As I prepare to start my senior year of high school, there are so many things I wish I could go back and tell myself when I started 3 years ago as a lowly freshman. I had a science teacher freshman year that always said: “Freshman year is a time for growing and maturing”. Of course, nobody really took it to heart because we all saw ourselves as being close to adulthood, but we needed some friendly advice from someone who wasn’t almost three times our age. So here is my advice to incoming freshman and advice I wish I knew.

First, you are a freshman. It’s rather plain and simple but so many times freshman try to act like they’re on top of the world. In the politest way possible, know your place. Throughout the years your time will come and you will get to be a senior, but for right now just take in the experience and learn.

Second, the best friends you have as a freshman might not be your best friends senior year, and that’s okay. I started freshman year thinking “Wow, I can’t wait to walk across the graduation stage with my best friends, make tons of memories at prom, and just experience all of high school together!”. But, a tough reality is that you’re going to change, and so will your friends. If this does happen to you, it can be incredibly tough; even your friends can break your heart. But you’ll make new friends that you’ll be just as close to!

Third, be involved! Your high school experience will get so much better if you are involved with school activities. Play sports; join clubs; do something. High school offers a wide array of clubs and organizations to be apart of, but most of the time, as a freshman, students are too scared to be involved. Now, I’m not saying you should be like Sue Heck, from ABC’s “The Middle”, and try out for every sport or join every club, but involvement is good! Junior year I joined forensics, which is speech and debate. Freshman year all I knew about it was that it was filled with kids I was nothing alike, they were weird to me. Then sophomore year I got into politics and decided “Hey, I should really join the debate team.”. Little did I know I would meet some of the most amazing and friendliest people in my life! So even if it looks intimidating or something people don’t really think highly of if it makes you happy… join it!

Fourth, actually study for the ACT/SAT and take it often. Like many of you, I absolutely HATE standardized testing. However, the ACT and SAT are extremely important as they help determine college admissions and scholarship awards. In addition to buying all those prep books and taking tutoring classes, take the test every chance you get. Soon, senior year will come around and you’ll find yourself with only a few more chances to take the test. Even if you have a high score the higher you can get the more benefits you’ll see!

Fifth, take those dual enrollment courses if they’re offered. These classes are an incredible opportunity to not only give you high school credit but also college! When the availability to take college classes comes up for a free or reduced price take them! Seriously, college is expensive so college credits that transfer and in some cases are free are an incredible opportunity. Students can sometimes graduate high school will also graduating with their associate's degrees.

Lastly, and of the most important things I’ve learned is, don’t put a relationship over friendship. Through the years I’ve seen friendships stretched to the limits when one friend gets into a relationship and completely abandons their friends. It’s healthy for both parties to balance the time spent with one another. Unfortunately, many freshman relationships don’t last all the way through high school so if the unfortunate happens you’ll need friends to support you, but if you left them to be with your significant other then they may not be as willing to help you through your tough times.

To all the freshman starting high school good luck and have a great first year of high school. High school is incredibly fun and memorable and is truly some of the best years of your life.