First and foremost, I want to say congratulations to all of the students graduating high school! You guys did it and now many of you are off to college. I am a rising junior studying Legal studies at Stevenson University. I am writing to you about what to expect during your first year at college, because my brother is graduating high school this year.

College for many is a scary but exciting experience. It may be the first time you lived away from home or the first time you had to do your own laundry. You are free to do what you want, eat what you want, and sleep when you want. While this seems appealing, it is a very drastic change to your life. Some advice I can give you for surviving and actually enjoying college is to put yourself out there! It took me until the end of my sophomore year to become somewhat active on campus. This allows you to meet people who share similar interests to yours. These bonds that you make will help lighten the burden of college. Friends are good for many things such as food runs, study sessions, parties, and much more. People you meet now could be your friends for the rest of your life.

While friends are important, the whole point of college is to get your degree! What do you want to be when you grow up? As you answer that, tell me, if you are one-hundred percent sure. It is extremely hard to know what career and life you want to live right out of high school. If you have not chosen a major yet, I would suggest giving many majors a chance, not just one that seems safe. You never know what class or major will light your passion. I entered Stevenson as a biology major wanting to enter the medical field. I spent the majority of high school taking as many science classes as possible to prepare for the workload at Stevenson. In the end, I didn't enjoy biology. My mind just wouldn't comprehend the vast array of things that biology and chemistry had to offer. These hard classes also burdened my other classes because I would not have as much time to dedicate to my non-major specific classes, such as math and history. At the end of that semester, I decided that I wanted to switch majors. I switched to Legal Studies! While this was a drastic change and quite nerve racking, I went through with it anyways. Now I love my classes, professors, and the Legal program. Remember, if you are going to switch majors, do it as soon as possible. There is no point in struggling through another day of something that you will not need at the end of the day.

In conclusion, have fun at college. Take advantage of this new beginning and make the most out of it.

A question before you leave: What are you scared most about college? If you are in college or graduated, what is your favorite memory of college?