Well, I finally get to say that I finished up my freshman year of college and I survived. College is starting up in a few weeks, and I took the time to reflect on my freshman year. I asked myself, what went well? What went bad? My first year of college, for the most part, was successful. I managed to make some friends, have fun, learn, and be a leader. However, there are some things that I regret about my freshman year. Here are just a few of these mistakes:
1. Not exposing myself to new ideas and clubs
This piece of advice may be one of the most repeated ones everyone hears about. As a witness who finished one year of college, I can tell you that it's true. College is the time to explore new ideas and find out who you are, and as a freshman, I was highly involved. Yet, I did not expose myself to new clubs. In high school, I played the saxophone in the band, was involved in ambassador club, track, cross-country, and I was an editor for the high school newspaper. I did similar activities during my freshman year at DePaul. To start off, I contributed to the campus newspaper the DePaulia. Although I was not on the track or cross-country team, I still ran in my free time and signed up for races. I participated in residence hall council, similar to the ambassador club which was a student council organization. Although I was involved, maybe I could have mixed things up. I could have been in a fraternity or tried the art club.
2. Not being involved with college athletics
Attending a football, and a basketball game is a staple at all colleges to show school spirit and pride. It's a way to create memories, cheer for your school, and make new friends. As a freshman, I did not attend many athletic events. Although DePaul isn't known to be a school that is big on athletics, I feel guilty for not attending as many sporting events. I only attended a few basketball games here and there and that was it. My advice I have is to not make any excuses and just go to the games, even if you don't have anyone to go with! The excuses I make is that traveling to Wintrust Arena for a men's basketball game is too far from DePaul, or that I will have nobody to go with.
3. Not practicing my saxophone
As I mentioned earlier, I played the saxophone in high school. I brought my saxophone to my dorm my freshman year, and I slowly forgot about it as the saxophone case began to collect dust in the back of my closet. I always enjoyed practicing and performing, and I did not practice as much as I wanted to. The last week of my freshman year, I picked it up again and began practicing, and I was no longer performing as good as I was in high school. The main moral of this story is don't forget about the special talents you have and your passions. Even though you are developing new passions, it doesn't mean you have to forget about the older ones that helped you become a better person.
4. Not joining Odyssey
Yes, I regret not writing in this publication for my freshman year. As a journalism student, I need the most practice I can get to improve my writing. Although I wrote for the campus newspaper, I should've exposed myself to other activities and learned to step out of my comfort zone. Odyssey is just one of the many activities that can help me with my writing.
