Feature Image: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uCVlJg5z3dc
Now that I have one year of college under my belt, I feel that it’s my duty (as a somewhat- not really upperclassman) to help prepare all the incoming freshman. Prepare them for what you may ask? Well, the cold reality of higher education of course.
Freshman are sooo cute and kinda annoying. They’re bright eyed, bushy tailed and excited about life. Like little baby chicks before they realized that the farm isn’t their happily ever after, but preparation for the real world. Real world really meaning dinner plates.
So here are 6 things I dreamed college would be as a freshman, but ended up with reality instead.
1. Food
Here at the U of A, instead of one main cafeteria with restaurants scattered around, we have many fast food restaurants with one cafeteria… somewhere on campus. Now, I wasn’t expecting a five-star restaurant with Wolfgang Puck behind the stove flipping burgers. But I at least thought there’d be more effort put towards keeping my non-picky taste buds satisfied. Don’t get me wrong I’ve still gained the freshman 15 and probably more, but it’s safe to say you grow tired of the food on campus pretty quickly.
2. The Glow Up
You know how the ugly duckling grew up and became the beautiful graceful swan? Yeah, I thought that was going to happen to me. I thought I was finally going to go from a caterpillar to a beautiful butterfly. Turns out in reality the ugly duckling turns into the fugly duckling. See no one tells you that the stress from school was going to make you break out and stress eat your feelings. Now the only glow in my life is the illuminance of my MacBook screen as I watch Netflix alone on Friday nights in my dorm.
3. Relationship
I like most girls dreamed of coming to college and finding that perfect guy my first year. I thought I’d meet him in one of my lectures, at a party or even in the line at Panda. Pretty naive of me to think that three months during the summer would turn a high school boy into a college man. The only difference between high school guys and freshman/sophomores college guys is that they have a bigger playground to play games. They’re not trying to settle down and the truth is neither should you. I know we girls like to think of the future but you just got here. Live in the moment, college is where you find yourself, make sure you find you before you start looking for the one.
4. Academics
I knew college was going to be difficult academically [and it is] just not in the way I assumed. I didn’t change my major 100x’s and the course load can get hectic but I still find a way to make it through. College is hard in the sense that it’s all on you. More people are going to college, so it’s up to me to stand out and get involved with things that put me above the rest. I’ve done this by getting an internship my freshman year, joining different clubs/organizations and constantly pushing myself to do more. Having a degree isn’t enough anymore what else you got?
5. Homesickness
I never thought I’d be homesick but little did I know that homesickness would hit me like a freight train. When I left for school my mom told me to call her every day. I thought she was being ridiculous, “every day isn’t that a little excessive” I’d ask her. I now call my mom two to three times a day. First semester I’d constantly ask to come home but with Minnesota being 1,646 miles away and a plane ticket costing around $500, going home on a regular was not an option. I missed my family, home cooked meals and my soft fluffy bed. Good thing I brought my buddy Cotton with me to remind me of home.
6. Safety
All jokes aside it’s become more prevalent that college campuses aren’t as safe as we think. I know going into my first year I got the talk from my parents to stay safe and watch who I hang out with, which I did. I made amazing friends who I trusted. But that’s not always the case and I want you incoming freshman to keep that in mind. Really take care of yourselves when your; out on the weekends, walking home late from the library or just in your dorm. Be mindful of your surroundings and once again stay safe.
Now these tips aren’t to frighten or discourage you. Everyones college experience is different and what you make of it is up to you. College may be stressful, hard and scary but it’s also fun, adventurous and well worth it. The experiences, memories and friendships you make will come in handy in the real world. Or at minimum be great stories to tell the grandkids. So spread your wings baby chick and fly. Just kidding you’re a domesticated chicken you can’t fly.
Fashionable Impact 