We all know there are very high expectations for your freshman year and honestly college in general. They say it's supposed to be the ~best four years of your life~, right? Throughout my freshman year, I had extremely high hopes and ideas of exactly how my first year of college would go. However, things don't always go as planned and college was a lot more different than I expected. I'm writing this to all of the freshmen to remind them that it only gets better and that if they have any doubts, to just hold on tight and get ready for the craziest, but best, time of your life.
First and foremost, one of the most anticipated things about getting ready for your first year of college is living in a dorm. That is pretty much one of the most ~college~ things you will get to experience. My summer months of dorm anticipation before my freshman year came with lots of Pinterest inspiration pins and Home Goods isle-wandering making sure my roommate and I had the best room ever. I will admit, I got lucky when it came to dorm living. I loved my roommate, my room and my residence hall and had an amazing time. However, as fun of a time it is, sometimes it can get pretty hard. Whether you are living with a random or your best friend, it's difficult constantly being with someone in such a small space. If you are like me and need your occasional alone time, there will be some adjusting that needs to happen to avoid going crazy. However, just buckle up and take it all in and know this will be (hopefully) you're only time to share a shoe box with someone. (To my freshman roomie Katy: you were awesome and I love you).
It's easy to miss home, your family and even your pets during your first year away from it all. I am 100 percent a homebody and am super close to my family and my town. Because of that, I found myself driving to and from home multiple times a month. I'm not going to lie, I got a lot of harsh reactions to this. A lot of my friends would give me a hard time when I decided to miss out on the weekend to drive back to Wilmington. Even my family would encourage me to stay put. Now, I completely understand where everyone was coming from, but I will still stand by my word that you should do whatever you need to make you happy. If that means you need to spend some time at home, then that's what you should do. Only you know you and what you need to do to adjust. Everyone is different. If you share feelings will get better though, I promise.
Another thing I wish I could go back in time to tell myself is that it is A-Okay to not know what you want to do in school yet. It's only your first year. You are still trying to figure this whole thing out. Now I know it is definitely a little disheartening when the person you sit next to in English 101 has had their whole entire school and career path planned out since they were in high school, but I promise that from you. Go to major fairs, do some research, and choose something you are actually interested in, not just something that is expected from you.
Last but not least, enjoy yourself! I know everyone says it, but I can say first-hand freshman year is over in a blink of an eye. Of course, you should focus on school, but hang out with your friends, go to football games, go to parties, do college things, and just have fun!
These things may not apply to everyone, but I hope I can relate to some. To all the freshman reading this, have an amazing rest of the year and cheers to all the incredible things to come.
