Hello Loves,
As I am coming up to my last few semesters at college, I have been reflecting back on my past college years. I had a meeting with my academic advisor this past week, and she was trying to help me graduate on time. After our meeting, I decided that I had to accept that I would be a 5th year senior.
This realization made me think about what I wish someone would have told me before going to college. For length sake, here's the top 4 things:
You're better off having a set plan in high school before coming to college.
In high school, I had not decided what I wanted to do, and I picked a possible major at random. Luckily, that same major is what I will graduate with next Fall, but that doesn't ring true for everybody.
You won't graduate in 4 years if you don't take at least 15 credits a semester.
I decided to ease myself into college with 12 credits, and for my major, that just wasn't enough. I also took a math class, which was completely pointless because I tested out of math, so I shouldn't have taken it in the first place. However, my advisor told me it was still a good idea to take.
You need to take it seriously when people say that you need to be responsible for yourself.
I always thought of myself as a relatively responsible person, but after my first semester of college I realized that I was not as responsible as I thought. I went from being an A student from elementary school to high school to then getting a 2.7 GPA in my first semester of college. That report made me realize that my routine school habits wouldn't fly in college. I have been working to get that up ever since.
You will be switching between having a stellar social life, getting phenomenal grades, and having to get a job.
This took me longer than a year. I spent my first year having a great social life and seeing friends all the time because I didn't have a job, but not doing the best in class. Then, I spent my second year getting good grades and having no social life because I got a job. My third year, I had a pretty good balance between having a social life and getting good grades, but I didn't have a good job. Thankfully, this semester has been an almost perfect balance between the three. It is possible people!
Personally, I think these tips would have helped me shape myself more effectively for college. What do you wish someone would have told you before going to college?
XOXO Courtney
*All pictures are not my own, but screenshotted from multiple sources*