Throughout my entire high school career, I was never led to believe that graduation was the finish line. Instead, getting accepted into a college of your choosing was the final step of high school. All of the assignments, projects, and assessments were given to prepare us for what sounded like “the great unknown,” also known as college. Standardized test scores depicted whether or not we were equipped with the knowledge necessary to continue our education.

As a graduate of a college preparatory high school, I felt more than prepared for my college courses from day one. But the one thing that I would like to address is: was college all that they said it would be? For all of the difficult situations that teachers put us in, all of the AP courses and exams, and all of the lectures about our futures, they told us that they were simply “preparing us for college.” Whenever we complained about having more than four hours of homework, they were “preparing us for college.” As a result of constant preparation for the future, the idea of higher education became frightening. If my high school assignments were giving me trouble, how could I expect to do well at a university?

As senior year came around, I began the application process, which proved to be difficult. I was somewhat hesitant in taking the next step in my education because I had been warned that it was going to be very difficult. My fear did not come from doubting that I would be accepted, but whether or not I would succeed to the standards that I had always set for myself. The education system that had become my routine taught me that harder work meant better grades, and better grades meant a better future for myself. The amount of focus that I had put solely on earning the grades that I wanted had caused me to lose sight of what higher education is all about – learning. Not only is higher education about learning the information necessary to build a career in a desired subject, but also about learning who you are and who you want to be – and grades do not define who you are.

Following my first semester as a college student, I would say that college is not at all what I expected it to be and it certainly isn’t all they said it would be. Though my teachers did a very good job of making college sound like it could not be conquered, they were wrong. Granted I am only a freshman and I am not attending Harvard, I am still very proud of the progress that I have made this fall. My college experience thus far has been completely different from that in high school. Though my courses were more difficult, I was given a plethora of support opportunities from my professors as well as other faculty members.

When I was having trouble in a high school course, there were few opportunities for help; instead, I was told that this struggle was “preparing me for college.” In college, however, there have been plenty of opportunities for receiving help in a course. From office hours provided by each professor, private tutors readily available, to mentors who are willing to listen, staff members are always ready to help as soon as you ask for guidance.

I have learned that success in college holds an entirely different meaning from that in high school. High school defines success by the grades we receive and the colleges we get into. These things are often achieved by the individual and only recognized in a manner that uplifts the reputation of the school. College, however, defines success by the ability to communicate and utilize the resources provided in order to achieve your goals. The skills that I learned in high school got me into college, but they have not helped me succeed there. The differences between high school and college are much greater than I ever imagined, and I for one, am very grateful for that.