Here's What I Learned From Struggling Academically

Last semester, I applied to transfer from an Economics Major to a Business Major at The University of Illinois. Being a Business Major is something I have dreamed of since I was in high school. The opportunity to transfer into business at U of I is only allowed after your freshman year. I spent all of my second semester of Freshman year perfecting my essays, building my resume, and working hard in all my classes to make sure I had solid grades. After all the stress, on June 24th, I got into to the Gies College of Business. I was so happy that I started to cry. One of my goals and dreams was happening, and all the hard work paid off.

As the summer went on, I became nervous to come back to school. The classes in my new major were going to be completely different from the ones I have taken, but I tried not to overthink. There was nothing to stress about before anything happened, after all.

The first few weeks of classes weren't too bad. They were an adjustment, but nothing too crazy seemed to be happening at that point. I continued to use my assignment notebook to stay organized and kept up with all the work that was assigned for all my classes. It was definitely a change of scenery. I write one essay a week, which is something I am not used to. Even though it is a change, I adjusted.

After the first week of midterms, my confidence plummeted. I became extremely stressed out, lost confidence, was exhausted, and felt like none of my hard work was paying off. I called my mom in hysterics because I didn't think I was cut out for being in business. My mom told me not to worry, and if I need to transfer again, that was always an option. Giving up and transferring is not something I had in mind, because I have never been the type of person to just give up.

That night, I went to bed and thought about everything I talked to my mom about. I then texted her the next morning and said: "Yesterday was a bad today, but I will make today a good day."

From that moment on, I realized that it isn't about the letter grade on your transcript, but it is about the learning experiences, and what type of person these struggles turn you into. Coming from a town that is academically competitive, it is hard to admit you're struggling because there was so much pressure in high school to always perform well. I now realized that this is not always a bad thing, and there is much more to be learned when things don't come so easily. Here I am, continuing to try my best, and know that it is okay to not get straight A's because it is not a healthy mindset to constantly have.

The moral of my story is that if you are struggling in school, it is okay. If you think you need to get all A's, you don't. What matters most is that you are always trying your best, and learning from your experiences. I am not perfect, and I never will be. I won't do well on every single assignment for school, but that is okay. Everything is a learning experience, and it is shaping me into the hard working person I hope to be for the rest of my life.