Like many people going into university this year, I didn’t quite know what to expect. I had heard from parents and teachers countless times that it would be a huge change from high school: there would be significantly more work and the intimate setting of having smaller class sizes and closer connections with teachers would be gone. Reflecting on that now, I wouldn’t say it’s been too bad. Although it’s been a huge adjustment period for me, I’d like to share what I’ve noticed and what’s been helping me become more adjusted and comfortable on campus.
- Learning my way around
When I first stepped foot on campus, I looked around at all the towering buildings looming over me and the sprawl of paths in front of me all leading to the different buildings. Compared to my high school building, I’d say that the campus was probably 10-15 times bigger — no exaggeration. Needless to say, that first step on campus was daunting and I quickly had to acquaint myself with the maps around campus, which at times only led to more confusion. Luckily, I had a tool at my disposal: the Google Maps navigation app on my phone quickly became my best friend and helped me find all of my classes in the nick of time.
- The workload
Over the months leading up to university, I heard lots of stories from university students and family members alike about how busy and challenging university is. They placed a lot of emphasis on the fact that it would be a huge adjustment from high school. I honestly didn’t know what to expect. However, after reading over my syllabi and understanding all my exams, assignments and projects, I began to get a good sense of what my first year was going to look like. While the syllabi and the idea of having to complete all of these assignments was intimidating at first, beginning to work on these projects ahead of time really helped put things into perspective for me.
- Professors
The last big adjustment was professors. I had also been told by several people in my life that professors enjoyed intimidating their students and could be difficult to deal with at times. People told me that they would be nothing like high school teachers who, for the most part, were incredibly supportive to me throughout high school. Maybe I just lucked out with professors, but I have found so far that they have all been very kind people. It has been a huge adjustment for me to not have a professor know my name (I mean , I am in classes of over 200 people), but all in all they’ve made a good impression.
l must say, I’m still a little overwhelmed with everything, and that’s ok! I’m almost a month into my first term and while there have been a few hurdles, I’ve managed to overcome them. The important thing to remember is that there are thousands of people in the same boat right now — none of us are ever alone! As for adapting to all these new changes, you’ll adjust with time and the changes will only open the door to more fun experiences and adventures!