This article is written by a student writer from the Her Campus at Kenyon chapter.
[Note from the Editors: This article is part of the new HCK installment called “To My Younger Self” that hopes to provide the HCK reader community with some pieces of advice from the older generations by having each staff member conduct interviews with the people they find to be most inspiring. The series will focus on the words of wisdom of influential individuals that we, as Kenyon students, interact with and draw inspiration from each day, from our parents and older siblings to professors and Kenyon alums. The titles will attempt to capture the main theme of that particular person’s experience with the interviews. We hope that you learn as much from their advice as we have in interviewing them!]
No matter where you are in your life, there is always time for introspection. Whether you stay close to home or crossed multiple states and timezones (like I did) to come to college, being away from home is a time for growth and thought. It’s for learning both inside and beyond the classroom. This next installment of HCK’s “Letter to My Younger Self” series comes to you from members of my family.
Question: What is something you wish you had known going into college or some advice you would give yourself as a college freshman?
My brother: “The first thing I wish I knew in the beginning of college is that my major is really not as important as what I wanted to do with my life. Then everything else falls into place by what you’re involved in and who you know. Also, I wish I knew that it was okay to try new things, even if I didn’t end up liking it in the end, because at least I know what the experience was like.”
My grandma: “Do not let yourself get behind.”
My mom: “Something I wish I had known going into college: I feel like I was pretty prepared for college life, I knew how to do laundry and balance my checkbook and eat regularly (our meal plan only gave you 2 meals per day in the cafeteria). I don’t remember a huge adjustment or angst. I do remember seeing a couple of high school friends during spring semester freshman year and thinking that because they had stuck together so much they hadn’t changed much but I felt like I had grown so much beyond high school.”
My dad: “I’d say the same advice I got: No matter how much you want to go home, stay on campus!”
As a freshman, I see what my family is advising. While I haven’t been yearning to go home or struggling to be adventurous, I’ve made my fair share of mistakes already, taking on too much all at once in my first semester of college. It’s all an adjustment. I’m learning now and that isn’t going to stop for a long while down the road. As my brother said, it’s about who you know and what you’re involved in. I like my choices. I hope you like yours.