The First Time I Felt Like an Adult in College

For some of us, it’s when we turn 18 and can buy cigarettes or when we turn 21 and can finally drink. For others, it’s a defining moment when we realize that we’re on our own and that’s life.

The first time I felt like an adult was when I had to put my cat to sleep. I was out here in Kalamazoo and my parents were back in Detroit. This cat had been mine for 8 years and now it was my responsibility to put him down by myself. Up until that point, my parents had done it. I was on my own.

Since then certain moments make me realize that I’m just getting older and more independent and it’s not just those stack of bills on my desk but the grocery shopping, the motivating myself and dealing with things that before your parents might have helped you out with.

Lauren Levitt, a senior at Western Michigan majoring in occupational therapy, said her first noticeable moment of being an adult was her junior year.

“When I moved to my apartment and I was on my own, was the first moment I felt like an adult. Before that, I was 19 and living in the dorms and didn’t feel like I was really an adult. I was still dependent on my parents,” Levitt said.

Jennalee Kaiser, also a senior at WMU and majoring in psychology, believes it was when she moved into her house.

“I would have to say my junior year. I lived in a house and heating it was a issue, living with four other girls was an issue, keeping it clean was an issue and it just made me realize this is what adulthood is. It only intensified this year with me living with just one roommate,” said Kaiser.

As we get older, we gain more independence, friends move away, more and more bills come each month and we graduate college and find jobs. Staying close with the people we meet in college is difficult and sometimes disappointing when it doesn’t work out but that’s part of growing up.

“It’s definitely a reality check and growing up makes you find yourself,” Kaiser said.