Freshman year of college is like starting a brand new life. You got so used to the past four years at the same school, with your same friends, doing the same things every year. Then, all of a sudden, you’re in a new school where you don’t know anyone, and you’re expected to start living “the best four years of your life.”

Every college student goes through the phase where they wish they could go back home and hide in that tiny little hole that was your comfort zone. Whether you go through it the second your parents leave, a few weeks into school, or during finals week, it’s bound to happen sometime. The good news is that you can get through it! All of the upperclassmen have survived this hump, and you can too.

Just think about how you got adjusted to high school. You found what made you comfortable, and you stuck with those things for four years. Now, you just have to find what those things are again.

If you're hating college because you haven’t made very many friends, get involved. Go to on-campus events. Whether it’s a movie or an ice cream social, you never know where you’re going to find those friends that will last throughout the next four years.

Joining a club is a great way to make friends with people who have the same interests. Almost every major has a club pertaining to itself. If you don’t know what clubs or organizations are offered, or don’t know what they are about, you can easily take a trip to the center for student involvement, and they would be really helpful in guiding you to finding a place where you belong.

If classes are your issue, there is another way to go about solving your problems. If you’re drowning in homework or completely lost in a class, you’re not the only one feeling this way. Every student goes through a class where they have the “if I can get through this class, I can get through anything” motto.

If you have a class or classes like this, you can talk to other students in the class to see how they are doing, and ask if they could explain the things that you’re not understanding. You can also ask the teacher for extra help. Every teacher has study hours, and they make them for confused students like yourself.

If these methods don’t work, there is always tutoring. The school gets students who passed classes with high grades to help other students who are currently struggling in those classes. This can be really helpful because the tutors are from the school, so they know what’s expected out of the class, and they may have even had the same teacher as you.

Don’t let the “I hate college” hump put you down. You'll get over it, and later you'll look back and be glad that you didn’t give up. College has some rough spots, but if you let it, it can truly be the best four years of your life.