While many aspects of my first semester turned out to be just what I expected, there were numerous things that were not. Some of those were for the better, and some were for the worse, but regardless, I loved my first semester at the University of Maryland. I am beyond grateful to be able to continue my education at this outstanding institution, and I am proud to be a Maryland Terrapin.
I think that my biggest misconception about being enrolled in college was the structure of classes and the time required for them. I always believed that college courses would require hours of studying each night, but that was not the case. I do not think that I ever spent more than three hours studying on any single class in a week, while I thought I was going to be putting in multiple hours each night. I think this misconception was due to hearing other college students speak on this, but now I am completely confused why they said there was so much studying needed. However, this could also be due to the classes I am taking; I am not entirely sure. With that being said, there are more small assignments and discussion posts than I expected that take up that time. I expected most or even all college classes to just be based on exams or large projects, which has not been the case at all for me. The one thing that I was correct about, however, is that exams make up a significant portion of your grade and need to be taken very seriously. While I didn’t have to spend as many studying hours as expected, the few hours I spent were more than what I ever did in high school. It was very important for me to learn better study habits and techniques.
While we learned many things that I expected such as climate change, greenhouse gases, energy, and basic scientific principles, there were also many things I didn’t expect to learn. These included the basics of HTML, pseudoscience, and general information about campus life. I did not expect to learn how to program an HTML webpage, but I think it is something that I will be able to use in the future. Additionally, learning about how pseudoscience contradicts real science and how it impacts the media is very timely and is an important issue in the world today. Lastly, I think the most beneficial part of this class was learning about opportunities on campus such as the internship process.
I always anticipated a college dorm to be a concrete box with horrible temperature control and no space and expected the bathrooms to be disgusting and have no hot water, but none of that turned out to be true. While the temperature control is not very great, it is easy to work around by cracking a window or putting a fan in it. My room also has way more space than I expected and is not as bland and boring as I would have thought. The custodial staff also cleans the bathrooms multiple times a day and I haven’t had many problems with the sanitary aspect, and there is always hot water for your shower at any time of the day.
If there were three things that I could say to incoming SGC students it would be this: prepare for very diverse weather, get a lofted bed, and most importantly do not panic. In Maryland the weather is never consistent and I have faced just about every type of weather so far this semester. When I moved in it was close to 100, and at the time of writing this it is below 20. There has also been rain, snow, fog, and it is something you need to be prepared for. Make sure to bring a wide variety of clothes for your wardrobe. Another great idea for when you come to the University of Maryland is getting your bed lofted. I can fit my dresser and desk under my bed, which gives me a lot more space for storage and a more open feeling in my room. While the space is not too bad with two standard beds, there is way more room with one or both beds lofted. Lastly, college is not as scary as it is made out to be. Personally, I always heard that you would have no free time except on the weekends, you would need to study all night, and classes were brutal. One semester in, I can safely say that is not the case and you will have plenty of free time and don’t need to stress about classes unless you have an upcoming exam. There are also plenty of things to do on campus ranging from shows, sports, and going to the gym. Another very important aspect is that the food at the University is excellent. Overall, there is nothing to worry about, and college life is a very enjoyable time.