Being as I am on my last year of college, I have been jotting down things I wish I would’ve known coming into it -- things I wish someone would’ve sat me down and told me so I felt ready when I left on that first freshman move-in date. Not just about getting your texts books, finding your classrooms, knowing the right bus routes and ratemyprofessor.com, but the other side to college that is just as important. Teenagers tend to think they know everything and are invincible, but when you finally get the chance to take a minute and look back at the past four years, you realize how fast time really does fly.
For starters, the one thing I find the most important is to tell your parents each and everyday how thankful you are that you have the opportunity to be where you are. Too often, I get caught up and stressed out, and I don’t take the time to really tell my parents how much I appreciate what they have done for me and how much I love them. The love I have for them is overwhelming. I feel as though I take for granted the frantic, last minute phone calls because I failed a test, or when I need $8 just to get gas to make it to class on time. I also have to remember that even though I may not notice it, they need me just as much as I need them, and for that I am lucky. So thank your parents, and make sure they know how much you really, truly and deeply, love them and don’t forget to go home when you can.
Second, you don’t have to be someone you’re not. Just because movies make college out to be this wild and crazy everyday party, or people being pushed around because they are “uncool,” doesn't mean you have to act that way. I can’t emphasize enough that you don’t have to be what everyone else tells you to be. If you want to join a fraternity or sorority, do it. If you don’t, who cares? That doesn’t dictate who you are going to be. There is no social ladder in college. You’re going to make friends either way. Talk to the people in your classes -- always, always make friends with the people in your classes. They will help you, they will be there for the majority of your four years and some of them even turn into life-long friends. Some of my favorite people are the ones I sit next to every day. If it’s too hard to do that, get a job. Work friends are the best friends. I consider mine to be like my family, and I honestly rely on them too much, but it’s good to have people you can count on.
Third, soak it up. Take in every minute you spend in class, skipping class, with your friends, studying, walking on campus -- just living your life. Don’t let it get past you. When you think there's no way you can make it to class, force yourself to go and reward yourself after. When your friend calls you at 2 a.m. for a sober ride home, jump out of bed, because you know they’d do it for you. When you’re walking what feels like a mile in the hot sun to your classes, look around you and see all the beautiful people and imagine what they may be thinking about. Listen and learn from everyone around you -- from your teacher’s long lectures to the crazy drunk kid asking you if you can feel the earth rotating. Listen.
Last, love your friends. They’re the ones who are going to help you through these years. They will be there from the absolute best times to what seems like rock bottom. I would do anything for my best friends, and I mean anything. I make sure they know that and, trust me, I don’t hesitate to ask them either. I know I’m not the only one to think I have some of the most amazing people in my life, but I am beyond thankful. Each year I have met another person I now feel like I can’t live without. They’re the ones to tell you not to waste your time on people who don’t deserve it, but they’re also the ones to relentlessly set you up with strange people from their classes or people they’ve drunkenly met out. I count on them to tell me stories to make mine look better, or to pick up my phone call so I can tell them at 4 a.m. how much I love them. Don’t ever let something get in the way of friendship, because that is just as strong as love in my opinion. Find your people and stick with them.
College can be some of the best times and some of the worst, but it’s all about what you make of it. I’m sure by the time I graduate I will double this list, but for now, this is how I see it.
