I started out my college career at a school of only a few thousand. It was small, everyone knew each other, and making friends was a breeze. However, I quickly realized I was out of place. Seeing my friends away at big schools made me feel sad, and suddenly I decided I needed to make a change. I enrolled to go to a big SEC college the next semester and was very excited about my journey ahead. However, my journey was far different than I initially thought it would be. Along my way, I quickly discovered a few things...
1. Your five-minute walk to class will soon become a 30-minute walk to class.
At my small school, I could leave my dorm five minutes before class started and still have a minute to spare. When I transferred, I quickly found that my walk to class was thirty minutes. I initially lost ten pounds strictly from all the walking. The first week of classes I literally got shin splints and blisters from how far I had to go. Now, I'm actually thankful for it. Those long walks give you time to clear your head and get a quick little exercise in.
2. The party scene is a lot bigger.
Every day I question how some of the people at this school are still living. There are people that will go out six nights a week. The streets are filled with bars and night clubs. Don't want to go to a bar and spend a lot of money? No worries, there will likely be something at a fraternity anyway. There is a lot of temptation to go out and have fun rather than stay in and hit the books.
3. It can be hard to make friends.
I, thankfully, have always been a very social person. Making friends was never a big issue for me. But I remember my freshman year, living in a dorm, everyone was eager to meet new people and make friends. Coming in as a sophomore, however, people already have their friend groups established. It can get lonely. While there are 35,000 kids here, people are not as personable and now as interested in meeting new people.
4. You'll run into a lot more crappy people.
Being that there are thousands more people at bigger schools, there are also a lot more people who are not as genuine. Good and bad are everywhere, don't get me wrong, but the big schools have a certain vibe to them that is hard to explain. There is a lot more pressure to focus on what you look like rather than what you are like as a person. Since there are so many more people and it is such a traditional college scene, things can quickly be more about just having fun than actually being a decent human being.
5. Your professors don't know your name and quite honestly, don't care who you are.
Something I loved about going to a small school was the relationships I was able to build with my teachers. They cared about my learning. They wanted me to do well. They noticed when I was struggling and reached out to me to help. It was nice to have so many helping hands along the way. At a big school, however, my classes went from 20 people to 550 people and I quickly became just a number. Nobody was looking out for me anymore and getting one on one help became nearly impossible, which made it difficult to be as successful in my academic career.
