With a less than a month left of classes, it’s hard to believe that my freshman year is coming to a close. These past few months have been nothing sort of unexpected and unpredictable. I hate to admit it, but college was nothing like I expected it to be. The stories you hear, the movies you watch, the photos you see… they’re not even close to the stereotypes associated with your college experience. But that’s totally okay because in some ways…it’s better:
Yes, you’re definitely broke, but you do not survive off of ramen and instant mac and cheese for nourishment. The 500 containers of each that you purchased at Costco last minute before you moved into your dorm were probably not needed. You can most likely count on your hands how many times you’ve dived into the stash.
You do not have hours upon hours upon hours of homework each night that you don’t understand and are on the verge of tears trying to complete. It CAN easily happen though. One of the most important skills you’ll learn right off the bat is time management. If you get off course, you’ll be an overwhelmed mess and fall right into that stereotype. If you have a good system down, you’ll maybe spend an hour per night. Know your limits.
The movies, the books, the stories passed down from generation to generation tell you NOTHING about needing to have your student ID on you 24/7. This is not an exaggeration. It’s needed for food, laundry, to get into different buildings, sometimes even to get into the bathroom. It’ll never be farther than two feet from you at all times. Yes, you will try to use it to pay for food at somewhere like Panera Bread once or twice. No judgement.
Dormitories are not cute. At all. They are stark, gross, awkward and the lighting sucks. The stereotypes aren’t lying when they say you have to make your dorm your own space. If you don’t fill up the walls and add some of your own flair to it, you’ll go insane. Also, pet peeves you never knew existed with come to the surface almost instantly upon arrival. You are LIVING within feet of complete strangers. Someone is bound to do something that will make your blood boil.
The one thing the movies, books, photos, random people on the street even aren’t lying about is that college is not high school. College is a complete 180 from high school. It is 1000% better. After four more than likely miserable years, you will finally be able to spread your wings and fly. Finally you will be able to be yourself, meet new people and experience new things. Have patience; the best is yet to come.