One thing I learned from going to a junior college is "words is hard".
Besides the cost difference between a junior college and a university, my JuCo was much more to me than money. I met so many amazing people in my two years. I learned so much about myself, and I have so many memories.
1. The class sizes are perfect.
Going from a small high school, I was scared I wouldn't get much one-on-one time with professors, they wouldn't really care about me, or they wouldn't want to try and find out my strengths and weakness. However, I found out I was quite wrong. The professors really did care.
2. You are able to get the hands-on experience you probably wouldn't get at a university until much later.
By the first week of freshman year, I was already at the college radio learning to host my own morning show, and by basketball season, I was broadcasting the college and the local high school basketball games. (I even got to film our weekly news segment at Chesapeake Arena!)
3. They say the people you meet in college, you'll be friends with forever...
And I truly hope that is correct. These people change your life for the better. These people become more like family because you see them more than your actual family. You spend hours and hours with them studying in the computer lab before a test, eating pizza at 3:00 AM, having water balloon fights, and watching movie marathons in your advisor's computer lab. If it wasn't for the junior college I went to, I would have never met these amazing people.
4. You get to know the president personally.
It also helped my dad was friends with the president (that neither here nor there), but you know you're doing good when you walk into his office and have an unscheduled interview with him for the college newspaper.
5. My advisor was my savior.
In my two years at my junior college, my advisor and I didn't see eye-to-eye on most things, but she gave me a better look at things than my small town point of view. All the times I came into her office complaining about something, putting up with all of my crap, me crying my first day of sophomore year, my last day on campus, and every day in between... My advisor became a second mom to me. I truly believe I would not have survived the two years without her. She pushed me to be my best and wouldn't expect anything less.
I wish the junior college I went to was a four-year university, but my junior college gave me the tools to take on the next years at university. Thank you to everyone who made the first two years of my college career amazing!
