If you are a senior, you have surely been asked the age-old question regarding fields of interest. Whether it comes up at the dinner table, at a family reunion, or as you’re getting cornered by an overly enthusiastic uncle, you have probably heard some variation of “So…do you know what you want to major in?” 

In order to try and alleviate some of the pressure that comes with daunting questions like these, Barstow’s AP Literature department has assigned the senior research paper and allowed students to pick their own topic. With this in mind, many students have chosen to write about topics pertaining to what they plan on pursuing in college. 

As a senior AP Literature student myself, I have had to wrestle with this mammoth of a paper. Due to my own interest in criminology, I chose to write my paper on the sociological theories of crime. My paper argues the benefits of integrating further analysis on sociological theories of crime into the criminal justice system. 

Others also saw the project as an opportunity to research a topic that they are interested in studying in college. 

Charlotte Park ’23 is writing her paper on the opioid crisis and how pharmaceutical/drug distribution companies, politicians, and even physicians overprescribed opioids without any real concern for the public.

Park said, “I think that the opioid crisis speaks to the corruption in the pharmaceutical and healthcare industry. It is important to raise awareness about the opioid crisis and those behind it.” 

As a future human biology major, Park hopes that studying healthcare failures like the opioid crisis will help her understand the socioeconomic factors of healthcare.

Unsurprisingly, the president of Barstow’s Fiction Writers Club, Finnian Waldron ’23, has chosen to write his paper on the world-building methods of fantasy author Brandon Sanderson. In his paper, Waldron asserts that “the features that make sci-fi and fantasy unique serve to enhance books in ways that other genres can’t.” An aspiring fantasy or science fiction writer, Waldron believes that it is important to study the intricacies of the genres sooner rather than later and feels that this project will help him accomplish that goal. 

Esther Cheng ’23 is writing her paper on Guatemala’s study of sexually transmitted diseases (STDs) and US involvement in helping to conduct this unethical experimentation. The topic perfectly captures her interests in, both, humanities and biology. She hopes to pursue a career in this area of study and plans on doing so by majoring in medicine and society while also minoring in medical ethics.

“I think it’s important that we tackle these issues because a lot of scientists are crazy about their work but fail to consider the real-world impacts of their studies,” Cheng explained. “These studies could have the potential to manifest as an obsession that can prove to be unethical.” Cheng believes that by learning and talking about subjects like these, we increase our chances of improving the system of medicine.

These projects help seniors dip their toes into interesting waters. Hopefully, this makes fielding questions at the next family event a little easier.