Entering freshman year is an intimidating process. All of us are nervous, excited, and confused at the same time. Navigating these emotions can be tricky, and there are a few things that stand out in the list of things to worry about.
1. Packing your life away
How am I supposed to pack this stuff- and what am I even supposed to pack? After hours spent at Target and Bed Bath & Beyond, I still look at the pile in my room wondering if I have everything I need to survive in my new dorm. However, after trying to get everything packed into my suitcases and boxes, I've realized that everything I need to survive may not fit in my tiny dorm room!
2. On leaving old friends
I have been lucky enough to come out of high school with a few close friends who have stuck by me through thick and thin. I love them to pieces and I know that being hours away from them will change the dynamic of our friendships forever. However difficult our tearful goodbyes may be, I know that we will stay in touch and they will make coming home for break something that I look forward to!
3. And on making new friends
As someone who loves people, I am very excited about making new friends. However, making new friends comes with the fear that they may never fill the gap that my high school friends will leave. What if they don't have the same taste in music and we can't see concerts together? Or we can't go to the gym together and laugh about how out of shape we are? What if they don't like romance movies and I have to watch them alone? Despite my fears, I know that my new friends will enhance my life in new and exciting ways, and I can't wait to meet them!
4. Leaving family behind
The idea of having to leave behind my family is something that I have not completely come to terms with. I am very close to both my parents and my sister, and I rely on them for everything. They put up with my mood swings, my spur of the moment adventures, and my complete messiness. But most of all, they are the three people I love most in my life and the idea of living an hour and a half away from them is something that will be harder than I can imagine.
5. Meeting your roommate(s)
After living in the same room for the past 18 years either alone, the idea of living with people you have never met can be more than scary. Even though everyone says that you can't be best friends with your roommate, it doesn't change the hope that they will become like my sisters. After all, if we could agree on matching everything from bedspreads to hangers, how could we not get along?
6. To join a sorority or not?
Joining a sorority was something that I have feared since I was young. Watching Greek life on the news was something that immediately turned me off to it, as hazing was something that I was very against. However, as I get closer to college, I have realized that joining a sorority may be something that will allow me to meet new people and enhance my life and that I have nothing to be afraid of!
7. Managing time
For some, college is a fresh start to manage time better and keep a higher GPA. However, for others, college is just another four years to go through academic challenges, late nights studying, and sitting through rigorous lectures. As I look at my schedule, I wonder whether I will be able to get my work done during the week, and I fear having to spend my Friday nights sitting in my dorm studying.
8. Getting a job
As I enter with a Biochemistry major destined for the medical field, I wonder if my college education will get me to the career that I am aiming to attain. I fear not being able to find internships, allowing my GPA to drop, or worst of all, not being able to stay in my major on the path that I have been planning all of high school. As someone who is a planner at heart, the idea of not being able to follow my plan is what drives me to work as hard as I possibly can.
9. Figuring out food
Whether you plan to go on the meal plan like I did or are deciding to buy your own food, the idea of having to choose your own food and make healthy decisions is something that I worry about. With the infamous freshman fifteen that anyone who has been through college warns about, it's no wonder that food is a big stress point for any incoming freshman.
10. Living on your own
Since I was a kid, I have only known homemade meals from my mom, never having to do laundry, and being allowed to "focus on school" and skip most of my chores. As I prepare to leave for college, I wonder about how I am going to eat out of the dining hall and lug my laundry up and down to the laundry room. After being blessed with wonderful parents and never having to do much on my own, I hope that I will be able to take care of myself as well as they did!
Going to the cinema alone is good for your mental health, says science
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