The College Balancing Act
Start writing a post
Student Life

The College Balancing Act

There Are Four Main Challenges When Going To College. Here's Why Solving Them Early Is Important.

66
The College Balancing Act

College is a balancing act. It is the first time that many young adults have to plan their own activities and manage their own time. Such responsibility can be daunting.

As a first year, the biggest worries are how to leave enough time to hang with friends and maybe go to a few parties while still getting all of your work done, knowing what has to be done for which classes and for when, where to write those assignments down, and planning activities and classes so that they don't overlap. The first of these four is balancing work and play. Seems pretty self-explanatory, right? Well, maybe not quite. Making an educated guess about how long work for a certain class will take can be hard, especially when there's something else you'd rather be doing. The danger in this is leaving too little time to do the work, and so you lose sleep because you're in the library until it closed. The second is knowing what has to be done and for when. This ties into the third, writing down assignments, and, to a certain extent the last, planning activities, because they all can involve one thing: a planner. For me, it's nice to have a couple places where my assignments and activities are written down so that I don't accidentally forget to do my homework or promise to meet someone for dinner at the same time there's a study group, for instance. If you have one place where everything is written down and consolidated, then keeping it all straight in your head becomes a lot easier. Suddenly, you know what you have in each class right next to when jiu jitsu is and just above a note about meeting someone for breakfast the next morning. Keeping everything in one place reduces the chance of, a best, an embarrassing mishap or, at worst, a late assignment.

Some first year students adjust just fine. They quickly learn how to keep up with their courses while still having fun on the weekends and leaving time to regroup and check in with themselves. They figure out the best way to keep track of what work they have to do in which classes and when best to do it. Some don't figure this out until later.

Learning how to "adult" early in college is good because as you go up in seniority, your responsibilities increase. As you're weaned off of the meal plan, you have to remember to set aside time to go into town and buy groceries, but you also have to keep in mind how much money you have to spend every week or every month. So, if you're trying to still set the foundations of good habits as a junior, as a senior when you have a final thesis due soon, you're going to have problems balancing your time and ensuring that everything gets done, including sleep and friends. You might end up having to ask underclassmen friends to steal food from the dining hall for you because you don't have time to go into town and buy ingredients, or you might have to give up going to something you had been looking forward to either because you can't afford it or because you didn't realize you had a big paper due the next day.

But everyone figures it out at their own pace, and I just hope that I do so sooner rather than later.

Report this Content
This article has not been reviewed by Odyssey HQ and solely reflects the ideas and opinions of the creator.
Student Life

Waitlisted for a College Class? Here's What to Do!

Dealing with the inevitable realities of college life.

40312
college students waiting in a long line in the hallway
StableDiffusion

Course registration at college can be a big hassle and is almost never talked about. Classes you want to take fill up before you get a chance to register. You might change your mind about a class you want to take and must struggle to find another class to fit in the same time period. You also have to make sure no classes clash by time. Like I said, it's a big hassle.

This semester, I was waitlisted for two classes. Most people in this situation, especially first years, freak out because they don't know what to do. Here is what you should do when this happens.

Keep Reading...Show less
a man and a woman sitting on the beach in front of the sunset

Whether you met your new love interest online, through mutual friends, or another way entirely, you'll definitely want to know what you're getting into. I mean, really, what's the point in entering a relationship with someone if you don't know whether or not you're compatible on a very basic level?

Consider these 21 questions to ask in the talking stage when getting to know that new guy or girl you just started talking to:

Keep Reading...Show less
Lifestyle

Challah vs. Easter Bread: A Delicious Dilemma

Is there really such a difference in Challah bread or Easter Bread?

24900
loaves of challah and easter bread stacked up aside each other, an abundance of food in baskets
StableDiffusion

Ever since I could remember, it was a treat to receive Easter Bread made by my grandmother. We would only have it once a year and the wait was excruciating. Now that my grandmother has gotten older, she has stopped baking a lot of her recipes that require a lot of hand usage--her traditional Italian baking means no machines. So for the past few years, I have missed enjoying my Easter Bread.

Keep Reading...Show less
Adulting

Unlocking Lake People's Secrets: 15 Must-Knows!

There's no other place you'd rather be in the summer.

950622
Group of joyful friends sitting in a boat
Haley Harvey

The people that spend their summers at the lake are a unique group of people.

Whether you grew up going to the lake, have only recently started going, or have only been once or twice, you know it takes a certain kind of person to be a lake person. To the long-time lake people, the lake holds a special place in your heart, no matter how dirty the water may look.

Keep Reading...Show less
Student Life

Top 10 Reasons My School Rocks!

Why I Chose a Small School Over a Big University.

131570
man in black long sleeve shirt and black pants walking on white concrete pathway

I was asked so many times why I wanted to go to a small school when a big university is so much better. Don't get me wrong, I'm sure a big university is great but I absolutely love going to a small school. I know that I miss out on big sporting events and having people actually know where it is. I can't even count how many times I've been asked where it is and I know they won't know so I just say "somewhere in the middle of Wisconsin." But, I get to know most people at my school and I know my professors very well. Not to mention, being able to walk to the other side of campus in 5 minutes at a casual walking pace. I am so happy I made the decision to go to school where I did. I love my school and these are just a few reasons why.

Keep Reading...Show less

Subscribe to Our Newsletter

Facebook Comments