I wish I had a letter like this, having an upper class-man tell me the things I should do to make my freshman year a somewhat success, whether you have success in academics, friendships, or in your social life. So, now I give you that letter I really wanted to have.
When I first got to college, my life was marching band, if you were in the marching band it seems like a great thing to continue, and it is. However, if you're like me and you got injured during high school marching band your career may be short-lived, and that's okay. I hurt my knee during my junior year in high school and it forever changed how I marched in high school especially in college where a high step is incorporated. If you have to step down from a sport or band or theater due to an injury that's totally okay, there is nothing wrong with that and never let anyone tell you that you quit, because you didn't, you put yourself first and that's the best thing you can do.
When I had to step out of marching band I had no friends besides the friends I had made in the band, I had to cling to my roommate and I had gained some really great friends, and while I made some mistakes because I still had some of my high school mentality (which is okay too, just make sure you realize you do need to mature soon!) and apologized, that doesn't always mean they will accept it and that's okay too. Now, I know what to look for in friends, and I have some of my best friends now, some I met freshman year by keeping my door open and through my roommate, and some I met through sophomore year in a Spanish class. Keep your door open during move in, you will meet people who could ultimately be your bridesmaids at your wedding and be your lifelong friends.
Every year there is Campus Fest, countless organizations giving away free stuff so you will join their organization, go to Campus Fest with your new friends, or even a random person from one of your classes that you sit next to, I went and tried out for club lacrosse, a sport I did in high school, but my skills were rusty and my knee wasn't up for the job anymore, and I didn't make it, that's okay, because now I have more experiences that I can share about college. I found my sorority and some of the greatest Christian women I've ever come to know. I joined H2O Church on campus and decided to make big strides in my faith, ultimately getting baptized.
GO DOWNTOWN, go dance, go have fun with your friends. Sometimes you go and realize it's not really your scene, or you just really love it and now you go out Thursday-Saturday every week. Go find your groove, be adventurous and take those cute brick wall pictures with your girls for the gram. I went out a little freshman year, and it was almost like pulling teeth sophomore year because I was just a homebody trying to get my work done. Go see what your limit is and have fun dancing to some awesome music.
Now, academics were an interesting change, because in high school you had to pay for a tutor, you had to do your homework at home with your parents hovering (or at least I did). Now in college, you have a free tutoring service at your disposal in the library, go and have someone else re-read your essay, go to the Stats Lab, go to the seventh/eighth floor for the study floors, go find a place on or off campus that you can do your assignments and your reading and feel like you are absorbing what you're reading. Residence halls have lounges that were super comfortable and you can focus on what you're doing because as much as people like to think they're used all the time, they've almost always been empty every time I went to use them.
Do not just stay in your room and hope that a random person is going to bust down your door and say "I saw your door and you're now my friend let's go!" open your door, join an organization on campus, go out, have fun. Find who you are as an adult and not just a high school student. Most importantly, have a great year. Use your resources whenever and however you possibly can.
