For most incoming first-year students, the college experience can be extremely intimidating. It is easy to wonder how one should navigate this new, exciting and entirely distinct chapter of life when there are so many outcomes to worry about and an immense amount of pressure to consider.
Many people, even decades after graduating, describe undergrad as some of the best years of their lives. College is often labeled as the prime “time of self-discovery” in a young person’s life, and it is a common trope in pop culture for people to have met their life-long friends at university.
The fear of somehow not managing to experience all of these opportunities in the short time it takes to earn a degree is an awfully disappointing thought, but the good news is that freshman year is not as contingent on chance as it may seem. Forget about luck — the freshman year experience depends upon personal perspective. The first two semesters of a student’s college experience are under their control, and it all begins with mindset.
It’s entirely overwhelming when one goes from living at home to a residence hall, free from looming supervision and the limitations of being a minor within just a few days. A college acceptance letter tends to invite a lot of inflated expectations and fears into the minds of incoming freshmen, and when that happens, it is difficult to think realistically.
When that pre-college summer panic starts to creep in, the best thing to do is to take a step back and look at the bigger picture. The first year of college is a unique and isolated period, but in the grand scheme of things, it is just another stepping stone for more important life events.
In general life, the undergraduate years are glorified as a kind of untouchable, miraculous blip of excitement that starts and ends within the blink of an eye. The “last hurrah” before true adulthood comes knocking. This romanticized perception of college places a lot of pressure on students to construct their expectations around the idea of a perfect, cinematic college experience. But real-life college is not like “22 Jump Street.”
By entering freshman year with heightened expectations of what social media and Hollywood portray university to be, disappointment is virtually a guarantee. College is wonderful and exciting, but it might not seem that way immediately, and that is completely valid.
Adjusting to independence, a new environment and a new workload takes time. It is natural and even expected to be nervous when the first fall semester rolls around. When these emotions start to feel disparaging, it is important to remember that every incoming freshman is going through their first year together and may be feeling the same anxiety.
Adopting the mentality that everyone is in the same boat will help relieve feelings of isolation and provide some much-needed security surrounding inevitable first-week jitters.
Even though people have the same worries when entering freshman year, not everyone will have identical first-year experiences. One of the most beautiful and unique aspects of a college education is the opportunity to experience operating within a diverse community of peers with different goals and backgrounds.
Everyone hopes to have a successful freshman year. Everyone wants to make friends and have a good time. Whether a student thrives socially or not depends upon their perspective and effort.
It is not a secret that personal mindset is a strong determinant of the efforts and outcomes a person puts in and receives when placed in a precarious situation.
According to a piece published by the Stanford Report, “mindsets can impact your outcomes by determining the way you think, feel and even physiologically respond to some situations.”
It is easy to let worry consume thoughts and drive one to avoid situations out of fear of being uncomfortable. Anxiety is inevitable when starting college, but a person’s individual response to it is what will end up either discounting or justifying it.
Start college with an open mind and a willingness to leave the comfort zone. Challenging comfort zones is the only way to cultivate personal growth in anything, not just social skills.
Welcome week events, official and nonofficial, are a pivotal part of the freshman socializing experience, and meeting new people is an essential step in adjusting to college life. Whether eating at the dining halls, walking down King Street, studying at Belk Library or throwing a frisbee around on Sanford Mall, having friends makes those events much more enjoyable.
An introverted student who thinks they won’t be able to make friends out of shyness is bound to solidify their worries as reality if they stay in their dorm and don’t challenge their social comfort zone. A student with the same anxiety who goes to social events and interest meetings despite their fear is much more likely to meet people and cultivate a healthy social life, which is the backbone of an enjoyable freshman experience.
Ultimately, college should not be glorified as the end-all-be-all final salute to young freedom, no matter what someone’s expectations or experiences are. It merely marks the start of a long and beautiful journey of independence, responsibility and life-long learning.
Four years should not define the decades following them, and if college does not end up being like the movies, that is OK and honestly for the best. Starting freshman year is the perfect set of conditions to send anyone into an overwhelming panic, but it’s important to remember that nobody will know what the future holds until it becomes the present.
Acknowledge what cannot be experienced yet and appreciate the ability to prepare accordingly. Nothing will ever go exactly as planned, and college is no exception.
The best things a new student can do to make the most out of this unique, exciting opportunity is to put themselves out there, roll with the punches, and, above all, remember to view everything with a positive perspective.
