College means change.
From the moment you step foot on campus you are met by a diverse group of people you have never met before. You leave the comfort of your home (unless you are commuting) and dive into this new environment where everyone is experiencing the same emotions you are. Everyone gets homesick, everyone wishes they could have their own kitchen and everyone wants to figure out what they want to do in life; who they want to be. What people fail to realize though, is how much effort is put into figuring out who you are. How much effort is put into getting into college and continuing to pursue your dreams. Many people leave college without the degree feeling as though it is not right for them and maybe it isn't. You don't know what college is like and how open you are to adaptation until you try.
It's true. Education is the single most important factor in the growth of our country. Higher education gets you one step closer to your dream job and to a better paying job. College isn't right for many people though, it's all about how adaptable and open you are to new environments as well as your own interests. Higher education can be overwhelming and often even I found myself thinking if it was even right for me. Pressures of college range from trying to impress parents or maintaining a high GPA, trying to get on the deans list or trying to simultaneously build an impressive resumé.
College does matter though and it's not even about going solely for the purpose of getting a good job in the future with a stable income. College students are encouraged to make noise, to speak up. Change happens so quickly in college. One night you're at home in the warmth of your blanket and the next night you're in a cold dorm room with a roommate who asks a billion questions. One minute you think you want to go into environmental studies and after one political science class you realize you want to go into politics and urban studies. Passions, opinions and interests are always changing in college. You are always finding new hobbies and new friends that brighten your days and introduce you to new things.
Professors don't want you to just sit on your computer day after day and write research papers for them. While it can often be required, they want you to and believe that you can take what you've learnt in the classroom and apply it outside in the world. Show them what you are made of and strive to be the best you you can be.
College can bring out the best and worst in people - I've seen it all. From the mental breakdowns during finals in the library to the young adults who take more credits than required every semester and are on the dean's list.
College, for most of us, is essentially a "bridge" between childhood and adulthood. We are not being babied or being questioned on a regular basis nor are we fully independent (some of us may already be). College is a time to start making a name for yourself, and as scary as that may sound, it's not. Elementary School, Middle School, summer camps and High School all prepared you for your first year at college whether you wish to acknowledge it or not. The most important thing I learnt before college was that 'there is value in everything'.
In order to thrive in college you have to be open to thriving. You can't shy away from making small conversations with the people who sit next to you at your 8am lecture or the people who are constantly eating during your 5pm lecture. It's true that not everyone has the same college experience and some adapt better than others but it really is all down to how you want your college experience to be.
Take the classes you need to take to graduate in your chosen field but also take classes that interest you. Learn a new language, an interpretive dance style, or coding. Sure, classes cost money but it truly is all worth it in the end.
Take advantage of the lengthy alumni list and find internships that you are interested in. See if you can get an on-campus job even, or if any of your professors need summer interns! Take advantage of the opportunities attending college offers.
Take advantage of the many clubs and organisations on campus. If you want to join a sorority or a fraternity, go for it. If you want to try for a club sport or a disney film club, who is stopping you? You truly are the master of your destiny as cliché as that sounds. Whatever club you want to join, do it.
To thrive in college you also need a good support system. You need friends and/or family that you can chat with and talk about life and classes, activities and extracurriculars. You need to surround yourself with people who can help you when you're stressed and keep you grounded. Just because you're thriving academically does not mean that you should let it get to your head and automatically think you will pass every class now - every year, every semester, every class is different.
You might be scared, and that is okay. Sometimes college scares everyone and more power to you if you embrace it wholeheartedly and leaped into it.
I've met a lot of people who say that college didn't help them in life or that they didn't get any real networking opportunities. People say that college didn't ready them for the world or prepare them in their designated field; that it was like elementary school for the workplace. That's understandable. College is just phase one. If you want to have a further understanding in your field of choice, you can get a masters or a phD. You can keep racking up degrees and increasing your knowledge. College isn't the only place you need to go to to excel, for some it is, but not for all.
Not everyone is offered jobs straight out of college. Sometimes people take a year or two after college to work somewhere and save enough money for graduate school, and that's okay. But you can't graduate from college and say that you had no networking opportunities if you didn't try. Different departments are always having events every few months for students, for free. You just have to find out and pop in with printed out resumés; ask your career counsellor to email you when there are opportunities for your field.
I, myself, am not someone who goes out a lot and talks to strangers often. I'm not boisterous but I'm not completely antisocial either. I love college. I love the feeling of independence, even though I am completely dependent on my parents. I love being able to learn more about topics and subjects I am passionate about and being able to have intellectual discussions with my classmates. I love being able to continue working with local communities and global communities in any way I can and being involved with organisations in my college itself. I love the people I have met who have changed my life and introduced me to so many things. I love how I picked random roommate and was so upset and wanted to change rooms to a single immediately but I learned to love and embrace my roommate because she was truly amazing.
I love that I was able to embrace change in college. I didn't shy away from making new friends, it just took a while to be comfortable talking to random people in my lectures. I love how even though I am only a sophomore, I have been able to meet so many alumni from my college that have gone on to have great jobs and are passionate about their fields. I love how enriching the experience has been and will only continue to be.
