David Slovenski came to Princeton for the kinds of reasons shared by many students — the University’s focus on undergraduates, the Division I sports program, the beautiful campus, the climate and the proximity to New York City and Philadelphia. In finding his niche, however, Slovenski has taken his own unique path.

Slovenski, a mechanical and aerospace engineering major, spends much of his free time training as a pole vaulter for the varsity track and field team and serving as president of the Colosseum Club, which organizes a campus-wide dodgeball tournament and other fun activities such as laser tag and Nerf fights.

“Action, moving parts, danger, that interests me,” Slovenski says with a sense of humor. That’s why he intends to build something with a motor — “that I get to drive or race,” he says — for his senior thesis project. After learning the theory and formulas behind mechanical engineering, he says ”we’re putting our knowledge to use” in hands-on independent projects.

For pole vaulting, Slovenski incorporates unicycling, rope swinging and gymnastics into his workouts for balance and strength training. “Walking on your hands gives you shoulder and arm strength as well as balance, and you get used to being upside down,” he says.

Princeton's pole vaulters, long jumpers and high jumpers train together, and “it’s really good camaraderie and fun,” Slovenski says. In addition to competing for the University, he hopes to qualify for the 2012 Olympic trials.

Along with the thrills, Princeton delivers on its primary mission of academics, Slovenski says. In two of his classes, the professor wrote the textbooks, “so they know the material back and forth, know the book, and they’re good teachers. I’ve had a lot of really good teachers here,” he says.

Slovenski finds that introductory classes cover the material in great depth and he enjoys the small classes. “Even in lectures, professors don’t mind stopping for questions,” he says. The engineering school also organizes problem sessions with graduate students in which students can delve into their assignments in detail. “You can get help understanding the specifics and background of questions, so you’re not on your own,” Slovenski says.

“I definitely made the right choice,” Slovenski says about coming to Princeton. “It’s a big enough campus that you never run out of places to explore, and yet it's small enough that I see friendly faces wherever I go.”