People say that college is a time to learn and grow, and that is completely different from the world you already knew before, and let me tell you that this is absolutely tree. Coming back to school after a month away, I realized truly how much I have learned my first semester (besides the obvious things you learned in classes).
1. Laundry
Although I did already know how to do laundry before college, many students do not know how to do this before college. Your first semester you will definitely learn about separating your whites and colors (hopefully not the hard way), laundry detergent, and that if you leave your clothes sitting in the dryer too long, they will probably end up on the ground.
2. Friends change
The sad truth is, friends change. The people you start your first semester with are likely not the people you will finish it with. You will meet so many different people in college and as you find yourself you will find your true friends. The good thing about this is you will have lots of friendly faces to see around campus because your friends will have changed so much.
3. Everyone comes from different backgrounds
You are no longer stuck in the small little bubble of high school. In college, you meet people that come from all over the country, or even world and all different types of families. You will learn so much about the world through the different people you meet, your eyes will be opened to the different experiences people can have.
4. Studying effectively
Hopefully by now you have learned how to study effectively. Your study habits will change in college. In high school when you had reading for homework, that meant you had no homework. But in college, when your professor says there is reading to do, it must actually be done.
5. Who is important
Going to college away from your family and high school friends, you will realize who is actually important to you. When you're limited on time, you will not have time or energy to talk to all of your old friends, so you have to figure out which ones are really important to you and worth keeping up with.
6. The ins and outs of your campus
After a semester living in one place, you will learn a lot about your campus. You will learn the little things that make it special and unique as well as develop a routine. There are so many things that you will learn about your school that you could never learn from just a college visit.
7. What mistakes to avoid
Your first semester of college, you are guaranteed to make at least one dumb decision. But now, with a semester under your belt you know exactly what mistakes to avoid for the rest of your college experience.
8. Living with someone else in a small place
You also will learn how to live in a small place with someone else. You will learn to be considerate of other people's space and how to organize your things in a small space. Living in a dorm is about organization and keeping things clean, which is something you will figure out quickly after moving in.
9. Time management
During high school, it wasn't hard to manage your time because someone else usually did it for you. When you get to college, you have to figure it out all on your own. In college, one of the most important things is learning how to make your own schedule.
So, now that you have a semester of college under your belt, you are probably a wiser and more intelligent person. College is definitely a learning experience and a time to grow, as cliche as that may sound.
