Everyone says when first leave for college you're going one way and coming back another. For those of you very grounded in your ways you may be thinking,"Not me, I am who I am." What people say is entirely accurate. Whether for the good or bad while in college you deal with situations alone that change you. Some of these changes are minor, and some are major, but by the time you pack up for Summer nothing will be the same.

1. Your Look at Friends Back Home and Friendship in General

Now that you're away from home you have a chance to put your old friendships to the test. It's no longer about who you had science with every year or who was at your lunch table out of convenience; you see who actually likes your company and wants to keep you around.

Inevitably, you're going to have the moment when you drop the friends from high school you thought were the best and just realize they were excellent company for high school but not forever friends. It is then that you have to decide what qualities you like in a friend and the types of friends you want to make going forward. Words of advice: don't only become friends with your roommates and don't choose other friends based on how often they go to parties.

2. Your Diet

No, this isn't going to be another piece about eating junk food and eating at 2 in the morning. For the most part, living alone and deciding what you put in your fridge allows you to take more control of your diet than before.

You're young, and in a pretty stressful time so there are going to be some pretty unhealthy periods, but for the most part, I know most people who use it as a time to figure out the time of diet they want to take forward. I can't tell you the number of people I know who switched to veganism or a paleo diet.

3. Your Style

It may seem like there are only two types of college style; just rolled out of bed chic or going on a run later active wear, but people explore a lot more in the fashion realm. Without parents to discourage you from buying certain things you figure out, what you're actually into if you like just to be comfy all the time or if you're a going to class in wedges on a Monday type of gal. Either way, the clothes you come home with are going to look pretty different from the previous ones.

4. Thoughts On Your Major

I'm not going to go with the stereotypical, "You're going to change your major freshman year" because most people don't. That's because, for one, most of your early classes are gen ed, so you're not even studying material in your major yet to want to change it. Also, what happens first and way more often are your thoughts on the major itself and what you want to do with it.

These ideas lead predominately to changes in minor or specialization but, I can't think of many first-year students who changed their major just because of Calc. If you do feel like changing your major before you take that giant step, don't just talk to an advisor but also talk to upperclassmen in your major and ask them if they ever had doubts or their career plans.

5. Personal Views

This one can get a bit controversial, but in college, your personal and political views are going to be put to the test by a lot of different classes and campus events. You may end up more firm in your beliefs than ever, which isn't bad, but the best thing to happen is that you become more open to other ideas. Being surrounded by so many other points of view, your entire interpretation of things can change.

What's the point? The point of this article isn't so much to draw fear or give you an excuse for doing dumb things because your "becoming a different person." The purpose is to let all of you know that you don't have to be scared of changing or being different than you were back home once you're in college.

It's expected, and other people are there going through the same thing, so it's a judgment free zone. Well, judgment free as long as the new you is not constantly drunk or just a jerk who tells people they're wrong for something they think or what they do. Then the new you might want to consider going back or doing some soul-searching.