Coming to the end of my first year of college, I’m leaving campus surprised about a lot of things that happened. I had a lot of preconceptions about my first year and a lot of hopes that did and didn’t come true. Looking back, here are 10 things that were unexpected:

1. To Have the Residents of my Hall Switch Around so Much

In the beginning of the year, I saw the same girls at hall meetings, I got to know the girl down the hall who plays French horn, I grew used to having a girl pop in my room whenever the door was ajar, these people became part of my routine, my life. But as the year moved forward, some rooms grew empty and then filled, I saw girls carrying boxes of clothes across lawns or into cars, and I saw doubles become singles. Yet I was always surrounded by people I would smile at on my way to class or ask to borrow dish soap.

2. To Have the Opportunity to be a Leader

I thought this would come later. But I joined The Squirrel, a satirical blog, whose senior presidents and secretary started this from scratch as freshman. The girl next to me would join French Club exec, I would become a 2017-2018 RA and Promotions Director for the radio station. As long as you’re involved, becoming a part of the community and a leader is possible.

3. To Fill Out so Many Applications and Resumes

I barely knew what a resume was coming into college, yet very quickly I met with the career development center and created a skeletal version which I filled in and sent out. And then I edited it and sent it out again. And again. Then there were the applications, and emails, and forwarding, and appointments….it grew to be a lot sometimes, but that’s how I grew to be so involved in all the things I love.

4. To Doubt my Major

Going into college, I felt confident in my major, but as I went through classes I grew to wonder if this is what I was cut out for or if I was being impractical. Many friends switched majors, declared, dropped, and added focuses. Your field of study is more turbulent than I thought, but I stuck with my major and am extremely happy to follow through, and my friends that are still deciding or have switched are content. Paths are not always linear.

5. To Catch Coffee with Teachers

Teacher-student relationships are wildly different in college. Professors will curse, you might get a friend request from your psych professor, start texting your stats teacher, and get an invitation for coffee from your writing teacher. I’ve cried in their offices and emailed them at 2 a.m. and this is all normal.

6. To Have Such a Cluttered Dorm Room

So maybe I over-packed, and maybe my mom shouldn’t have sent me care packages with more clothes, and maybe taking advantage of my new credit card to do some online shopping for more clothes was a bad idea, and having the nation’s largest thrift store down the street is both great and terrible. But it all fits! Kind of! Cleaning is very important!

7. To Shrink My Comforter…...Yeah

Oh and that bedding I painstakingly picked out? Yes I did buy XL Twin, but the dryer had other ideas. Note: Next time your mom is nagging you on how to do laundry, pay attention. For all of your sake. Second Note: Putting away laundry in a timely manner is very important to avoid a wrinkly mess.

8. To Love my School for Reasons People Leave It

I love the small class sizes! I love that teachers know my name and talk to me in the caf! I like seeing people I know when I walk to class! But they don’t? Crazy, man. Everyone has different preferences, environments that work for them, and expectations for the college they’re going to. And it’s ok not to have realized this when you first commit. Transferring is ok, and doesn’t mean you failed, realizing your school wasn’t actually the greatest college in existence is normal.

9. To Make Friends so Quickly

Orientation may be a pain, but it works. Your roommate? New friend. The girl across the hall? Friend. Boy in your mandatory freshman class? Friend. Say hello, ask about their summer, their major, who cares. All of you are in the same boat, looking to make new connections and have a group to survive the year with.

10. To Get a Boyfriend

Movies hype up college to be non stop partying and hookups, or maybe it seems too busy to settle down, it’s too soon. But wow! Relationships are really nice! And cuffing season is not a joke! Have an open mind, and if it happens it happens, if it doesn’t keep getting out there. College isn’t about having a boyfriend or girlfriend, but growing and being happy.