Starting college, everyone expects they’re going to learn a lot. It’s a totally different experience than anything else in our lives up to that point so we know there will be lots to learn academically as well as in our personal lives. Some of what we learn still comes as a surprise, and as graduation approaches for some of us, it’s cool to see how far we’ve come.
1. You’ll start questioning things more often
Instead of just going along with everything the professor says, you’ll think about why you should believe some of it or not. Questioning doesn’t mean you doubt your professor’s credibility, you’re just thinking more critically. This doesn’t often happen in classes you don’t want to take, but for ones you care about, you’ll think critically instead of just robotically absorbing everything they say. Not only that, but you might start feeling comfortable verbalizing your doubts to your professors.
2. You’re the only one who can stand up for you
People can encourage you to stand up for yourself, but you are the only one who can do it. Don’t be afraid to stick up for yourself when you feel like you need to.
3. You’ll complain less
I’m not sure if this is a common thing, but as someone who complained A LOT in high school, I’ve gotten a lot better about that since being in college. I realized how other people that complained a lot dragged me down, and that I wanted to stop doing that to the peple in my life. It wasn’t super easy, but once I got in the habit, I now feel like I have less that I would even think of complaining about. People will like being around you more, and chances are you’ll feel a little better too.
4. Almost everyone feels out of place at some point
When you first come to school, you might think you’re the only one that feels nervous and out of place. One of the things that eases that panic the most is realizing almost everyone else feels the same way. Honestly, at least half my anxiety went away once I realized I wasn’t the only person feeling alone and awkward.
5. Overall, you’ll panic less
The things that you panicked about in high school are nothing now. It’s nice, because the everyday panic things from high school don’t bother you any more. This means you’ll panic less regularly, but don’t worry you’ll still panic. After all, there are things like finals, job-searching, and graduation to think about.
6. Napping in public is possible
My first two years of college everytime I saw someone napping in public I was jealous, I thought that was something I could never do. It’s definitely a wonderful thing, and once you fall asleep in public, it’s kind of great. Definitely not the most comfortable spot to nap, but it does the trick if you’re really desparate. You feel no shame, and you know everyone else looking at you is just jealous they aren’t asleep right now too.
7. You’re capable of more than you think you are
Getting used to being on your own there’s a lot of things you have to do for yourself that you wouldn’t have expected. Even with things that you were in charge of for yourself before, there’s no one to be accountable to anymore, which can change how easy it is to motivate. Sometimes even the little things are a big victory.
8. People judge you a lot less than you thought they did
People will always be judgmental, but people care way less about superficial crap in college. No one cares what you’re wearing to class or who you hang out with. It’s widely accepted that everyone’s going to do their own thing. Sure, people will still judge you. But it won’t feel en masse like it did in high school.
9. Finding friends is not like Ted and Marshall, and that’s okay
I know very few people who were best friends with their random roommate freshman year and are still super close. Most people don’t mind their random roommates, but don’t make much of an effort to stay connected, and that’s okay. There will be other people you’ll be insanely close to, kind of like Marshall and Ted (although they’re fictional, so don’t set your expectations too high), so don’t stress if that doesn’t happen with your roommate. And remember, even with Ted and Marshall, they didn’t like each other right away. A close friendship takes time so don’t panic if you don’t find an instant bff.