My Life In College

Living alone, away from home is a challenge millions of students have to undergo each year across the globe. It is like starting kindergarten again. You are entering a new place, with new people, starting a new phase of your life. After being separated form your parents, some may cry, others will run with joy at the taste of independence. However, as hard as it may be for some to admit it, they will miss their family and previous way of living. This is why finding the right college is so important to students. They have to feel comfortable in the new environment.

Do you believe that college is for everyone? The article “Is College for Everyone” was written by Pharinet. It is located on the website AssociatedContent.com. Pharinet states her opinion that college is not for everyone. She explains the challenges of receiving a higher education. Now days individuals are expected to receive an education beyond high school. People believe you have to attend college to earn a degree for a brighter and successful future. Pharinet suggest, “Higher education is not the key to happiness and success for everyone.” Reasons for attending college differ depending on the person. Some people find college to be a little out of their price

People say once you graduate college to prepare yourself for the real world ahead of you. Going to college was the real world I was eager to experience after high school. The ability to be more independent and give the courage I already have to others surrounded around me. Attending Montclair State University has helped me recognize both my strengths and weaknesses throughout my college experience. Without those setbacks, I wouldn’t have been able to learn different approaches in order to be successful. These top ten lessons focused on preparation skills, communication, and passion.

During my first week as a freshman in college, I was still wondering if I had made the right choice for myself. Intrigued if the major I had chosen was right for me, I decided to attend a workshop strictly for product design students. I wanted to meet people in my major and also get a taste of what I had gotten myself into. On my way to the event, I ran into a girl with short curly hair that seemed lost and looking for a specific classroom. I asked her if she was a freshman and, relieved, she replied that she was, wondering if it was my first time in that maze of a building too. The URBN Center is the building where all the design classes are, and accordingly, it has an intricate system of half floors that is eye-pleasing yet confusing to get around.

For many, college is a time of self-discovery. It is a time where many find their calling in life, their spouse, their passion, or their student debt. Some may go so far as to call it the best time of their lives. While there is potential for me to eventually look back on my time at the University of Arizona with similar fondness, for now, I have more pressing issues than finding my soulmate, like finding my next classroom along with many other stressful situations. So far in my limited college experience, the major stressors in my life are religion, academics, and social interactions; however, there are several ways I have found to manage these situations.

High School isn’t easy at all and you’re starting at a new school. For Me it was very hard. I barely knew anyone at the school, so my whole 9th grade year I was to myself. I was the very quiet girl that sat in the back and people probably thought I was weird. But, I didn’t Know anyone. Yes, My sister was a Senior and We had like one class together but, other than that I didn’t talk to anyone really. I tried my best to get to know different people and try to step out my box but it was sooo hard. I didn’t know anyone. There was a lot of mean people in High School, High school is very cruel and horrible and I hate high school. I knew before I started it was going to be very hard I thought it was going to be simple and fun. It wasn’t neither of those to be honest.

Years back when I first began college I spent about 2 years pointlessly wandering through classes I didn't want to attend to please my parents. To me at the time there was no purpose for college in my life, because I had no idea what I was doing. I only felt like I was running in circles and ruining my own reputation when it came to my teachers, grades, and GPA. I couldn't find a single reason why I needed to be in college, and I eventually decided to take a break from college to figure myself out. Now that I have had a break and took time to find out what I want to do and what I need to do, I can think of plenty of reason why I am in college. Although there is, in fact, many ways to get through life without college, I have began my journey in college once again because I want to become a elementary school teacher, educationally stimulate my brain, and to be able to afford a good life in the future.

“Accept the challenges so that you can feel the exhilaration of victory,” a quote by George S. Patton, quite accurately epitomizes the experience of my first year at university. After being offered the Rogers scholarship, I knew that I would have to work extremely hard to make the sponsors and the Canadian Lyford Cay Foundation proud. Knowing this, I accepted the task. With taking on this challenge came many difficulties, triumphs, personal highlights, and, eventually, goals for my second year.

