You’re finally an upper classman and there’s nothing but possibilities ahead of you. You’ve found your group of friends and adjusted to the whole college lifestyle. Right? Not exactly. Here’s what nobody told me about what to expect my junior year…
1. Your classes will triple in toughness
This is the year you’re finally getting into the core classes for your major. Chances are you love the material, but the workload is definitely a slap in the face. Two exams, three papers, and online readings all due within three days? Love it!
2. Your sleep schedule will change every week
From internship obligations to late nights out with your friends, your weekly tasks are never consistent. You’ll have those weeks where you try to get to bed early but in the end you’ll accept “sleep deprived” as your new state of being.
3. Free time doesn’t exist
“I’m busy” becomes your go-to response when people ask how you’re doing. You’ll be longing for your freshman year days when you thought one exam a week was tough. Between balancing your social life, school, work, and an internship there’s little wiggle room but you manage to find a way to make it all work.
4. Your bank account will hit an all time low
You’ll be asking yourself every week where all of your money went. Food? Coffee? Drinks? Yes, yes, and hell yes. You’ll somehow never completely run out though, and for that you should be proud.
5. You still can’t escape group projects
I get it, group projects can sometimes be helpful for teaching real dynamics in the workforce, but c’mon…can we just be done with them already? Please?
6. The cafe food isn’t cutting it anymore
You’ve always found a way to tolerate the food at school. Salad bar once in awhile, grab a sandwich for lunch, and hey, comforts is actually yummy today! But you’ve finally come to the point where the baked potato bar and stir fry aren’t as appealing. This is the part where you go out to eat and spend more money you don’t have – yay!
7. Your alcohol tolerance will be unbeatable
If you’re one of the lucky ones, you turned 21 this year. Hello bar scene and goodbye paycheck. Shots barely phase you anymore and beer has become your water. Your abs are slowly disappearing, you say? You can thank your high tolerance for making you drink more. Cheers!
8. Dating is still a roller coaster
You finally gave into the guy you met at the bar who was super persistent. The dates have been great; he’s had you meet all of his friends; he tells you he’s really into you these past months, and then poof: it magically fizzles out. I’m sorry, am I missing something? Timing is hard to get right in college and that’s when you have to make the decision to enjoy whatever comes your way while it lasts.
9. You’re comfortable with who you are
You look back at pictures from freshman year and realize just how much you’ve changed. You’ve grown, experienced a variety of new things, and opened yourself up to new people. You’re one step closer to becoming the person you want to be, and better yet, you’re proud of that person.
10. In the end, you will love every moment of it all
Cheers to the ones who struggled to survive their junior year but made it out with some dignity and irreplaceable memories. As long as you can look back and smile, I’d say you did it right.