Summer — 2007

John Tan

Graphic Design

“The best thing about SMC is that I make a lot of new friends here. It’s kind of a hard thing to explain, but I just always feel confident.”

Coming from the Philippines with his family five years ago—and now in his second year at SMC—John Tan is an example of what positive thinking can do for you. “I meet so many people here that give me their views on life and tell me all about where they come from. I feel like I have some kind of life-changing moment every day because of how all these incredible people affect me. Here, I feel my mind opening up to all the rest of the world.”

Coming to SMC from halfway around the world certainly presented John with initial challenges. “My first language is Tagalog, so there was English to deal with. But I got over the ‘culture shock’ really quickly and now I’m just enjoying being here.” It’s in Graphic Design that John wants to leave his mark on the world. “Government, industries, the printing business, logos, and advertising: I want to do all that stuff!” he says. “And I’ve really liked all the teachers I’ve had here—especially at the Academy campus—because they’re not just teaching you their subjects. They actually teach you about life. They’re always talking about experiences that they’ve had in their own lives and careers. And this makes you think about how you’re going to make those things happen in your own life.”

Planning on a transfer to UCLA, John reports that Photoshop, Illustrator, and In-Design are all tools that fire up his innate creative powers. “I’ve always had a lot of imagination, and what I’m learning at SMC is going to allow me to put that to good use.” But it’s still SMC’s people that most impress John. “I look around and see all these international students from everywhere,” he says. “And I always wonder, ‘How come they all chose to come to SMC?’ There’s just something about this place,” he adds, “that makes us feel like we are really welcome here.”

Back