Finals are either upon us or already over and the sweet taste of freedom is on the tip of my tongue. The end of the school year! Sunshine and sand between my toes, I can’t wait. The year seems to have flown by. The transition from high school to college has been crazy. It is the same but insanely different all at the same time. Freshman year at Millersville has been fantastic and I’ve learned so much.

For example, I am the worst procrastinator. Not that I ever had any doubts before, I’ve always know it was bad. But college has taught me exactly how bad it is. There have been many mornings where I did my homework in the morning right before class. There have been multiples times I have practiced presentations or speeches in my car on the way to school. Or even turned things in the exact minute they were due.

Professors really do make a big impact. One year down, and I’ve had some really great ones. Some of the nicest and funniest people. Also, some pretty awful ones. They make the class for you. Use Rate My Professor to your advantage! Not to say that you can’t do well in those classes, because if you work hard you can. But some professors just don’t quit. One tip: use office hours.

Grades. That’s all I have to say. Not only are grades in college so much different than most things you’ve seen before, but each professor is different. Every assignment is weighted differently, you could have 100 assignments in one class and three in the next. A D isn’t passing? But most importantly you don’t need to always have an A.

It’s fairly easy to make friends. This could be argued, and it did take me some time to find some friends. I’m normally really shy with people I don’t know, and I don’t shut up around the people I do. The only time I ever felt I was missing out as a commuter was making friends. I didn’t have a roommate or people on my floor to make friends with. I didn’t get involved in a lot of activities because after classes I wanted to go home, not stay on campus. But college kids are simple really. We are all going through a lot of the same things, and we love to have people to complain about it too. I made some really great friends this year and I can’t wait to see what the next three years have in store for me.

I have some friends who are already graduating from school again this year and some who have been working since we finished high school. But I wouldn’t trade my college experience for anything. It felt like hell at some points and great at others. Who could complain about having almost four months of summer? I’m pumped for my next three years at Millersville. But right now it’s time to enjoy my freedom.