Now that we are college students, we can safely say that we are "are on our own." Well, as much as on our own we can be with our parents only a few hours away. As much as I'd like to say I'm on my own, I still rely on my parents for more things than I'd like to admit. But was this the case for our parents when they were in school too?

According to author and former freshman dean of Stanford University, Julie Lythcott-Haims claims that today's freshman class is more reliant on their parents than ever. Thinking back to elementary school when my mom would call my teacher to discuss how well I was doing in school, check up on my grades, and even see how she could be studying better with me, Lythcott-Haims says that parents still do that with their children in college today.

Going to college is supposed to mean becoming your own person, living on your own and experiencing new things (even those your parents would not have allowed you to do before). But how would all of this ever be possible if you're still letting your parents fix your problems for you? Becoming an adult is never an easy task, but it is definitely something we all have to go through eventually. Living away from your parents and going to college is the perfect opportunity for that. However, with that, comes the responsibility of dealing with everything without the help of your parents. Even just the little things such as, the classes you want to take, the issues you're having with your roommate, the grade you're not happy with and anything else that has to do with your own education should be your own problem, not your parents.

Of course money is always the biggest problem for the new freshman student. For me, my parents don't even allow me to get a job while I'm going to school (which might be over parenting itself). However, asking for your parents' financial help does not mean letting them pay for everything. You're going to be in for a huge shock when you hit the real world and really live on your own. Your parents now probably transfer money into your account when you need something little, or even just need some spending money to go out to eat with your friends and get away from the school food, but that itself is completely different from making your parents pay for everything.

Being on your own as a freshman will at times be very challenging, but let's remember why you wanted to go to college away from home in the first place. Continuing to allow your parents to do everything for you isn't actually benefitting you as much as you think it is. Figuring things out on your own, even if you fall down sometimes is what life is actually about.