Dear high school class of 2017,

It’s crazy to think that just this time last year, I was standing in the exact place as you are right this moment. Luckily, I went to an amazing high school (shout out to Sonoraville—you guys rock) that made my senior year 20 million times better than anything that I had seen in movies and T.V. shows. Beginning senior year comes with so many mixed emotions: stress and anxiety, but also excitement and a sense of entitlement because, let’s be real, it’s a miracle some of us have even made it this far. But in addition to these, there’s this one feeling nagging in the back of your brain: confusion. I know what you’re thinking: “where do I want to go to college? Do I even want to go to college? What do I want to major in? Do I want to be involved in Greek life? Did I really need to know that the mitochondria is the powerhouse of the cell?” Luckily for you, you have me, your not-much-older, not-much-wiser friend to help you out.

After high school, you have so many options: going straight into the workforce, going to technical/occupational school, going to college or university, or going into the military. All of these are great and fantastic choices, but the choice is ultimately yours. Making a decision like this isn’t an easy task by any means. My advice is that you sit down and write a list. What are your goals? Where do you want to be in five years? 10? 15? This isn’t meant to bring more stress onto you. You don’t have to know exactly where you want to live or how many dogs you want, but it’s helpful to have some sort of an outline.

Picking a college isn’t easy either. Personally, I applied to over fifteen schools (yeah, my dad wasn’t happy about that one), but was also accepted to every one. I wanted to keep my options open. After visiting a few schools, I thought I found what was home. It was a world renown college in a small town known for its engineering program (I’ll let you figure that one out). But by happenstance, I ended up visiting Georgia College and State University. Even though I was already committed to another school, my heart was telling me that this is where I was meant to be. I really believe that God led me exactly where I was meant to be, so now Milledgeville is home. Long story short, follow your heart. You’ll know when you find your place.

Picking a major isn’t necessarily an easy task either. It’s so easy to say, “well, I like doing this, and it makes a lot of money, so yeah, I’ll stick with it.” But if your heart isn’t in it, you will end up regretting your decision fifteen years down the road. I don’t say that to scare you, I say it to encourage you. Again, listen to your heart. What are you passionate about? What really sets your soul on fire and gives you the warm fuzzies? But also, don’t be afraid to let your major change. Going to college is a growing experience. If you’re not personally changing, you’re doing something wrong.

Now onto the fun part: Greek life. Personally, I’m 100% affiliated with Greek life. In fact, I’m about to head out the door for a chapter meeting. It may be your cup of tea, it may not be. Your preference is just that—your own. But regardless of your stance on it, I want you to know that it is nothing like anything you’ve ever seen on T.V. or in movies. It’s so much greater, so much sweeter, and so much more fun. Don’t get me wrong, it’s a lot of work. Between class, study sessions with my sisters, work, volunteering, and other random activities, it becomes a pretty busy lifestyle. But at the end of the day, I know that my sorority sisters will always be there for me, and I want you to find your forever family too.

Now that we have the major topics out of the way, I’ll give you some tiny tidbits of advice. When it comes to your SAT and ACT tests, study. Show up and kick the test’s butt. You’ll be thankful later. Also, college is expensive. But luckily for you, scholarships are out there. You just have to find them. Drink if you want to drink. Don’t drink if you don’t want to (fun fact: a third of college students have never taken a sip of alcohol). Either way, just be safe. Love on your parents. You’re leaving soon. And trust me, it’s harder for them than it is for you.

Finally, enjoy it. Senior year of high school is such an amazing time. Go to football games, hang out with friends, get 4 a.m. Waffle House, sing at the top of your lungs, and take way too many pictures. Stay up too late, but also ace your test the next day. Your grades really do matter considering that’s what you go to school for, right? Thank your teachers—seriously, it makes their day. Talk to anyone and everyone because very soon, it’s likely that you won’t see many of them ever again.

If you need anything else, I’m seriously not hard to find on any social media. I promise I can sometimes give kind-of good advice.

Your friend,