To All High School Seniors:
The end is near. It’s the beginning of April. All college decisions have been released, and you will accept or decline in less than a month.
Prom is approaching—when that ends, it's graduation. Graduation is the prize. It is what you have worked towards for the past four years. Once you get your diploma, you will have closed one chapter of your life and started a new one.
Looking back on freshman year, especially first semester, there are a few things you should know about college…
1. Don't forget your passions from high school.
Throughout high school, you had guidance from your friends, family, teachers, and administrators. With their help, you found activities and sports you enjoyed and excelled at. When you come to college, do not forget the things you love to do.
2. Get involved.
Going to class, sports events, and parties are all definitely part of college... but find activities you enjoy and get involved! Activities are great ways to meet people with similar interests!
3. Try new things.
Try to get involved with a random activity or go to an on-campus event which you’ve never been to. You’ll be amazed at how interesting and fun these new experiences can be.
4. Your high school best friends will always be your best friends.
One of the biggest parts of college is meeting new people and forming lifelong friendships. You are going to live with these people for four years. But, don’t forget the people who you’ve grown up with—your best friends from home. They know you best and they are going through these changes too. They are still the ones who know you best. Don’t forget about them.
5. Not everyone you meet the first day is going to be your friend.
The first day, and first few weeks, you’re going to meet a lot of new people. It’s OK if you don’t have anything in common with them—you’re not supposed to get along with everyone. You probably won’t even have a group of friends until second semester…that’s OK and normal.
6. Don't skip class.
A big change from high school to college is the independence you have. Even though your classes are bigger and your professors may not know you, you are going to hate yourself if you skip class. Because when the test comes, you aren’t going to have all the information.
7. Be responsible.
College is definitely the beginning of freedom, but don’t abuse it. Being away from home without people constantly monitoring and telling you what to do requires you to be responsible and uphold adult behaviors.
8. This is the beginning of real life.
College is a combination of having fun while learning to be responsible. But many times, freshman forget that what they do their first year can set them on an either upward or downward trajectory for the rest of their college career.
Looking back on freshman year, it had it’s many ups and downs. It’s a lot of fun, but it can also be hard. This is the first time you are living on your own—you are going to make mistakes. It’s truly inevitable. Everyone does.
The important thing about freshman year is you learn how to fix these mistakes. It’s about falling down seven times and getting up eight. Freshman year is about staying true to who you are. It’s about creating goals to accomplish. It’s about doing what you want to do.
When you get to college, be yourself. Let yourself mess up. Learn about yourself. But the biggest advice of all: Don’t lose yourself.
Sincerely,
A freshman college student
