Perry Cao

COL ’17
Age: 18
Hometown: Pittsburgh, Pa.
Major: Undeclared

What do you find most frustrating about Georgetown?
Personally, I’ve had a difficult time finding a particular extracurricular that I think I can spend a lot of time on; it’s been hard to find an extracurricular activity that I really, really enjoy that’s not just like a fun activity. Frisbee is a fun hobby and pastime for me, but it’s something that’s not going to get me far in life. 

What do you like most about Georgetown?
I really like being in D.C. I know that’s probably a generic answer, but there’s a lot to do here, it’s very busy, and that’s an experience I definitely did not have growing up in Pittsburgh. 

Will you donate to Georgetown and why?
If I have the money to, I probably will. 

What are your plans after Georgetown? Does this question annoy you?
It’s probably only annoying because I really have no idea; I’m honestly clueless about what I’m going to do for the rest of my life. Hopefully it becomes clear over the next three years, but I have no idea. 

What do you hope Georgetown will help you accomplish?
I hope it helps me figure out what career path I want to take. I just hope Georgetown helps me figure out what to do with the rest of my life, because that’s my biggest crisis right now. 

Where are you from? Compare and contrast it to Georgetown. Where are you most comfortable?
I really like Pittsburgh. It’s a very cozy city, it’s not too big, it’s not small. There’s definitely a lot to do and the people there are very friendly. I think in coming to Georgetown my world kind of shrank, because it’s harder to access things at college than it would be at home, because at home I can just get in the car and drive wherever I wanted so the entire city was accessible. Right now I’d have to say I’m more comfortable at Georgetown probably because I think a lot of the friends that I used to spend time with in high school I’ve tended to lose touch with, so I think going back I will be spending time with a much smaller group of friends, which means it’s not going to feel as good as it used to. 

What’s your greatest fear?
I really fear, I guess the word would be rejection maybe? If, all of a sudden, all my friends turned their backs on me, I would be completely freaked out. So I depend on relationships with people that are strong.  

What do you do for “me time”?
Frisbee is definitely one of those things. I really enjoy listening to music and sometimes I draw, but I just like being creative.

Which television character do you see the most of yourself in and why?
I kind of like to think of myself as very closely related with Ted Mosby from “How I Met Your Mother.” Sometimes I see him as a little bit of a lost, confused romantic, and I guess I could call myself that sometimes. But mostly I’m just a lighthearted, easygoing guy. 

What would you change about yourself? What’s the biggest change you’ve consciously made in your life and why?
Sometimes I get really frustrated with failure, so when I mess something up or don’t succeed I get upset and I’m frustrated with that. So I would change how I deal with failure. When my parents got a divorce and my mom eventually remarried I kind of chose to switch the roles of my stepfather and my actual father. I kind of detached myself from my biological father just because I didn’t really think he was that type of figure in my life that I wanted, and so I much rather prefer my stepfather, who I’ve grown very close to. 

Interview by Madeline Auerbach