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MEET YOUR CAPTAINS: SAM BABAYAN
The Captain's Log
Feb 5 2015
If Sam Babayan only had thirty seconds to tell you his life story,
he'd do it in five. "My life is me being torn between things," the
sophomore said, although that's not actually as terrible as it sounds.
The first thing Babayan is torn between is which of his parent's
cooking he prefers. His mother is Dominican and his father is
Armenian, so Sam grew up eating traditional dishes from both of their
homelands. Just don't ask him to pick a favorite, because he won't
be able to choose.
In all honesty, such a dilemma has "given me a love of diversity. I
had the privilege of being raised speaking both of their
languages--speaking Armenian and Spanish; that's actually something
I'm really grateful for," said Babayan.
Babayan learned English in school, where one day he eventually picked
up his love for psychology and biology--the other things he can't
choose between. "I really love science a lot, and how quantifiable
everything is, and how there's a concrete answer to everything. As
difficult as calculus can be, I really like that sometimes.... but then
I go to a psych class and get a multiple choice question where there's
all kinds of different right answers. It can be really ambiguous,
but I really enjoy it."
Sam is currently double majoring in cell/ molecular biology and
psychology, and is well aware of what his post-CNU future holds. "I'm
definitely going to grad school. It's necessary. Med school is an
option, but it's going to be hard.... Maybe I'd do a doctoral program
for neuroscience, if everything works out."
But Babayan has no desire to take his practice too far afield. "I
don't see myself anywhere other than the DC metro area," he said. "I
was born and raised there; I like the city and there are a lot of
things to experience."
For the time being, Babayan wants to focus on making it through
undergrad. Unfortunately, this comes with a few tough decisions.
As a freshman, Babayan was a member of the Presidential Leadership
program, but in the beginning of his sophomore year he had to withdraw
to accommodate both of his majors.
He also gave up football--one of his primary reasons for applying to
CNU. "I was originally going to play football for CNU," he said. "I
played all of high school, and it was an awesome experience that
lead to friendships I'll have for the rest of my life. That was
something I wanted to continue and hone, but I chose CNU because I
didn't want the stress of having to play on scholarship." Ultimately,
things didn't work out, and Babayan had to walk away from his dreams
of being a Captain on the gridiron.
As it turned out, walking away from one dream opened the door for
another opportunity. "I was approached by a bunch of older guys on the
rugby team who invited me to a few of their practices," said Babayan.
"It took some getting used to, because [rugby and football] are two
very different sports. They brought me out, and it was the same kind
of brotherhood that I'd found with football in high school."
Some of his favorite memories concerning rugby involve their public
philanthropy. "We did Dude Looks Like a Lady last year, and it was
really cool to play a full-contact rugby game in dresses."
Another perk of rugby is that "it isn't as life consuming as varsity
football was." So with his free time Babayan participates in a couple
committees for the Delta Upsilon brotherhood, and he also serves as
the fraternity's IFC representative.
In addition to his time with DU, Babayan is an RA for York River East,
2B. He spent his own freshman year on hall 4A. "I've lived in the
same building for half of college," he jokes. But being an RA "has
been an amazing experience. I wouldn't trade the relationships that
I've built with my residents for anything. They make it all worth it."
http://www.thecaptainslog.org/2015/lifestyle/meet-your-captains-sam-babayan/
The Captain's Log
Feb 5 2015
If Sam Babayan only had thirty seconds to tell you his life story,
he'd do it in five. "My life is me being torn between things," the
sophomore said, although that's not actually as terrible as it sounds.
The first thing Babayan is torn between is which of his parent's
cooking he prefers. His mother is Dominican and his father is
Armenian, so Sam grew up eating traditional dishes from both of their
homelands. Just don't ask him to pick a favorite, because he won't
be able to choose.
In all honesty, such a dilemma has "given me a love of diversity. I
had the privilege of being raised speaking both of their
languages--speaking Armenian and Spanish; that's actually something
I'm really grateful for," said Babayan.
Babayan learned English in school, where one day he eventually picked
up his love for psychology and biology--the other things he can't
choose between. "I really love science a lot, and how quantifiable
everything is, and how there's a concrete answer to everything. As
difficult as calculus can be, I really like that sometimes.... but then
I go to a psych class and get a multiple choice question where there's
all kinds of different right answers. It can be really ambiguous,
but I really enjoy it."
Sam is currently double majoring in cell/ molecular biology and
psychology, and is well aware of what his post-CNU future holds. "I'm
definitely going to grad school. It's necessary. Med school is an
option, but it's going to be hard.... Maybe I'd do a doctoral program
for neuroscience, if everything works out."
But Babayan has no desire to take his practice too far afield. "I
don't see myself anywhere other than the DC metro area," he said. "I
was born and raised there; I like the city and there are a lot of
things to experience."
For the time being, Babayan wants to focus on making it through
undergrad. Unfortunately, this comes with a few tough decisions.
As a freshman, Babayan was a member of the Presidential Leadership
program, but in the beginning of his sophomore year he had to withdraw
to accommodate both of his majors.
He also gave up football--one of his primary reasons for applying to
CNU. "I was originally going to play football for CNU," he said. "I
played all of high school, and it was an awesome experience that
lead to friendships I'll have for the rest of my life. That was
something I wanted to continue and hone, but I chose CNU because I
didn't want the stress of having to play on scholarship." Ultimately,
things didn't work out, and Babayan had to walk away from his dreams
of being a Captain on the gridiron.
As it turned out, walking away from one dream opened the door for
another opportunity. "I was approached by a bunch of older guys on the
rugby team who invited me to a few of their practices," said Babayan.
"It took some getting used to, because [rugby and football] are two
very different sports. They brought me out, and it was the same kind
of brotherhood that I'd found with football in high school."
Some of his favorite memories concerning rugby involve their public
philanthropy. "We did Dude Looks Like a Lady last year, and it was
really cool to play a full-contact rugby game in dresses."
Another perk of rugby is that "it isn't as life consuming as varsity
football was." So with his free time Babayan participates in a couple
committees for the Delta Upsilon brotherhood, and he also serves as
the fraternity's IFC representative.
In addition to his time with DU, Babayan is an RA for York River East,
2B. He spent his own freshman year on hall 4A. "I've lived in the
same building for half of college," he jokes. But being an RA "has
been an amazing experience. I wouldn't trade the relationships that
I've built with my residents for anything. They make it all worth it."
http://www.thecaptainslog.org/2015/lifestyle/meet-your-captains-sam-babayan/