stages within emerging adulthood? What risks can and should we take, and what are the costs associated with them? We have only begun to do this at Northwestern. I’m curious to hear others’ thoughts.
