Freshman year is one of the biggest learning experiences of your life. With these learning experiences, there are some mistakes that are me. Here are some of the mistakes that I made my freshman year:

Get More Involved.

Everyone emphasizes how important it is to participate in the involvement fairs and to sign up for as many clubs as you can. While that was not an issue for me, actually going to the meetings and becoming part of something is where I fell short. If I could go back, I would have put more time and effort into some of the clubs I was interested in.

Focus More on Classes.

It might sound obvious, but class style and course material is much different in college than it was in high school. This transition takes a little longer than I anticipated it to, and I wish I had given myself more time to get used to it than I originally did.

Get A Job.

Going from a steady job of 25+ hours a week to nothing was a big transition for me. Because I had the job for over a year, I wasn’t used to suddenly having no income. If I could go back I would have gotten a job as a cashier in the bookstore or something of that nature. While I would not be able to dedicate the same amount of time to my job as I was in high school, some sort of income is better than nothing.

Put Myself Out There More.

With classes of 200+ people, it should be easy to meet people and socialize through classes. I learned quickly that the larger the class, the more likely people are to stay to themselves. I wish that I forced myself to be outgoing to talk to the people around me in my lecture hall classes.

Try More New Things.

This goes along with the “get more involved” and “put myself out there more” because I wish that I had joined more things that I was not used to. There are many things that are more readily available to me because I am in Florida than they were when I lived in New Jersey. Of these new things, there are clubs such as the rowing and wake boarding teams. These are new things to me that I find interesting and wish I had looked into more.

Called My Parents More.

My family is not the type of people where we feel the need to speak to each other on a daily basis. I do wish that I had put more time aside to talk to them because I feel as though I had lost touch with my parents and those in my immediate family from being so far away all the time.

Learned How to Prioritize Better.

A big part of college is learning how to manage your time between school and social lifestyles. I could have done this better sometimes and if I could go back to the beginning of the year there are times when I could have prioritized school or social outings better.