So you’ve made it through high school alive and well, congrats. Now it is time to move on — college is an experience that is quite different from high school. You’re looked at differently now. Things have changed and in order to differentiate you, the UP reader, from the rest of the wide-eyed, wet-behind-the-ears freshmen, here are a few points to ponder while you await your first day at FAU.
Living conditions have changed. You’re no longer a prisoner of your parents, now you’re out from under their protective wings and expected to do things for yourself. As with many things in college nothing will get done for you — its up to your own initiative to accomplish your daily tasks. That means no more having mommy do your laundry, and forget about cookies and milk waiting for you when you get home.
Another thing about college is you will be hard-pressed to find all those cliques that chocked the halls of most high schools. While there are cliques, they aren’t as prominent. This means that you’re not going to walk around campus and see a group of people dressed just like you that you can just up and hang with. Here no one cares. If you want to meet folks and get involved, join some of the many clubs and organization on campus. Just don’t expect to walk in and make instant friends, like everything else in college you have to work for it.
Just like everything else, your education is your own problem. While you don’t have to come to classes here, it’s in your best interest to do so. There’s no penalty for tardiness except failure, as one professor told me. Getting to class, studying, managing to find the time to sleep, are all up to you.
Classes are not as helpful either. Professors are giving you information and it’s your job to decode it and use it on the tests. If you want or need help you have to go to them. There is also little time for personal assistance with many professors. They have several classes and dozens of students and if you don’t understand them they feel it’s your problem, which it is.
All in all college is a steppingstone to the harsh realities of the world. It may seem daunting at first but soon it becomes as familiar as high school was. The most important thing to remember is that everything is up to you now. You have to become what your parents always told you to be: a responsible adult. Try not to let their “I told you so’s” get you down.
