Freshman year of college: it's when you are so generously granted the opportunity to be at the bottom of the food chain again after working so hard in high school to be at the top as a senior. This year is known by its exclusive qualities only a freshman can experience, such as living in the crappiest dorms that are just big enough for two twin beds, two desks, and if you're lucky, two small closets; not being able to sleep or study because of the noisy hallways and lounges, even at 1am; and figuring out how to balance... well, everything, at the same time.
As it is nearing the end of summer and my sophomore year is quickly approaching, I have taken the past few weeks to reminisce about my past year at college as a freshman. Vivid memories filled my head of both good and bad times, but I noticed that I seemed to recollect more bad memories than good.
Why is that? It's probably due to the fact that my freshman year would not be considered a good year by most people's standard, as it was filled with many obstacles, setbacks, and mistakes. However, that doesn't necessarily mean my freshman year was a bad one. In fact, I consider it to be a perfectly imperfect year because it provided me with the opportunity to learn and grow.
Freshman year is the first time you have ever experienced freedom and independence, a state of being that you had been longing for for a while.
But guess what? Having the freedom to do whatever you want can be scary because all of the responsibility falls on you. You became responsible for your own actions and everything that occurred because of them. And worse of all, freedom came with having to make your own stupid doctor appointments.
Unfortunately, the whole being independent thing is tough and came with a few missed classes and forgotten homework assignments and the fast-paced lifestyle of college never gave you a break to get your act together.
Speaking of having the freedom to do whatever you wanted, you used that opportunity to party... a lot. If you're like me, freshman year provided you with the chance to go to your first party. And as being an amateur at the whole work-hard play-hard lifestyle, you had nights you didn't remember and nights you regretted - it's like a packaged deal that comes with being a freshman or something.
Also, if you ever seemed to be having too much fun, you got asked the question, "Are you a freshman?" That's right, apparently, freshmen have a distinct look or smell that any upperclassman can point out from miles away, and it seems as if they will ALWAYS to take the opportunity to do so.
That brings me to the whole "find your balance" saying that you heard a trillion times. When you came to college, you were an A/B student, but I bet that didn't last long. For me, during my freshman year at Work Forest, oh, I mean Wake Forest, I was happy to even get a C+ or B-; to me, that was a good grade.
It's not that you didn't try because you did. It's just that high school didn't properly prepare you for a university's rigorous course load. I didn't know how to sit down for hours straight to just study, didn't know how to use a planner and didn't know how to most efficiently learn the material provided to me; and what made every single one of these acts harder was knowing that you could be doing something much more fun. Which is why, on multiple occasions, you sacrificed studying for a party or hanging out with friends.
Whatever your circumstances, they contributed to your subpar grades and possibly a first failed exam or many last-minute dropped classes and schedule changes.
Oh yeah, friends. About that, the friends you make at the beginning of the year are probably not going to be the same friends you end the year with. Friends are an important aspect of freshman year, because how else were you expected to survive? Which is why you may have gone through two, three or five different friend groups before you found the right one. However, the process of finding your true friends consisted of some bad friendships, feeling like you didn't fit in and at time, being lonely. You may have even blamed yourself for the reason that people seemed to be constantly going in and out of your life.
And to make the daily obstacles you were facing during your freshman year even more difficult, you were battling with your mental health along the way, trying to stay healthy and happy, which was always the case. There were days that you felt like your best wasn't good enough, you didn't quite fit in with everyone else and your dreams and aspirations seemed like a long-shot.
I know what you're thinking, wow that sounds like a crappy freshman year, but for me, I couldn't have asked for a better one. Here's why:
1. Mental health is the most important aspect of life because if you are not healthy mentally, it will be challenging to tackle any obstacles that come your way.
So, do what you have to do, such as go to therapy or take medications, in order to feel your best.
2. To be independent is nothing without being responsible as well.
Therefore, never skip a class if possible, and a planner is necessary because there is no other way you can remember all of your assignment due dates and exam dates.
3. After mental health, prioritize academics.
It’s okay to use campus resources for any academic concerns; they will be more than glad to give you study tips and help you with organization.
4. Don't trust everyone you meet.
Which means when you decide to go to a party, make sure you go with a group of people that you know you can depend on to be there for you to make sure that nothing bad happens, and if something goes wrong, they will be there for you. This goes for life in general, really.
5. Failed friendships only make you more thankful for true friendships.
They come along and help you realize that friendships consist of two people equally caring for each other, not one more than the other.
6. Ultimately, mistakes are made for you to learn from them.
So never let any obstacles or setbacks get you down.
7. Everything happens for a reason.
If I hadn't had such a difficult freshman year, I wouldn't have known as much as I know now and I wouldn't be as optimistic and ready to tackle my sophomore year.