This semester was a journey I was not expecting. It turned out to be completely different from what I imagined, and I still can't decide if it turned out better or worse than I expected. At the beginning of the semester I was a constantly anxious and angry person, which happens to me every time after a long break. Coming to Capstone class I didn't know what to expect and how it will be connected to the field I am studying in. I am still confused about what exactly I learned in this class, but I will be describing everything I learned this semester from my outside of classroom commitments. In the middle of the semester I received a job offer with a City of Bridgeport. It was a 3-month finance internship with the office of Small and Minority Businesses. My classes were always my main priorities, however, once I accepted the offer, I knew that I'm not only representing myself, but my employer is judging the whole school based on my performance. This led me to the first change I've made this semester: change of priorities. This is important if I want to live a balanced and fulfilling life. Many people are successful in their career but don't have good relationships with their family because of wrong priorities. They put things like money and reputation above their relationships. And I used to do that a lot. My classes, work, and other commitments were always above any social interactions, whether it was family or friends. Yet, I realized that I do not fill accomplished if I

Growing up, I never saw myself as one of those people who graduate high school and then off to a four-year college they went. It was hard enough just to imagine attempting, let alone succeeding, at a two-year college. Even though, I had wondered what it might have been like to experience dorm life at a college in another town, even state. But, for me, after high school graduation, I was enrolled at the Community College.

I expect this year to be difficult. I come from a small town and UNCC is huge in comparison, and not just in terms of population. The space between my dorm in Witherspoon and the Student Union is about the length of my hometown’s main street. To say I am experiencing culture shock is an understatement. I want this year to be fun, be enjoyable, but I know it is going to be hard, especially during the first semester. There is a steep learning curve to even being here, not even considering classes, just being here, just getting here, it has been and will continue to be a challenge. I have never been away from home for more than two weeks at a time and this past Friday marked my first two weeks here. I have never felt more homesick. My family is trying to help, but I am a first-generation college student and we are all in the dark as to how I am supposed to scale this mountain. I am only here because of the generosity of others and hours of hard work. I spent middle school and high school with my nose pressed into books, understanding that I would never be talented enough for an athletic scholarship. In my spare time I worked, worked because my family did not have enough money to send me anywhere. I earned scholarships and I got here and I knew that college was going to be hard academically, and that I would have to work, but even before the real work has begun I have been slapped in the face by something much worse, loneliness.

Now to recount my college chapter I would have to say that it didn’t end so successfully. I began as a freshman at the University of Washington-Bothell (UWB) campus. There I followed the general path all freshmen went through; completing their prerequisites and adjusting to college life. I was like many students, still unsure of what I wanted to pursue in college but a key factor of college is exploration. However, as the year went by I slowly started to notice that the vision I had of attending this college was not what I expected. I felt that the courses laid out to freshman weren’t beneficial as they combined the essential disciplines of say math, history, English, and science into one class they like to call ‘Discovery Core’. Of course, you are selected to choose a pre-major of your choice where you would be taking the classes you’ll need to complete the set of requirements for that major. At the time I was thinking about going into the STEM field as it was something I enjoyed doing during high school. I took the beginning series of Computer Science and going into the class it wasn’t a problem it was the end of the quarter that caught me off guard; the finals.

I must admit that the thought of going off to college for the first time, made me a little bit nervous. Would my roommate and I get along, would I make new friends, would I find my way around campus, get to the right classrooms, and grades? Some of my most memorable moments have been meeting my roommate and making new friends. Not only have I met a number of new friends in the dorm, but also in my classes. Together, my new friends and I were soon able to find our way around campus and to the classrooms. College life has been such a great experience, because of all of the new friends that I have made, along with the independence it has created in me.

My first semester of college taught me the importance of balance. When I got to college, I thought life would be easy, especially when I learned that all classes were not mandatory. After the first day of classes, I had made the resolution to be relentless about my schoolwork and remain focused. However, I did not realize how many diversions there were in college. Every other weekend there was a party or even going on. At first, I remained diligent about my school work. I stayed in my room and did all of my readings and homework early so that I did not forget to do it. After a while, however, I began to envy my friends who had stories about how much fun they had at the parties.

During my college days it was standard practice of a group of us guys after we dropped our dates off at the dormitory around curfew to go to an all-night diner up the hill from the campus. We would push several tables together and chat until quite late (or early depending on hour you want to define it).