A Quick Transition

Transitioning into college seems to be on a lot of people’s minds, even parents and friends around this time of year. Why is it one of student’s biggest fears? Why does it seem like an overwhelming and stressful task? College indeed is a major step to take in life and you have to decide if it is right for you or not. It takes you to a brand new place with so many new and exciting things to try that sometimes you just do not know where to begin. It takes you out of your daily routine, tradition, and comfort zone. You have the ability to start fresh and be who you want to be and not worry about what happened in the past. You no longer have anyone telling you what to do and your parents are not watching your every move. It is a time to make new friendships and discover who you truly are.


College is a totally different atmosphere and is not like high school at all. I believe the whole transition just takes time. It is not impossible you just have to live and learn. You have to get use to being self-motivated, independent, and organized. Organization is the key to being successful in your first couple of weeks especially. Professors and teaching assistants all give you information that you must retain and certain dates and times when everything is due. I would suggest keeping a planner or schedule so you can write everything down because it would be impossible to remember everything. Another adjustment would be your classroom settings and having huge lectures that are filled with 400 people. This is very overwhelming at first and you have to adjust. Some of my classes I will never even meet my professor and receive one on one attention.


Some words of advice would be to not give up and take things step by step. Everything at first may seem overwhelming but when you break everything down you will realize it is not that hard. Make sure you do not procrastinate and get all your assignments and papers done as soon as possible. You will then end up having more time to relax, kick back, and hang out with your new friends. Also, do not live in your dorm room, get out and introduce yourself to new people; everyone is in the same position that you are. You can also join extracurricular activities such as clubs and teams to socialize and stay active. The only way to conquer this transition is through experience and not giving up.