We catch up with our 2023 Deputy Head Boy, whom has recently started at Harvard University.

Tell us about your journey since leaving St Bede’s last year. 

Since leaving St. Bede’s in November, life has been awesome. I was able to focus purely on rowing for 8 months before starting university in August, and it felt like a gap year playing the sport I love. At the end of the St Bede’s school year, I started rowing for Avon Rowing Club which has a rich history filled with Bede's rowers. I was lucky enough to continue to compete with fellow old boys Matthew Glen and Luke Hickling where we competed at Nationals in Cambridge, Lake Karapiro, in February. After some successful results, Avon decided to send a men’s 8+ to compete at the Henley Royal Regatta in England, this kept me busy with training once the club season had finished. The training consisted of travel between Dunedin, Twizel and Christchurch every other week to accommodate university students studying down south. I also picked up work to help fund expenses for my Henley trip by working at my dad's work at New Zealand Brush Company plucking brushes which was humbling, to say the least. We made the quarterfinals before being knocked out by a home favourite Leander Rowing Club. From there we toured around England for several days before flying back home to get ready to head off to university.

What is it like to be a student at Harvard University and how have you adjusted to living in the United States? 

It has been a humbling and eye-opening experience. You are surrounded by the greatest minds in the world, whether that is someone who finds the hardest maths classes in the world “easy” or world-famous acapella singers sitting across from you in your Econ lecture. At times it makes me wonder how I have ended up here when I’m struggling on my math homework but the support they have for student athletes on campus makes life easier. It took some time being able to adjust to getting back into the routine of studying but being surrounded by such bright minds makes learning enjoyable and normal. Living in the United States has been an easy adjustment. Harvard has it is its own little campus where all the first years live in “the Yard” and everything you need is a two-minute walk away, whether that’s friends, food, or classes. It feels like I live at Harvard and not in Boston.

What was the application process for Harvard like, and how did you feel when you were accepted? 

It was a long process as I started talking to US coaches at the beginning of year 12 and finished almost a year and a half later. As one of my friends put it, it’s like you’re on a dating app and everyone is looking for a match. While I was looking for the right university that would fit my vibe, rowing level, and academics, every university I talked to was doing the same, finding the right person who would help build the right team culture, and improve their program. Once you get down to your favourite universities they offer official visits to their top recruits. An official visit is when they fly you over to their school and tour you around the school.  You get to attend classes, watch trainings, and live with the boys for 3 days. Once I had finished my official visit with Harvard, they offered me a spot on their team.  I was quite shocked when it actually happened, and it still hasn’t really sunk in yet that I am here. However, it was satisfying that all my hard work over the past couple years with rowing and academics made it all worth it.

What is a typical day for you? What are you studying? 

A typical day will consist of 2 trainings and 3 classes, give or take. We take 4 classes each semester.  This Fall semester I am taking both a maths and writing class.  To graduate, every Harvard student must take a writing Expository class.  This a strong tradition that has been running since 1872. I am then taking an economics class and a philosophy class that is about Happiness. The math, writing, and economics classes are self-explanatory; however, the Philosophy 7 class is probably my favourite class.  We are learning about famous philosophers and their understanding on how to achieve happiness; Plato argues that happiness is obtained through the pursuit of absolute study of knowledge and philosophy and to think rationally, while Epictetus believes the Idea of stoicism is how to achieve true happiness, to control the controllables. I have morning sessions on the water in mixed level 8’s where we will battle it out against teammates in our rowing pieces and the afternoons will be gym or technical work out on the water. I try to fit studying in with whatever time I have left.

How do you feel your time at St Bede’s has prepared you for life at a prestigious university like Harvard? What key lessons or experiences from St Bede’s have you carried with you into your studies and life there? 

The lessons I learned at St Bede’s have helped me find who I am and find myself in his university. The lessons outside of the classroom have been even more important in helping me here at Harvard. To treat fellow classmates and teachers with respect, whether that is listening with full attention in class and discussing in open conversation, or respecting my classmates’ beliefs and identities. Harvard invites students from across the globe and each one of them has their own beliefs and experiences. With uncertainty and tensions globally around the world, it’s important to remember to treat everyone with respect. To be a servant leader in any situation is something I try to strive for, whether that’s being the one who cleans up the boathouse after practice or helping classmates who are struggling to understand concepts. This helps create a good culture and make the environment positive to live with. Even though this is Harvard, there is some strong competition with Mr Wilson’s History class or Mr Sullivan’s Economics class -- two subjects that have helped prepare me for a smooth transition into Harvard academically.

Rowing plays such a huge role of your life, how do you manage to balance the demands of sport with your studies, while also finding time to relax?

I try to keep a positive and healthy mindset with everything I do. Burn-out is very possible with the academic and physical workload being a student-athlete. I try to visualise like this; when I am studying, I am resting my body and can relax and train my mind, and when I am on the water, I am resting my mind (to a certain extent) and I am pushing my body to its limits. This way I am able to see the positive of every situation I am in. It’s about enjoying the ride and not worrying about the destination. I find time to relax even in my study time when I am with friends working on problem sets, and eating meals is always enjoyable when you don’t have to cook or clean the dishes.

What are your long-term career and sporting aspirations? 

I would love to be able to make the Olympics one day, however I think it’s important to take it one step at a time. Right now, I am focused on striving to get into the top boats at Harvard. If I target this, I can break down my goal of medalling at the Olympics to bite-sized pieces and not get overwhelmed. On my career side, I still am uncertain on what I will major in and have a few semesters to decide.

What words of advice would you give to current students who would like to follow a similar career path? 

Firstly, if anyone is interested in learning more about studying in the states, I would be more than happy to reach out and talk about it at any time. My socials on Facebook are Sam Woodgate and Instagram is samwoodg8. Secondly, the best advice I can give to anyone looking to Row or even do any sport in the States is to find the balance of being a student-athlete. I sound exactly like my teachers when I was at St Bede's, but the academics matter just as much as your sporting. Recruiting is a very competitive process and you want to put your best foot forward as they are looking to bring in the best athletes but also want to make sure that you will be able to keep up just as much academically with the workload. Reach out to coaches of universities that you are interested in; they all have emails and socials. If they don’t reply right away, don’t give up, they are busy and sometimes don’t get back until a couple months later. It is also good to keep dialogue up and show the progress you are making in your designated sport. Finally, take these years at St Bede’s to strive to be the best person God made you be -- academically, on the field, and as a human. Everything you need to learn, to not only be a good teammate, but even more importantly a good human, is provided at St Bede’s.