Your first semester is winding down. It's down to the wire, and by that I mean it's finals week. It's just you, a plethora of review material, copious amounts of caffeine and a cubicle at "Club Lib." The amount of stress, pressure and desperation you feel is through the roof. Hell, for all you know you could've already begun to prematurely gray with how much anxiety you feel. You're determined to get an A, or feel like you have to. I'm here to tell you that, while an A is nice and obviously the end goal in any class, it's okay if you don't achieve that. Why? It's pretty simple actually, because it is your first time around this crazy thing called college.

Now, I am in no way saying that it is okay to never go to class/never try. Actually, this article is for those first time college kids who have been trying, but may not be getting the results they hoped for or expected. Believe me, I get it. I'm in that same boat. This semester, but most especially these past several weeks, I've been putting myself through the ringer trying to get that 4.0 in my classes. Sadly, I kept falling short, and sometimes by a lot (curse you, math class). This is beyond frustrating and disheartening. The way I was raised by my parents was to strive for perfection, and that I can achieve great results if I put in the work. Well, despite putting in the work and striving for perfection, the results aren't really showing the way one would expect. And I couldn't, can't, help but feel like a failure. I've buckled down, put in the time, energy and work, but the 4.0 is still an ever elusive creature. I won't sugarcoat it; it's one of the worst feelings in the world. But I came to a realization as I shut my books that I had my head in from 4:30 in the afternoon until 2:30 in the morning: I'm not a failure, I'm just learning. 

Statistically speaking, the first semester of college is the weakest semester. And it's because most students are adjusting and learning. We've only been here for about three months, and each month got harder and harder for most classes. Most likely, prior schooling didn't teach you the best study habits, either. Some subjects you could probably get a fairly decent grade without cracking a book, or maybe looking over it five minutes before class. As most of my fellow freshman have probably learned by this point, that's definitely not how college works. College is a whole different animal, filled with all-nighters, cheap coffee and screaming into pillows (or just screaming, if that's your prerogative; you do you) because you feel so overwhelmed. And we have every right to be overwhelmed. We weren't mentally or physically prepared for this thanks to that easy place called high school, which we can all find ourselves longing for in the midst of our mental breakdowns. Overall, we're on a learning curve that is slowly on the up and up, but if it doesn't get where we need it to be by the time this semester comes to a close, it isn't the end of the world. By the time next semester inevitably is upon us and responsibilities and obligations rear their ugly head once more, we'll now know what to expect. We'll have struggled our way through a semester and a first set of finals, had a month for our scars to heal and be ready for battle come spring. 

So whether you end up with a 2.5, a 3.0 or BY SOME MIRACLE get that 4.0 (I will forever be jealous of you, whoever you first semester four-pointers are), it's okay. You will have learned, grown and will now know what to expect in the semesters to come. Worse comes to worst, you've got seven or more semesters left to up that GPA. Be proud of yourself that you made it through and that you gave it your all. Now get some sleep for the love of God, this isn't "The Walking Dead."