How To Ease Your Way Into Freshman Year

From the moment we step into high school, we initiate the fateful countdown until we can step right out and into the promising world of College. College is the ultimate goal to get you through long tedious days within the four walls and eight hour constrictions of a high school. It is the light at the end of the troublesome tunnel of lunchroom drama, bad teachers, and obnoxious children… So you’d think.

As a college sophomore myself, reality has recently struck yet again. Hard. Now don’t be discouraged; it is true that they say about college being freeing and completely different than being in high school. But college also entails new responsibilities, harder coursework, and greater expectations from society (and your paying parents) to be a more involved and aware member of your community.

Now I have devised a few ways in which one can ease into the college process, or just improve their college experience once it has begun (since we’re more than halfway done with Fall semester) – Better late than never!

1. Organization

The most overwhelming part of college is the fact that your space is usually constricted to one room, rather than an entire house. Whether you live in a dorm or in an apartment with other roommates, your personal belongings are all in the confines of your room and can take over if you don’t have a good organization system.

*An organizational tip that I have found to be very helpful is tackling big organizational projects, little by little. Setting tiny goals throughout the week will help you slowly but surely get everything in order.

2. Studying

If you’re anything like me, you have never really studied a day in your life before college. Sure you’ve memorized some vocabulary words, and read a few chapters the day before a quiz but the thought of spending hours going over coursework without even the promise of a grade is completely foreign. Studying is essential to college success, and the sooner you realize this, the better!

*There are a few study tips that I have found to be really helpful in keeping me focused on my textbooks rather than my phone; Be an active studier! Gather your favorite colored markers and highlighters and get creative with your notes. Having the constant change of writing utensils forces you to be more attentive to your work.

*Also, to keep you from zoning out, study in 45-minute intervals, with 15 minute breaks in between. This way, you are not overwhelmed with information and you can also keep tabs on the latest tweets and blog posts!

3. Be Healthy!

The freshman fifteen are real, and as the years pass the pounds just keep coming! That is why it is essential to maintain a healthy diet and balance a good work out routine to help alleviate stress and keep those pesky pounds away.

*Joining group classes at your school’s gym is an ideal way to ease into the fitness world. Being among others is highly motivating and as you make friends that share your same physical goals, you meet people who help keep you on top of your workouts!

4. Finding yourself

Though this may seem cliche, college is the time to see what role you are meant to serve in the world. This is why it is imperative that you don’t lose sight of the real reason why you packed up your life and moved away from home and into this new life. Being in college will teach you a lot about yourself, especially if you go away and are surrounded by people who don’t know you, and allow you to be whoever you want to be. It is important that this new persona that you are devising is authentic, honest and someone your parents and loved ones would be proud of.

*A tip for this has yet to be discovered. But opening up to new experiences and communicating with new people who share different perspectives is a way I know I have evolved as an individual, maybe this will serve you all as well.

These are just four key points I have realized in the past couple of months that have proved to be crucial in facilitating my time in College. I’m not going to lie, I got off to a pretty rough start, adulthood is no easy feat; but my newfound independence is something I work on everyday to secure a brighter future for myself, and to make those who care about me proud.