The transition to college life wasn’t easy, but it also wasn’t as hard as I thought it would be. Between sharing a room with someone for the first time and having to make all new friends, there were definitely plenty of challenges along the way. After a year of being in college now, I’ve learned a lot. And not just in my actual education, but about life in general.
Firstly, there were a couple specific courses that really changed how I think about learning. General Chemistry for Engineers really taught me how important self-study and reading the textbook is. Sure, there were textbooks and stuff in high school, but I had no real motivation for reading them. I could usually get by with just going to class everyday. However, with my chemistry class, I was kind of surprised at how helpful reading the textbook really is and how it is almost necessary to succeed. I would have been lost without my textbook. My chemistry textbook was written very well and it helped me figure out the background for some of the fundamentals we had to learn and it gave me plenty of tips on how to really learn and memorize material. I’m glad I was able to learn this quickly in my college career and it really shows in how well I did in that class.
Another class that really surprised me was Introduction to Archaeology. This class I took online over the winter, but what it really taught me was; you get what you put into a class. Intro to Archaeology is supposed to be one of those easy general education classes, so I could have gotten away with doing the bare minimum. But I was actually interested in the content and put a lot of effort in the class. In doing so, I turned this quick online course into one of my favorite courses I’ve taken so far with UMD.
In coming here, I’ve also met a few faculty members and have really been working on connecting with my professors. I actually got talking with a graduate professor that does research in the kinds of things I’m interested in. I was put in contact with her through someone I met at a previous job. Just by being myself and talking to people, I networked my way into actual research opportunities. So my words of advice are just talk to people. Everyone knows hundreds of people and by just talking to and getting to know random people, you are automatically networking. There is a good chance that the person you are talking to knows someone who knows someone who could help you out. Just talk to people and put yourself out there and you’ll make connections with faculty. And if you can’t do that, just be a part of class. Answer questions and talk to your professors after class. I know that’s been one of my biggest obstacles in trying to get to know professors. It can be scary to do it, but it gets easier and it definitely helps you form connections with professors and it’s something that I’m still working on.
One great thing about college is all the people you get to meet. I learned how having friends outside of class that I can just relax and hang out with was really important to me. School is stressful, there is no doubt about it. But having friends that are all going through the same thing with you, makes it that much easier. Also, meeting friends in your classes really helps you feel like you're not going through this alone. And that’s true, you’re not alone. You just have to find people that you can share a connection with. Having friends in class also gives you built-in study buddies that you can also goof off with after a particularly long lecture. One of the obstacles I faced this year was just finding the right friend group. There are so many people that go here that if you’re not feeling comfortable in a certain friend group, just leave. Don’t get stuck trying to fit in somewhere you don’t. There are over 30,000 people here, and there are definitely people here that are just like you. You just have to find them.
The thing that I was least prepared for academically was the motivation to study on my own. High school was a lot easier than college and I didn’t have to study much. But in college, you need to study on your own and frequently at that. Otherwise you will just do poorly. I was doing pretty well the first semester, but the second semester came with a loss of motivation on my part. I got distracted with extracurriculars and just doing things with my friends. It got hard for me to want to study until the night before my exams. But I’ve been getting better with it and trying my best to keep myself motivated. Your grade is 100% your responsibility in college, and it’s up to you to uphold it. Things that helped keep me motivated were usually things like locking my phone somewhere so I don’t get distracted and finding fun study spots that would help keep me focused. Doing things to keep studying engaging, like switching topics every half hour, really helps with keeping focus. Overall though, you just need to find what keeps you focused and stick to your plans.
Going to college can definitely be scary. However, finding the right group of people and figuring out how you best stay productive all make the experience that much better. I recommend finding people to hang out with so you don’t make yourself crazy by studying constantly and remember to cut yourself some slack. Being on your own for the first time can be intimidating but, you’ve got this. The best piece of advice before going to college was to “dive right in, just don’t forget to come up for air.” Go full in on the college experience, but remember to always take care of yourself first.