I’m sure that I’m not alone when I say that I’ve never been the biggest fan of school. I’ve always loved learning but until I started college I had never enjoyed going to school. From kindergarten until I graduated I dreaded every single day that I had to spend there. I always regretted that I spent so much time disliking school so of course I was excited that I was able to give it a second chance.

When I first entered college I was at a university that had an almost nonexistent online program so I stuck to what I knew and went to school every day of the week. I made a rule for myself during my freshman year that I wasn’t allowed to take a class before 10:30 a.m. I wanted to give myself a chance to see if I would like school on my own terms, I even went as far as to register for several night classes. My self-imposed rule did its job because I ended up enjoying going to class.

By the time my sophomore year rolled around I figured it was time to try something new. Since I had recently transferred to a different school I was presented with a whole new world of opportunity. My new school offered a plethora of online classes and since I would be commuting I decided to give them a try. I had nothing to lose, right?

I didn’t just give online classes a try, I completely submerged myself in them. I had always heard that online classes were easy A’s so I didn’t have a hard time convincing myself to take a few.

I decided that three online classes would be the perfect amount to start off with. I assumed that I could easily deal with the workload if they were as easy as everyone said. But when fall rolled around, I quickly realized that this was way more than I bargained for. When I opened up the online program I was overwhelmed, to say the least. During the first week alone I had around four or five assignments due and the syllabi showed that the workload wouldn’t be getting any lighter.

Though I started the semester worried about my ability to handle everything I ended up making an A in each of my classes. I even managed to convince myself that if I could handle three online classes then I could surely handle taking the entire spring semester online.

Unsurprisingly, when January rolled around and I logged onto the online program I was once again overwhelmed. This time, my course load was a true struggle. I had over triple the amount of work this time and several of my teachers were very VERY hands-off which was completely unexpected because they had really good reviews on ratemyprofessors.com.

After what I have declared the hardest semester of my life, I have decided to give the classroom setting another try this fall. Don’t get me wrong, I don’t regret taking my sophomore year primarily online. I’m even taking four classes online this summer to get ahead! But let me be clear, once school resumes in the fall I will be taking a much-needed break from online schooling.

If you’re thinking about taking online classes don’t let my article deter you. Online classes are a great way to see if you can handle not being micromanaged. I've learned so much over the last year and I’ve also gained the skill of being able to teach myself. The most important piece of advice I can share with you is to stay on top of your assignments because they pile up quickly, and it’s difficult to get back on track.