Wayne State University Experience

Starting college as a Freshman is exciting; it is also unnerving. The comfort of everything I know is going to disappear and it will be time to grow up and face reality. However, reality isn’t doomed to be negative if I prepare for my future and

When junior year ended last summer, I felt like I knew exactly what was coming my way-- after all, I watched three different groups of my friends go through senior years of their own. It was finally my turn to experience senior year, something it seemed I had known about for years, and I felt like senior year would be easygoing and uneventful. Now, it has taken just a few short months to realize how incorrect I was. If senior year has taught me anything, it is that one never really knows what comes next for them, even if they have a good idea. The monumental highs, as well as the deepest of lows, have kept me on my toes throughout my senior year.

As an incoming EOF (Educational Opportunity Found) freshmen attending Rutgers University this fall, I had the mindset that if I did well academically, the transition from high school to college would go by smoothly. Unfortunately, college isn 't that simple. The transition to college is much more complex than people perceive it to be, in my case, it’s the most difficult obstacle I’ve ever encountered. Therefore, my aspiration is to conquer this transitional period as quickly and fluently as possible. When I had to changeover from middle school to high school, I was terrified. I didn 't know what awaited me and how much different things were going to be. It turned out high school was exactly the same, with the exception of the grades being ninth through Twelfth. There was nothing to be worried about. On the other hand, that wouldn 't be the case in college.

The thought of college is often overwhelming and fills a person’s head full of anxiety and stress. If you look back on what you have accomplished up to this point in your life this large step in life suddenly seems much smaller. I have been going to the same small private school all my life so many people could argue that I have been sheltered for most of my life or see the world through “tunnel vision.” Now all of this is entirely true, but throughout my high school years I have gradually become more of the person who I am today. For example, my junior year English teacher assigned my class the daunting task of a junior thesis. At first I thought this assignment was simply busy work and had no meaning to it, but as I began to pick a topic and research it I began to discover a possible

My high school years, unlike the past years of steady achievements, felt much more like a sine graph with ups and downs. To begin with, I conquered my freshman year in a breeze. My easily achievable classes not only earned myself confidence, but also admiration and respect from my classmates and teachers. As a result, I comfortably acclimated myself to the status of a star student.

Gary Colombo, Robert Cullen, and Bonnie Lisle in their book “Rereading America” feel that commencing college is a very disturbing experience. So many things we have to deal while starting college, but the major challenges are expanded difficulty levels and higher expectation which we are not familiar over the years of high school. In order to solve this issue, we have to remodel ourselves by taking up the challenge and rethink about our strength and flaws. To succeed in college we need to be mentally strong and dedicated towards our goal.

The transition from high school to college is a dynamic time in one’s life that parallels the change from childhood to adulthood. Both of these changes are dramatic and, as a result, feelings are difficult to put down into words. A messy combination of emotions fills the heart, surfacing in strange ways. Confident high school seniors go right back to the bottom of the chain when entering college as freshmen. These students start all over, just like entering grade school or high school for the first time. The move up from high school to college signals the switch from dependence to self-sufficiency. From a personal point of view, going through the experience of graduating high school and transferring to a residential college campus at STLCOP, made me realize I was no longer a kid and capable of making my own decisions.

Arriving to campus on time has usually been an issue for commuting Canadian students. This is not only a problem for them, but Wayne State is also affected in the process. With students arriving late, there would be missed lectures and barely any work done. In turn, Wayne State’s reputation as a school is affected negatively as these commuters would start considering switching to other schools. In fact, some high school graduates from Canada would not even think about attending classes at Wayne State due to its lack of an uncomplicated transportation system.

Coming in as a freshman with enough college credits to make me sophomore, made me feel out of place. I did not experience the freshmen experience like most freshmen’s coming into college because I had previously taken college classes during high school. I have already felt what it was like to be in college classes for the first time when I took dual credit classes. Because of that, I never felt any excitement during my first day at TAMUCC. There was not anything I did not expect coming in as freshmen. For example, I have already experienced the demanding college schedule, the mountains of homework, assignments, and tests, and first day of school feeling. When I learned about the Habits of the Mind in my freshmen seminar class, I realized that I was missing a few of them. I felt like I was least developed in the habit of openness and

“Your First Year of College: 25 Strategies and Tips to Help You Survive and Thrive Your Freshman Year and Beyond” by Randall S. Hansen, Ph.D., shows tips on how to be successful in my freshman year of college. These 25 tips and strategies are super helpful for almost any problem that could arise during my first year. Dr. Hansen gives very good examples to help freshman. For example, he explains we need to get organized but instead of just saying that he gives us examples like a big wall calendar or personal organizer. Another tip is that studying will be very important in college. Therefore, finding a good study spot will be a key to success. In addition, Dr. Hansen says do not be shy and make new friends; they’re all

The idea of going out of your comfort zone, forcing yourself to experience something that you never thought was possible, is terrifying to some. However, being able to adjust and take a little risk will only help your transition from high school senior to college freshmen go smoother. According to Dr. Roush, “be prepared to take a responsible risk, though I am mostly talking about academic risk when I say this. I worry that too many young people chase good grades rather than the best education they can acquire. Be conscious of your GPA, of course, but take some risk with the wide array of courses that are available”. (Roush, 1) College freshmen find themselves stepping

"Tomorrow is the first day of what I will become." I wrote this in my diary the night before my first day of college. I was anxious as I imagined the stereotypical college room: intellectual students, in-depth discussions about neat stuff, and of course, a casual professor sporting the tweed jacket with leather elbows. I was also ill as I foresaw myself drowning in a murky pool of reading assignments and finals, hearing a deep, depressing voice ask "What can you do with your life?" Since then, I've settled comfortably into the college "scene" and have treated myself to the myth that I'll hear my calling someday, and that my future will introduce itself to me with a hardy handshake. I can't completely rid my

Do you remember as you sat in that Simi large class room filled with 28 other students the smell of paper in the air and the sound of your teachers saying “that this was just the stepping stone into your life, your career, and everything you wanted to be when you grew up?” Remember back to when you were in high school allowing your teachers voices to come back to you, remember how it once was; Remember they stressed the importance of grades and attendance, what is your drive for going to school every morning, how did you manage your time whilst on campus? Imagine yourself now an adult in your first year of college coping with the stress of daily life and school, reflecting upon all those

When in the course of human events, it becomes necessary for one student to dissolve the bonds which have held him to his high school life, he can get fairly intimidated. Making the transition from high school to college can be a tough one. I remember my experience in such a transition vividly, as it was only a short time ago.

Sitting in class for the first time, it was half of what I expected. I expected to sit by people I didn’t know, learn about old things in new lights, and writing a lot of papers. What I didn’t expect was me hating college. I am not as creative as some teaches would like, but that isn’t my personality, and I dint want it to be either. I fully expected college to try and morph me into a perfect little student that I knew I wasn’t. College so far to me hasn’t been fun and I will treat it like Wal-Mart. When I say that, I mean that I will get in and get out as fast as possible. If I pick up stuff along the way then alright, but if I don’t, then it won’t kill me.