There are a lot of traits that have come to stereotype Stony Brook University to incoming freshmen: “it’s a commuter school,”  “you are going to have to teach yourself your subjects” and, of course, the ever popular “everyone is pre-med.” Even students on campus add in “on the pre-med track” whenever someone mentions that they are a biology or chemistry major-partially as a joke. And yet, there is a whole other world of studies on campus that a lot of us do not pay attention to.  We all take Writing 102 and then some required DECs, and forget that there is more to our education than just organic chemistry.

For example, Stony Brook is the only public university with an undergraduate program in journalism, and it is a pretty fancy program, equipped with a broadcast news set, equipment for digital video and online editing and a control room. The big news surrounding the program right now is that Carl Bernstein, a Pulitzer-prize winning journalist who uncovered the Watergate burglary in 1972, is coming to Stony Brook as a visiting presidential professor. SOMAS (The School of Marine and Atmospheric Sciences) was recently ranked seventh nationally for marine biology and third in physical oceanography. Four professors from this program were named as “co-winners” of the Nobel Peace prize that was shared with Al Gore for their studies on global warming.

Some of the biggest news this year academically has revolved around programs in the humanities like the outstanding donations for India and Hellenic studies. Dr. Nirmal Mattoo, the Indian American community and the Simons Foundation recently donated five million dollars for the India studies program here on campus. This allows the program to hire world-class scholars as professors and bring in conferences and symposiums directly to campus. The money will also be used to develop the undergraduate and graduate programs in India studies, and help to foster the growth of the study abroad program in India. On Sept. 16 of this year, Mr. Peter Tsantes and Mr. George Tsunis donated $750,000 to create a “Professorship in Hellenic Studies”. This will go to advance the teachings of Greek language at the university and aid in research related to Greek language and literature, both for undergraduate and graduate students.

I am taking an Indian Epics class this semester and it is a breath of fresh air in comparison to my other science and engineering classes.  Breaking out of the “sample course sequence” we all seem to follow is liberating and it is an experience that I personally encourage. It is not life changing like studying abroad but, taking classes that do not pertain to just one subject area is a small but direct way to start thinking differently. DECs give us the opportunity to dip our toes into the other realm of studies, but in the end, it is up to us to take that extra interest and enroll in these classes. There is always that worry that taking a “fun” class may come back and haunt us when it takes a toll on our GPAs, but there are now two different grading options that could prevent that.

So sure, Stony Brook may have a reputation for being a science-based school. And yes, a good number of our student body is usually studying or crying over BIO 203, but there is a whole other aspect to this university that many of us seem to be missing out on, and that part of the school is flourishing into a rich program. My advice? Branch out and take a class for fun, not because you need to.