It feels like yesterday that I was graduating from high school. I remember all the senior sendoff events, all the graduation parties we meticulously planned, and all the bittersweet memories my high school shared before we started a new chapter in our lives — college. And today, almost a year later, I am now getting ready to finish off my freshman year, a year that has been full of special memories, and even more valuable lessons. Now, as we head into the summer and get ready for a new class of freshmen, I wanted to reflect on everything I learned, to hopefully pass these lessons down to those that come after me.
My first week of freshman was amazing. I was excited to finally start a life as a college student on a campus I loved so much. I moved into the dorms, met so many new people, and started classes for a subject I was passionate about. But after the first few weeks or so, I began to feel the stress that comes with being in college. Even though I was a decent student, I found my assignments a lot harder than my high school homework. I spent endless hours trying to understand concepts my classmates understood easily. I studied hard for exams that I barely passed. I felt like I had failed, and I was more frustrated than I had ever been. After a while, I began to reassess my idea of success in college, and ever since then, I have been so much happier. Instead of stressing about my grades, I focused on all the interesting concepts my professors taught me. I realized how grateful I am to just be in college, and all the knowledge I have access to. Having this mindset already made my life so much less stressful, and I found my classes more enjoyable. In other words, failure is always part of the learning process, so it is more than acceptable to struggle. Yet, when we take the time to overcome these challenges, success always feels more rewarding.
Beyond my academics, college also has a big shock factor socially. This was the first time I lived away from home for an entire year, and most of my closest high school friends went to other colleges. At first, this felt freeing, I had a sense of independence to create a new life, learn to live by myself, and find new relationships. College life was exciting, a fresh start from my high school self. As I started to settle in more, however, I realized everything I had taken for granted. Moving away from my family was hard, and making genuine friendships was challenging at times. In the end, college wasn’t the utopia I had always envisioned it to be. It came with its own ups and downs, and my expectations coming in were quite unrealistic. The truth is, college is a gateway to adulthood, which comes with its own challenges. There is no one perfect “college experience”. For some, fresh starts are truly liberating, but for others, it is a difficult transition, which is completely normal. Having high expectations always backfires, because these standards are rarely met, something I am continuing to learn today.
Lastly, I truly began to understand the value of self-care and mental health. In college, it’s so easy to get swept up in the business of everything that goes on around you, whether it’s school, your extracurriculars, and your social calendar. There will always be that one extra homework assignment, an exam to study for, or a social event to attend. Amidst of all this, mental health is even more important. While it is hard for most people to accept this, it is always ok to prioritize your own physical and mental well being when you need to. When I started to spend time with my friends over studying, or doing my best to block out time to visit the gym, I always felt more fulfilled. For most people, college is the first time where they are given the liberty to control most of their schedule, from when they go to sleep, when they eat, or when they go to class. I found that using some of this freedom to take care of yourself is always an investment worth making.
In all, my freshman year was definitely not the experience I had envisioned just a year ago. I found myself failing, succeeding, and growing in ways I never considered. The transition into college is not easy, and will challenge you to overcome some monumental obstacles. With that being said, I would not have traded my freshman year for anything else, because it was a journey truly worth living.