Oh man. When I was first asked what I wanted to do with my life, I said college because, well, that's what everyone said I should do. The only problem with this is that no one in my family had gone to college, which means that I would be the first one. They don't teach a class called "how to college," so I had to kind of wing it.
That really scared me, and so many questions filled my mind. What would it be like living in a dorm? Will my roommate and I get along? What are loans, and how do they work? How do I make friends? Will I fit in?
These questions flooded my mind as my senior year of high school came to an end. Next thing I knew, I was getting letters about paying the school, my class schedule, orientation, and move in day. Frantic and confused, my family and I made a trip to the university to hopefully talk about some of the letters we received.
When we arrived, it was almost like walking a maze trying to find the offices and talk to the right people. Four hours later, we finally figured out how to move forward in the process.
Moving into my dorm was stressful, but when I opened my door, my new roommate had everything set up already. I looked at her stuff and it was all pink; I prayed that she wasn't a girly girl, because everything I brought was teal and white.
I didn't meet her until later that night, and she was super sweet so we hung out a lot during the New Student Orientation(NSO) week.
Classes start, and there isn't assigned seating, which I was thankful for, but about three classes in, and that seat is yours, no questions asked. The professors weren't as strict as most high school teachers made them, and email was the best way to communicate with the professor. I even had one give us their cell phone number because they don't always check their emails.
Walking around campus was a maze, and trying to remember when lunch was was probably the hardest part. The course load was a lot more, and suddenly, I felt like I was drowning in schoolwork.
I had no time for friends, my social life was lacking, I was getting fed up with the same choices for lunch and dinner, and quite frankly, I was over college.
Everyone asked "how's college?," but no one asked how I was doing. I said college was great, but never mentioned that I felt like I couldn't breathe and was neck deep in homework.
I would get asked from the family how the college parties are, and I would blatantly tell them that I don't go to any because I have so much homework.
After my first semester, I found some good friends and a way to manage my school work as well as keep up in classes and friendships. High school never pushed getting involved in clubs, but college was all for it, and that was how I managed to survive my second semester.
High school said that the professors are mean, you're basically on your own, no one cares anymore, and you might as well just suck it up and do it when it comes to college. And that's exactly what I did.
Getting involved and being a part of a group helps you maintain a balanced life, and you even meet friends in the same major as you. These friends are the ones to hold onto.
I'm thankful that high school didn't teach me everything about college because I learned how to be an adult on my own as well as continue to learn throughout the rest of college.
Did high school teach me how to be a college student? Well, not really. In high school, they could have a class on what it means to go to college, how to handle loans, and how to cook mac and cheese in the microwave properly.
