Sophomore year: the year in which you’ve worn out the excitement that comes with the first year of being at college but you have yet to tap into the excitement that comes with being an upperclassman. You’ve found that you are taking on more responsibilities, whether it is by taking a larger number of classes, taking more difficult classes, or getting more involved outside of the classroom, it becomes pretty easy to get weighted down by the workload.

In case you have not already guessed it, I’m talking about the famed “sophomore slump;” the awkward discomfort that comes with trying to keep afloat with all you do, even though everything just seems to be less fun than it was a freshman.

If your freshman experience was anything like mine, it went by in an instant. Everything was so new and exciting, albeit occasionally stressful; all in all, the year was fun and eye-opening as you experienced having more freedom and responsibilities than ever before.

Upon entering sophomore year, you expected everything to be just as fun and exciting; however, the glow has seemingly dimmed, the sparkle has dulled, nothing seems to live up to just how great it was last year. You no longer get to experience everything for the first time, nor do you have the ability to fumble around in a confused blur without judgment on account of being a freshman. Having spent a year at the school, you no longer have school administrators constantly checking up on you and helping you through everything.

Obviously, these resources are still available to you, but if you’re anything like me, you almost feel as though you should not have to rely on these resources. After all, you’re a sophomore, so you should be more seasoned and knowledgeable about college life.

What’s worse than no longer reaping the benefits of being a freshman is not yet being able to reap the benefits of being an upperclassman. You have yet get into most of your upper-level classes of your major and are often still working to fulfill your general education requirements of classes that aren’t really related to your field of study. Therefore, it is easy for a disconnect of sorts to form between you and your major as you grow increasingly impatient to be more involved with your desired areas of study.

As college life settles into a routine, it is important to find ways to keep things exciting while you bide your time until you can begin to dive full-on into your major. Although it may at times be difficult to find time to add something new to your schedule, finding something new to do can work wonders for getting out of a rut of a routine.

Whether it is trying out a new club or student organization, reaching out to befriend new people, or even just walking around town to explore places that you have yet to see, it is important to give yourself new things to look forward to.

As the stress seems to continue piling on through your slump, try to keep in remind that no matter how severe your sophomore slump, it will pass. As you continue with your college education, you will be able to continue finding new things to get excited about and new things to experience for the first time; just continue working toward your end goal in your education and finding new ways to give yourself something to look forward to in your routine.