Jon Samson

Admission Counselor

Home Town: Doylestown, PA
Seaver College Class of 2023
Major: Psychology
Email: Jonathan.Samson@pepperdine.edu
Phone: (310) 506-4392

Favorite Spot on Campus

One of my favorite spots at Pepperdine is sitting in the stands behind home plate at the baseball stadium, Eddy D. Field Baseball Stadium, overlooking the ocean. It’s one of the most amazing places to watch a baseball game! I remember Pepperdine hosted a celebrity softball game, and MLB players like Cody Bellinger, Giancarlo Stanton, and Christian Yelich were in attendance. So cool!

Tips For Applying

Top 3 recommendations for applying

1. First and foremost, be authentic! We’re trying to learn about who you are, which can be hard to communicate in the limited space of an application. Highlight experiences, values, and perspectives that demonstrate not only why you’re a good fit for Pepperdine, but also what makes you unique and special. Make sure we can get a sense of who YOU are.
2. With anything, starting early and being organized will make your life so much easier and less stressful. I was a procrastinator my entire life growing up, but became more organized while at Pepperdine, and it has made the quality of my work much stronger. So start early and give yourself as much time to brainstorm, draft, edit, and refine as possible!
3. Get in touch with your Admission Counselor! Their job is to assist you through the process and be a resource for you as you navigate the application process. They’re all friendly, I promise!

Advice for essays and supplemental questions

Find a story about yourself or a topic that gives us a sense of who you are and what makes you unique from other applicants—your interests, values, perspectives, experiences, goals, etc. An application is such a small amount of space to get to know someone, but we’re trying to see how you’ll fit and contribute to the Pepperdine community, so be you!

Working in the Office of Admission

My favorite aspect about working in the Office of Admission

My favorite aspect about working in the Office of Admission is the opportunity to shape the Pepperdine community. By doing so, we also have a significant impact on shaping the Pepperdine experience for students, which is an immense responsibility that I take very seriously. I also love working with the positive, friendly, and helpful members of the Office of Admission—it’s a great team!

Highlights From My Time at Pepperdine

My favorite class

My favorite class at Pepperdine was Personality Psychology with Dr. Steven Rouse. I love observing people and how they think, and that class offered so much insight into what motivates human behavior. Dr. Rouse was an incredible educator with a passion for the subject, which made the learning experience a highlight of my time at Pepperdine.

Activities, clubs, and service projects I was involved with

I was involved with a handful of activities/clubs at Pepperdine, but my favorites were being a Resident Advisor with our Housing and Residential Life organization and going through Pepperdine’s Teacher Education Program. I also loved being a part of the Concert Choir my first year with Dr. Ryan Board.

The highlight of my Pepperdine experience

I was a Resident Advisor at Pepperdine for two years, and the training process was so fun! The two weeks prior to students showing up for move-in and New Student Orientation, it’s just RAs and SLAs (Spiritual Life Advisors) on campus training, getting to know each other, doing team bonding, eating lunch and dinner together, along with all sorts of other activities. I met my best friend during the training, and we had so much fun with the different activities that Housing and Residential Life had planned for us. HRL is the best!