It's back to school time!
"Yay." (Many said sarcastically to themselves after reading this). But if you've just graduated high school, and you're at all like I was, you're both nervous and excited to go to college. It is pretty scary to go to college: that was something I didn't realize until I was about to leave. You just have no idea what it's going to be like. It's a huge change. But fret not! You're going to be great. And, just to help you out a bit (hopefully), here's some tips.
1. Be patient with yourself.
It takes time to adjust to a big change. You're not going to feel comfortable at college right away. And that's okay. It also might take time to figure out how to balance stress and school work, as well as having a social life and studying. There's always a lot to do at college, which can be overwhelming, especially at first. But trust in yourself and you'll figure out how best to manage your time in time.
2. DON'T PROCRASTINATE.
I know this is in all caps which is obnoxious, but there's a reason: I know most likely you (if you're like most students) struggle with procrastination. Which is often okay, if stressful, in high school. But it is unacceptable in college. That is, unacceptable if you want to get enough sleep and perform well academically. You got to get a start on your homework before 10pm. The thing is, the workload is a lot more in college than it was in high school. It requires more time. So you can't slack off too much.
3. Learn how to put stress aside and have fun.
There's a lot of events going on at colleges, like club meetings and social events, almost all the time. And it's difficult to find the time to go often, for one reason or another (usually due to academics). But sometimes no matter how stressed you are about your paper due Monday, sometimes you need to go out Saturday night and have some fun because it's good for you. You need to somehow put your stress on the shelf and let yourself have fun.
Good luck freshman year! You got this.
