Ahh, college... The best time of your life. The place you meet your lifelong friends and your future bridesmaids or groomsmen. The time you actually figure out what you want to do with the rest of your life. They say that freshman year is one of the best; the year that high school seniors are itching for right about now. Well, I’ve got some bad news: It’s not all parties and having fun and not worrying about anything.

Don’t get me wrong, the new found freedom is great. You can do whatever you want, whenever you want to. You’re meeting new people, trying new things, and having an adventure every day. But the truth is, it’s not all it’s cracked up to be.

A time comes when you have your first big biology exam that’s worth 15 percent of your final grade, or you get a test or a paper back that you failed when you thought you aced it. You have a reality check. College is hard stuff, and high school does not prepare you for it.

I know when I was going through my first few months of college, it wasn’t too bad. A homework assignment here, a paper there, no big deal. But when you get that first test back and you made a 57 on it because you didn’t know how to study for a college level exam… Man, it brings you down.

My point of this article is to not discourage any high school seniors from pursuing their dreams at their perfect college or to bring anyone down. My point is to give you a heads up so you don’t make the mistakes I did by not learning how to properly study or prepare for college-level tests. My intentions are to let you know now so you can make the most of this crazy thing we call college life.

Grades matter and when you come to college you should expect school to be your number one priority. No matter how many AP classes you took in high school or what your ACT score was, it will most likely not prepare you for the workload of college courses. My first day of chemistry class my professor told me that we should expect to spend at minimum 10 hours a week on his class alone. But guess what, I currently have an A in that class and have not struggled at all. It’s all about what you set your mind to do, and I believe you can accomplish anything.

For those who are currently freaking out while reading this, don’t stress. Time management becomes second nature and you will learn how to do well. You have time to hang with you friends, make stupid mistakes that you learn from, and have a night on the town with your best buds. Just breathe, relax and get ready for the hardest four years of your life.