Campus Connection: Marissa Marks

Name: Marissa Marks

Major: Industrial Engineering, with a minor in Communications

Hometown: Pittsburgh, PA

Favorite Class: EAPS 106 – Geosciences in the Cinema with Professor Andy Freed (you watch movies for homework!!!)

Campus Involvement: I’m in a social sorority here on campus, Sigma Delta Tau. Before I got to Purdue, I was completely clueless on the whole recruitment process and sororities in general. By my sophomore year, I really wanted a group of friends outside of engineering. I love my engineering friends, but needed to branch out a little. I joined Sigma Delta Tau through informal recruitment and have met some of my best friends. Right after joining, I started my second semester in the house as our Internal Public Relations chair which lasted for the full calendar year. Then I took on a larger leadership role and became the treasurer for the following calendar year. Now, it is my first semester in some time that I do not have a leadership position. I am truly grateful for all the experiences Sigma Delta Tau has given to me.

Best Purdue Memory: Freshman year, a bunch of friends and I wrote lyrics to and created a video for a Purdue-esque parody of "Blank Space" by Taylor Swift. After several hours of embarrassing pictures and clips of the song, we had a group dinner that we made in the Earhart Hall kitchenette.

Favorite On-Campus Hang Out Spot: Probably the Union basement, with visible access to Starbucks so I know when the line is short enough to jump in.

Favorite Study Spot: Grissom Hall or the 4^th floor of Wang Hall

Why you chose Purdue: To be completely honest, I had never heard about Purdue until the end of my junior year in high school. At that point I was still in love with the idea of going to Carnegie Melon and tried to push aside the thought of Purdue because it was a 7-hour drive from home. My mom found Purdue when looking up engineering universities – she was doing more college research than I was. After some time my mom finally convinced me to at least give a campus visit a shot. When I stepped foot on Purdue's campus, I was mesmerized. I blame it on the quirky rules and red brick. 

When I found out about how good Purdue engineering really was, I could not imagine going to any other university. I applied by the early action deadline, and on Friday, December 13, 2013, I found out I was admitted! By that point, I was so in love with Purdue and their engineering program that I accepted my offer immediately.