So here's the thing...college is not like high school, where most people go for four years and then are on their way. College is vastly different. Some might start right out of high school, and some might start later on in their lives. Some might have credits already from high school, and some might be starting with a blank slate. Some might go for two years, and some might go for twenty.

I am one of the usual cases -- started college right out of high school. I had a few credits that I had taken during high school, but besides that, I was starting on a blank slate. What was going to be my career? I knew that I had fallen in love with the idea of English and I stuck with that. Now, here I am, finishing up my final year as a Junior. Crazy, huh? I guess the 18-20 credits a semester as well as working two part-time jobs paid off. But, I am not here to brag. I am here to bring to you the reality of college students.

We are all different; all individuals with varying goals in life. It is weird to me that I am graduating after three years of college while some of my peers have been in college for several years and are working towards the same degree. At first, it was way too easy to get cocky and brag about how I was finishing early (as if somehow that means I am smarter than others..?), but I learned quickly that everybody is an individual and has different degrees of learning. To be honest, if my degree was in a science or math based field, I would be in school for a LOT longer since those topics seem to pass right from one ear to another.

So, here's to all the college students-- no matter your age, sex, gender, race, or how long you have been taking college courses. Here's to the group of people that are dedicated to higher education no matter the amounts of debt that we submit ourselves to. There is one thing in common with all college students: we seek to know something higher, bigger, and better. We seek a career that we want to spend a major part of our lives on, we seek to learn and excel. and in the grand scheme of things, that is all that really matters in the end.