College: the most unique experience that you only have once in your life. For the first time, you are the one solely responsible for your life and success. I have learned a lot of things I wish that I had known coming into this experience. Some come in nervous and others come in beyond excited, but the biggest thing I have learned is that everyone finds their place at their school. Here are eight things that you are always told but never really believe happen at college. This article is me telling you to believe them, because they do actually happen!
1. You will meet some of your best friends for life.
Of all of the 3,000+ colleges in the USA, you and your fellow undergrads chose your school for a reason. This at least you have in common. I specifically go to a school with only science and engineering majors, so as you can imagine, we all have an extreme interest in science, which is a large bonding factor. Regardless of where you end up, there are between a few hundred or tens of thousands of people that you have never met before. All of these people have many great life experiences which you will get to share over the next few years and hopefully the rest of your lives.
2. At the same time, you will grow apart from most older friends.
Being far from home and new friends means change from what you were used to. In college, it takes more than just a small amount of effort to go grab a bite of food. With new friends, busy class schedules and adjusting to college, I have learned it’s hard to keep in touch with all of your friends from high school. While you have made so many great friends in such a short amount of time, it also makes you realize your friends who you truly want to keep in touch with. The amount of effort required is much higher and truly allows you to realize who will be there for you, regardless of what is going on in life.
3. You will get more sleep but continually be more tired.
At college I have somehow managed to get more sleep than I did in high school, yet somehow I am always more tired than I ever was. This seems to be true across the board. I have never personally napped until I came to college. The amount of people I know who just started drinking coffee in college is in the hundreds. Despite the fact that you started high school at some ungodly hour of the morning, let me just tell you now, you will not be able to wake up for your 8 a.m. classes.
4. You will find your true passions through clubs.
Your school will have hundreds of clubs available to join and dive into on campus. Time is much more limited, so it really makes you realize what matters to you. These clubs allow you to truly realize your passions in life and dedicate yourself to their events. Just the sheer variety of clubs available are also so much higher. This alone really allows you to explore your interests, along with meeting people who have similar interests.
5. You will grow as an individual.
As stated previously, college is the first time that you are truly on your own. While living in a dorm is still a transition into truly being on your own, you really have to have good time management and be able to balance your priorities. However, this at the same time allows for growth within yourself. Having freedom and being able to be free of “parental control,” at least to an extent, allows for social freedom to just experience your life and probably some new things. This really allows for individual growth.
6. College breaks you down in order to build you up.
For many, high school was a breeze and you were able to get by on your natural intelligence. If you are this person, this will not lead to success in college. To be successful in college classes, it is completely necessary to have study skills that work for you and amazing time management skills. In my opinion, these are what truly define your GPA as a college student. Hard work and determination will always beat natural intelligence. Personally, I have seen many people who have taken nearly all of freshman year to learn how to properly study and have suffered because of it. My largest piece of advice is to learn how to study!
7. Bank accounts get extremely low.
I always hear the statement, “I don’t know which is lower, my GPA or my bank account.” This statement is rather accurate. I personally provide my own spending money, but despite this, there are so many small things that really add up over time. Ordering food one night, going out for dessert another night and a night out to do something fun with your friends seem like small things at the time. However, after a few months of small expenditures here and there, the cost really adds up. I have learned to have a general budget and to watch my bank account. Make sure to download the mobile app for your bank account so you can track it.
8. It really is the best time of your life.
Many individuals truly don’t appreciate how great of an experience college is. At what other point in your life do you get to take four or so years to solely focus on bettering yourself through getting a great education? We truly are blessed with the opportunity to have an experience even remotely similar to college. Take this time to focus on bettering yourself in every way possible, and take advantage of every opportunity that you can. I mean, we are paying enough for it aren’t we?
