While many high school seniors seek out that Big University Feel when searching for the right school to attend after graduation, many end up in small liberal arts colleges. Each school has something different to offer for students from all different walks of life, especially those who have gotten tired of the big school hype. Even though it was exactly what they were looking for, adjusting to a small school can be just as hard as getting used to a big one. After going to school with over one thousand less people than your high school, you get to realize some pretty cool aspects of attending a small college.
1. Everyone seems to know you.
And you seem to know everyone too. While on your way to class you can’t help but wave to all the familiar faces you pass, and you’re utterly surprised by how many of them you know. You’re astonished that when someone mentions a name, even if they’re a few grades older than you, you actually know that person. You’re not used to everyone seeming to know you when back in high school you were practically a nobody. It's kind of nice but totally weird at the same time.
2. It takes no time to get to your class.
You’re used to having to shove through mobs of students meandering about the halls and the campus, but now there’s no worry about getting to class on time. Instead of worrying about being late, you often have to stall so you don’t end up there too early and bored as you wait in the hall for the previous class to let out. It’s really refreshing not having to worry about the insane amount of people in a condensed space on a daily basis. What am I supposed to do with all this time on my hands?
3. You know someone in every class.
No more worrying about having to struggle through a class alone. Only able to find someone you talked to maybe once before this? No problem! They may be a friend of a friend or someone you were forced into communicating with at orientation, but they give you reassurance that you’re not in this alone. Everyone's happy to make new friends, especially if it seems like it's going to be a grueling semester. It’s much different from being stuck in a high school class with forty faces you’ve never seen before.
4. Sports are much different.
Everyone at your high school would go crazy for home sporting events. The homecoming football game was one of the best parts of the year but now your school may not even have a football team to speak of. It seems almost everyone you know at college is on one team or another, and you need to come out to support them in at least one of their home games. Back in high school you knew maybe one or two kids on the lacrosse team, and you weren’t big fans of them to begin with.
5. Visiting your old high school leaves you in shock.
You cannot believe you used to deal with people pushing past you every day in the crowded halls. As you try to visit old teachers and you wonder how you ever survived before arriving at your small campus. You don’t know who half of the teachers are at your huge high school, while at your college you know most of the professors and your friends can fill you in on the other ones. You realize how lucky you are to go to a school that feels more like a community than just people trying to graduate.
