Are you a smart and savvy pre-collegiette looking for answers to some of your most personal questions about college? You know, the ones about boys, classes, roommates and parties that your school’s guidance office can’t help you with? Jen is here to answer those questions! Whatever your concern, she’ll do her best to help you so you can make sure you don’t just survive college, but rock it!
What was the scariest thing about your first year in college? –Emily
Emily,
Quite honestly, I don’t remember anything truly scary about my first year in college. Sure, there are plenty of little things that you don’t know about and need to learn, like how to live with a bunch of girls all the time and how to handle all of your coursework, but you get the hang of everything in due time!
I think one of my top fears before I started college was how difficult the coursework was going to be. I did really well in high school, graduating in the top percentage of my class and rocking that fab golden sash at graduation that the National Honor Society gave me, but I was nervous that college was going to be a whole new ball game. I expected to go crazy due to the workload and intensity. Basically, I thought the work was going to be as difficult as figuring out how to contour as well as Kim Kardashian.
Even though it was definitely challenging, the work wasn’t anything that was too far out of my league. You definitely need to study more than in high school and learn how to manage your time to get everything done efficiently, but at the end of the day, it’s not that big of a deal. The college that accepted you knows what you’re capable of and wouldn’t have accepted you if they didn’t think you’d excel there. The best advice I can give you is to just be patient with yourself, and everything will fall into place. To be proactive about making your academics a priority, try to seek out help from a peer tutor if you find yourself struggling with a subject. It also helps to build a strong relationship with your academic adviser, who has been in your shoes and will be able to give you beneficial advice.
Another common fear that I didn’t have but I knew lots of girls on my floor had was how to survive being away from home. This can definitely be intimidating if you have awesome relationships with your parents or you’re tight with your hometown crew, so it totally makes sense that leaving all of that can be beyond your comfort zone. Again, this is something that is relatively easy to fix, since we have so much amazing technology to help us stay in touch with loved ones. Try scheduling weekly FaceTime chats with friends and family if you’re going to school far from home. If you live reasonably close to campus, go home for a weekend every month or every other month. Going to college doesn’t mean losing your high school self and those who were part of that time in your life; it’s about growing and learning while meeting new friends, still staying in touch with your true-blue crew all the while.
That said, be as fearless as you possibly can. You may have some pre-orientation anxieties (we all do!), but don’t let fear get in your way of an unforgettable first year at college. It’s a time you’ll never forget, and it leaves plenty of room for mistakes and new adventures, so embrace every minute of it!