College is strange. You prepare your entire life to eventually end up here with absolutely no idea what you're in for. If you're like me, you've heard stories of parties and how to always study more than you party and you'll be fine, and you shrug your shoulders and think, "well obviously". Well, you're in for a surprise.
In my experience, and all of the students I've met, first semester is pretty much a fluke. Welcome Week is where it all began. There were parties everywhere with little to no homework and you were ready to take on the world. Then, sooner or later, it hits you that not every week is Welcome Week. It took me and my friends a little longer than usual to learn this.
Half way through our first semester and our "bed time" was 4am, on a good day, and any other time we could squeeze in a nap. We weren't out all the time, but we all lived together so it was like having a sleepover with all of your friends every night. Before we knew it, our first exams were coming quick, so we'd decided we'd study together. All 20 of us would pile into the hallway, per usual, and try to learn. Only this didn't actually work. The worst part of this is we went through an entire semester doing this without realizing that we were making a huge mistake.
Although it's only our second semester, and trust me we're still learning, we've made a lot of progress. After receiving our much lower than expected GPAs, we've decided to step up our game. As much as we all despise studying, if you break it up instead of studying for 8 hours straight, and maybe head to library instead of the hall at least sometimes, it's really not too bad. I've also personally been working on making a list of tasks I need to get done each day in order to help me prioritize.
What you don't realize, even when people say it time and time again, is that college really is difficult. Classes are tough, but it's even tougher to learn the balance between friends and not failing. College teaches you more than what you learn in class. We've learned to push ourselves past our limits and keep trying even when we fail. Also, learning to be on your own is a new feeling that's equal parts fun and terrifying. There's nobody here to push you anymore.
I've learned in one semester that life can't always revolve around what easy and fun. You must learn to discipline yourself in order to grow, and it's an honest struggle. I've learned that you must work hard on improving yourself and then use the fun times as a reward. Work and play can be balanced, and while I'm still learning this balance, I think I'm doing pretty well. I'm hoping my friends and I continue to improve as time goes on, and if we can do it, you sure as hell can do it, too.
