"Studying the night before might work now, but in college, it definitely won't." This is what I was always told from my teachers in high school. They knew that we were lazy seniors who did the bare minimum to pass and get grades good enough for our standards, and had tried to warn us in our last few months before we went off to college. Well, it is safe to say I should have believed them more when they said this. Going off to college, whether you are commuting or dorming, is always a transition due to the different work load and course load you are quickly given, and you have little time to adjust to this new work mentality. The most difficult thing for freshmen is having to deal with is the increased workload which you’re going to have to manage. More studying, more homework, more papers, more everything. The senioritis you had three months ago will feel like a distant memory, because soon after syllabus week, the work and amount of studying you will need to do is crucial to maintaining your GPA. You no longer can skim and study the night before an exam. You need to prepare weeks in advance and stay on top of everything. You are now considered an adult, and you will not be babied and spoon-fed everything. You will need to learn time management, get good study habits, and at the same time try to find the perfect balance of maintaining a social life.
One thing I quickly learned as soon as I got to college was that it is absolutely IMPOSSIBLE to study in your dorm room. You're distracted by all the snacks around you, tempted to take a nap because you're studying on your bed, or you just cannot concentrate because your roommate is watching Netflix with no headphones on. You soon learn to hit the library. Being completely honest, I think I have spent more hours in my school's library then in any other building on campus so far. This is because it is a place full of resources and one thing us college students need the most... peace and quiet. There are no distractions in the library, and it will actually help you knock out that eight page paper in a few hours, rather then you staring at your screen in your dorm room full of distractions. There are too many college students who haven’t stepped foot in their library, but this is one of the few places you’ll actually get your work done.
Going from living at home with strict parents to a college campus where you are quintessentially free to do what you want and make your own decisions is both a blessing and a curse. You go from having a routine life and set schedule for five days a week in high school, but in college, you must choose when and how to study, socialize with new friends, become involved in activities, budget money, exercise, and make time to eat and sleep. You need to learn how to balance going to class, participating in activities, completing schoolwork on time, taking care of yourself, and having fun. With your own new-found freedom, you need to take the initiative to address your own responsibilities for the first time in your life. This is a big adjustment, and in my opinion, the hardest part of adjusting to college.
Another big struggle I encountered when going to college is meeting new people. Personally, I went to my college not knowing one person. I was a little nervous about this at first, but once I came here, I realized so many other people were in the same boat as me! If you are more quiet and reserved, you will still be able to make friends. Just take that one daring step and reach out to another "shy" person you see, and who knows? Maybe this person will be your future best friend. Although I am a more outgoing person and am fairly social, not having a familiar face these first few weeks here were a little depressing, and it was pretty easy for me to become homesick. To battle homesickness, it is all just a mental game. Make sure you keep in touch with your friends from home, but don't limit yourself to meeting awesome people in college.
The workload in college is way heavier than the workload in high school. There is more preparation outside of class, more studying, more books, more papers, and more intense tests. Teachers do not remind you of due dates and your professors will expect you to keep up with the syllabus on your own. You are expected to keep on top of your homework and readings. The best way to do this is making outlines of the readings, flashcards of the criteria, and as stated before, spending hours in the library to memorize and get the work flowing. Exams in college often involve much more criteria than that of high school tests. You seriously need to prepare for these tests. They also count for a lot more of your grade than exams did in high school.
Although I got the hang of how college works and the workload differences between high school and college, I still have a lot more hoops to jump through as the semester goes on. Time management is key to a healthy and enjoyable college experience. While college means more freedom and time to go out and do what you please, it also means more responsibility. If you keep on top of your studies and manage your grades, you can make your college experience the best four years of your life. So take the phrase, "I'll just wing it!" out of your vocabulary, and take action and use that brain of yours to achieve all you are capable of without wearing yourself out.
