The lack of a hectic schedule during the summer months offers the Pepperdine community the perfect opportunity to grow closer together and get to know one another.
Junior Emilia Schirrmeister stayed at Pepperdine for the May summer session to take Religion 200 and History 204 — two GEs.
“After a week, I had figured out the majority of people who stayed for the summer,” Schirrmeister said.
Students find peace and community during their time in the Pepperdine summer sessions but there are drawbacks too — a crammed workload and meeting deadlines are just some of the difficulties students said they faced.
Deepening Relationships Around Campus
Among the positive factors that added to their overall summer school experience, Pepperdine students said that bonding with the community was at the top of the list.
“Campus had a lot fewer students,” Schirrmeister said. “It was nice to walk into Payson Library and only see the same familiar faces.”
Schirrmeister, who has taken part in Pepperdine’s May summer sessions two years in a row, said she finds Malibu’s slowed-down pace during the summer to be a refreshing change.
“You wouldn’t see so many students around, which was kind of nice,” said Schirrmeister. “I have a feeling May is the perfect month to visit Malibu, so you would hear German or Spanish speakers in the Country Mart.”
Other Pepperdine students who stayed for the summer sessions agree that socializing was easier, given the small number of students around campus.
“My classes had around six other people,” junior Kylie Salinger said. “I would run into these new friends in the library.”
Shorter Hours and Heavier Workload
For students who stayed during the summer sessions, the shorter school hours presented some drawbacks too, including increased workload and limited facilities.
“The classes were a lot more fast-paced,” Schirrmeister said. “It was 16 weeks fitted all into one month.”
Students also said their expectations of the Malibu summer experience fell short given the challenges that their condensed schedule posed.
“I was hoping to go to the beach a lot, but instead I spent all of my time studying and doing homework,” Schirrmeister said.
Although students focused on the positives of the summer school experience, they also said the stricter hours and limited open hours of facilities on campus created some discomfort.
“Hours were a lot stricter and shorter,” Salinger said. “Waves Cafe, Starbucks and Payson Library were only open for a short period of time, so we spent a lot of time in our rooms.”
Activities in Malibu
Pepperdine’s prime coastal location gives summer students easy accessibility to the Malibu beach life, a factor that students look forward to enjoying when they decide to stay.
“Malibu has its four prettiest and slowest months during the summer,” Schirrmeister said.
Others said they shared this sentiment.
“My friends and I went to the beach more often during the summer session,” Salinger said. “It was overall better weather than the school year.”
On the upside, the drastic schedule changes allowed students to find new activities, even beyond Malibu.
“We had more free time in the afternoon,” Salinger said. “We’d drive around and go hang out with friends in LA or line dancing across the Canyon, which is always fun.”
Salinger said she would encourage students who are considering to stay for the summer to invite their friends, as she believes the summer sessions are a very enjoyable experience.
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Contact Karla Suzuki via email: karla.suzuki@pepperdine.edu
