It seems a distant memory to think back to senior year of high school. I faintly remember my teachers names, the hit songs of that year, and the not-so-trendy fashion choices. However, what I do starkly remember is the anxiety and pressure of picking a college. It could be dramatic to say that choosing a college is the absolute hardest thing you will ever do, but that one decision will impact a strand of decisions following it. No pressure right? That is why it has become crucial to scrutinize and overanalyze every aspect of the picking process almost to the point that we become emotionally attached to the final choice. Maybe this explains why we love our college experiences so much?
Below are some reasons to emphasize why college becomes our greatest four (or more) year relationships:
1) Love at First Sight
Its a hard decision picking between colleges as not one college is "perfect," but there is one college that is perfect for you. Once you lay eyes on the advertised campus photos that college becomes all you think about, dream about, and wish for. You begin picturing yourself walking to class on campus, tossing the frisbee on the fields, and grabbing lunch with friends in the quad. You see yourself at this campus and this campus only making no other college worthy of your time. You are fully committed to attending this college and can hardly wait for moving in -- the excitement and anxiety overtake the rest of your summer. Isn't first love great?!
2) Starting Fresh
Just as in relationships, everything is smooth sailing the first couple weeks. You have your scheduled figured out, you're moved in, and meeting cool, new people. Everything is great and you feel like you've figured it out. While there was some initial anxiety about starting over in a new place, campus programs have helped guide you to find new activities and introduced you to new experiences. In the first month of school you couldn't imagine life without college in it.
3) The First Fight
Otherwise known as midterms. You were having so much fun with college and enjoying everything it offered until it expected a little too much. Suddenly you feel unprepared for what you've just been thrown into. You question how much of this "college" you can actually take and question breaking it off. Despite feeling unprepared for the first speed bump, you make it through better off and feel like you have grown from the experience.
4) The Comfortable Stage
About halfway through the semester, you have it relatively figured out. Your classes are going well, you know your way around the campus, even going into office hours is no longer a daunting experience. It seems like you and college have gotten into a symbiotic pattern and it is working well and the relationship seems steady. A little too steady. You wonder where the excitement of the first couple weeks went. Are you and college becoming boring?
5) Taking a Break
It's heathy for relationships to take some time away so they can truly miss each other. And boy do you start to miss college! Those 4 weeks of winter break are testing the relationship as you love being home and seeing loved ones but also desperately miss college. You count down the days… anxiously awaiting your return to college. Over break you spend time with old friends and gush about your college -- all the stories, triumphs, troubles, and especially how much you wish to return. Your friends do the same about their schools and you silently scoff at how their schools do not compare to your own.
6) Committed
Second semester proves to be much more smooth sailing. Yes, you are starting over with new classes, but at this point you know the campus well and are confident in your knowledge of how college works. It can be slightly annoying how much time college is taking up, but you find ways to enjoy time to yourself as well. The honeymoon stage excitement has long faded, but you are now in it for the long haul and somehow the commitment is reassuring. You know that you are sticking with this college and wouldn't want it any other way. This is the feeling that persists through the remaining years- comfort and commitment.
Even though your major may change, your friend groups may alter, and your stress levels drastically increase… college is there for you. That is why after the four (or more) years come to the end, you will always think fondly of college. This is why you are both sad and happy once you graduate because while you are leaving behind experiences, you have the memories. This is possibly the most healthy and happy breakup of any relationship ever -- thanks college!
