Dear seniors,

I'm going to start this off by giving you the reassurance, that you will get into college. I know exactly what you're going through right now. You have your top schools all lined up, you're filling out applications on the Common App, and you're praying that you get in, and I'm here to tell you that you will. But when I say you will get in I don't mean you have a guaranteed acceptance to your top school, because let's be real no matter how good anyone's grades are you're never guaranteed an acceptance. I'm here to tell you that wherever you end up going might not be where you expected.

My senior year I applied to seven schools, six of which I had been eyeing since my sophomore year.

The seventh school was a spur of the moment decision, an application I filled out THE DAY BEFORE it was due. And that seventh school ended up being the place for me. Living in New Jersey my whole life I always heard about Rutgers, it was a humungous school with a bus system and a not so great football team. I had always heard about it but never visited or made an effort to learn more. I applied last minute in a fit of anxiety over finding one last safety school. It was until I got my acceptance back that it really dawned on me, I could go to Rutgers. I immediately planned a visit and fell in love. I was shocked at how quickly I could fall in love with a school and immediately knew that this would be the place for me. It's October of my freshman year and the two months I've been here have just shown me how much my school has to offer and how much fun the next four years will be.

It's also so important to remember don't rush it. I totally understand how excited you are to grow up and move out and start a new chapter and just do college, but I'm telling you to savor the next couple of months because it all goes by way too quickly. In just ten short months you're going to be undergoing the biggest change ever. For me the transition was difficult, I was giving up everything I knew and learned to love over the past 18 years and moving on to a new, unknown, and potentially scary chapter of my life. It's totally normal to feel stressed and overwhelmed because it is stressful. So enjoy the next couple of months and savor every last experience, because it all goes by way to quick.

Sincerely,

A freshman in college