For many of you incoming college freshman, this month marks a new beginning, a fresh start. Throughout the past few months, you have been preparing yourself for this beginning with quality time spent with your closest friends and your family, with all those memories closing one chapter and beginning another.
Probably the single most accurate word to describe your freshmen year of college is this: changing. Those nine months are a time of growth and discovery, almost unlike anything else you've experienced before. You will find yourself thrown in an entirely new environment, with new faces and ideas. Your very beliefs will be challenged and you will have many experiences that will force you to look inside, self-reflect and question yourself. You will be met with abounding levels of freedom, where you can control what you do, when and how — it’s all you. Learn what your limits are, what you can take and what you can’t. Always check yourself, you know yourself better than anybody else.
Freshmen year is a roller coaster, and you'll find lots of moments filled with doubt, fear and sadness. But you will also experience moments of immense joy, confidence and happiness. You will experience both, and they will equally shape you into the shoes of the person you will step into once your year completes. Don't shy away from the tough times, for those are the teaching moments, the ones that show you exactly how strong you are.
Your first year will challenge you — mentally and emotionally. You’ll find yourself working harder and studying longer, experiencing sleepless nights and mornings chugging cup after cup of coffee. At times, you’ll feel like a small fish in a big pond. You’ll feel like you’re too stressed to function and that there’s no way you can finish those three essays, two video projects and study for four exams on time.
But you can. And you will.
When you feel like dropping everything and raising the white flag of surrender, just tell yourself this: Everything will get done. Keep working, keep studying and all of those items on your to-do list will be crossed off. You’ll surprise yourself at the end of year with how much you’ve accomplished.
At times you’ll feel very lonely, like a small fish in a big pond. You’ll eat meals alone, and you’ll feel homesick, wanting nothing more than to hop in a car or a plane back home and see your family, your siblings and your friends again. Trust me when I say that everyone else feels the same way. Everyone misses home, everyone feels lonely sometimes — it’s not just you.
Finding your niche will take time. That’s OK, that’s how it works. You’ll hang out with the first people you meet, but that doesn’t mean they’re a perfect match for you. Don't ever feel like you have to surround yourself in a crowd to mask your loneliness. Be patient, you’ll find your own place soon. Just smile, make new friends, go to your first-year events, and eventually, you’ll find your real, true friends. There’s no shame in eating meals alone, always tell yourself that.
Freshmen year is one of transition, growth and change. Embrace all those changes, because you will come out more mature and stronger that you are now. Study hard, go to your classes, take care of yourself, be kind and don’t forget to call your parents. You’ll be just fine.
