Transitioning Into College

Life is full of decisions, which are both easy and hard. My parents' stories of escaping persecution from a

I started North Park University, a week before everyone else, within a program called COMPASS. This program is to help smooth first generation student’s transition to college and build a strong group of friends to start college on the right path. In COMPASS, I met some of my close friends. We help one another whenever we need help: we have study sessions, emotional support for one another, hang out whenever we just need a little break, and much more. A month into school I was offered a job at my school as a student worker and I gladly accepted it. Since I was living on campus my first year this was an amazing accomplishment for me: I achieved some connections and a wide variety of networking opportunities if ever need them in the future.

Due to the continuing increase of living it’s nearly impossible to be able to live alone. Since the demand of a higher education for better paying jobs is at an all time high trying to juggle a full-time job and returning to college is more than difficult at times. Frank, a full-time employee decided that he’d better himself by returning to college. Never considering that times have changed, he still continued to work and go to school. He stretched himself to the max; he worked late hours and then stayed up doing homework until the early morning only to have to get up and return to class to repeat the long days over. Several weeks passed, he realized that he was never going to be able to get ahead to matter how hard to tried. He was very aware that if he stopped taking classes his chances of being something in the world were even slimmer than if he continued and somehow managed to do both. Frank decided that no matter how tough these next few months were going to be he wasn’t going to let it stop him from meeting his goals.

Socially, religiously, and scholastically, a person’s values are severely challenged as he enters college. A major university has many evil faces that can alter a person’s values if he or she is not careful. Fraternities and their counterpart, sororities, target freshmen mainly because they’re young, easily influenced, and lonesome. Religious organizations try their best to counter the fraternities by gathering these young scholars to spread their word. The University of Georgia itself causes turmoil in these students' beliefs by requiring classes that promote a change in merit. These are the main things that I have encountered as a student through the University, and all three intrude on my

At sixteen, I packed up to move back to my hometown of Pascagoula, Mississippi. Deciding to finish out high school while living with my favorite aunt. I graduated with honors, I then decided to go off to Pearl River College. In high school, I had a serious boyfriend, we did everything together from fishing at the docks, to attending all the hottest parties. He was my best friend and going off to college where we couldn’t be together felt like a big dent in my heart. Being so in love while in college was more than a challenge. We went from seeing each other every day to seeing each other every weekend or every other weekend. School was the last thing on my mind. Depressed, lonely, all my time was spent in my dorm room. By the end of that semester without trying to succeed in school, I flunked out and quit.

Have you ever had a dream where you would do anything to follow it no matter the sacrifices? Going from being surrounded by all the people who love us in a place we are familiar with to walking into a new “home” all alone is a difficult change to adapt to. Moving to college has been a very hard leaving my childhood neighborhood and family but I’m willing to do anything to chase this dream of becoming a professional footballer. I’ve been chasing this dream most of my life, around age 7, and this dream still persists in my mind to this day.

During freshman year, I hope to step out of my comfort zone. I feel as if I have lived in a “Northeast Jackson bubble” for my entire life, and I am ready to experience life in a new and exciting place. I have gone to Jackson Academy for a majority of my life, and I would not trade the experiences I have had at JA for anything. The teachers and students here are incomparable and have taught me so much both academically and socially. One thing Jackson Academy lacks is a diverse student body. At least ninety-five percent of the students at JA are Caucasian and have very similar socioeconomic backgrounds in the Jackson metropolitan area. Transitioning from high school to college will be a challenge because I have gone to school with most of the

It has been said so many times that college is a time of finding yourself; who YOU are, what YOU believe, and who YOU want to be. The first step to doing this is by thinking for your self. Some people feel this is far fetched, but a combination of the skills formed through the liberal arts, as well as some changes in attitude can make it a possibility. Students today need stop being afraid of displaying their emotions, straying from what’s “normal,” and of being criticized. Students today are afraid of failure, and of not being capable to accomplish their goals. They often fear they are “not good enough,” “not smart enough,” or “do not belong.” These fears need to be pushed aside and replaced with a sense of confidence. This is a difficult feat; however, as today’s society often tells adolescents they need to fit a certain “mold.” They need to dress a certain way, act a certain way, and even think a certain way. Currently, some students are letting this hold them back, but the liberal arts way of thinking says it should not. A productive society needs variety and versatility among the people. It needs individuals who are passionate enough to stand up for what they believe in, as well as passionate for what they do. Through the liberal arts, a student can find their own version of this passion, as they take their turn discovering every subject or viewpoint along the way.

I am eager to transition to college, but trying to determine how to pay for my impending tuition is not as thrilling. My single mother pays for the majority of my sister's needs and mine. If I desire to graduate debt free I need this scholarship to contribute to my tuition costs. Preferably I would prefer to graduate debt free, so I can participate in a gap year after graduation to join AmeriCorp Vista. A program such as AmeriCorp will further my experience working with people and gear me to enter the career of a nurse. By dedicating myself to a year of service I will be working closely with a community and seeing the change of the people I will aid. Also, this will increase my chance of getting a job in a large hospital. As a nurse, I will have a profound impact on my patients parallel to the impact I will have on others during AmeriCorp. I will be able to assist others and inspire them at their lowest points. Not only is this scholarship being awarded to me, but it is being bestowed on the people I will help, to the members of my community.

Four hundred dollars later, everything is ready to be packed in the car; college is awaiting. I was both nervous and excited to begin a new chapter in life. Everyone I knew had my back and told me I was going to love college. I knew that there was going to be a few speed bumps through my college career, but nothing I could not handle. College has impacted my life through building my faith, establishing personal relationships, and experiencing the living atmosphere as a college student.

I believe that it is significantly harmful for parents to micromanage their children’s life throughout the college process. As young adults transition to college students, they are challenged to learn valuable skills such as responsibility, accountability, and time management. However, students miss out on these lessons when their parents are continuously reminding them of when their assignments are due and asking if they are completed yet. As Annie Murphy Paul (2013) points out in her blog post, college students who have had their parents controlling their lives up until that point when they are allowed slightly more freedom and independence are unable to cope with stressful, difficult situations. Then, as Nauert (2015) discusses, these students

“You should really figure out what you want to do before you waste a ton of money.” “It's okay to not know exactly what you want to do, you have time.” Transitioning from high school to college was slightly frightening considering the mixed emotions I experienced while constantly hearing comments similar to these from not only my parents, but older friends, teachers, informative college advisors, or administration. Although I haven’t gotten into my desired career, let alone the classes needed to get there; I feel my thorough research into every aspect of Accounting, from organizations, internships, and all the needed qualifications will be extremely beneficial in knowing this is the career for me.

It is the dream of everyone to join college with the hope of getting a better tomorrow and a foundation for them to make it in life. However, this may not be the case with some students as this dream may turn into a nightmare. This is because many students fail to go through or others even fail simply because they have not prepared enough; not just academically but also on the personal side.

Going into college challenges people to connect with others who may have different ideals and personalities from you, especially when the first person you meet would be your roommate. The stranger that will be under the same roof as you not knowing whether or not this person would like you or hate you. You both come from different walks of life with diverse customs of how they lived under their household. You don’t want to step on their toes or invade their privacy, but when rooming with someone you don’t know things might not turn out so peacefully. Even though it’s a new and scary experience to be in, it’s best to not let it go to your head and think too much about the

Having had various traumatic incidents in the past ten years, one of which was my parents passing six years ago, within eighteen months of each other, I have finally decided to take my life back. College is the first of many steps.