Expectations vs. Reality

ll throughout high school I always looked forward to college as a time to relax, study and decide what I wanted to do with my life. At first, I was correct. This surprised me because as the oldest of 5, I have really had no prior knowledge of what college would be like. However, what I did not expect was the boredom. In high school, I was constantly busy. I worked several jobs I worked on a horse farm, a garden center, a landscaping business, a summer camp. I also had school work. And in a little time, I have left I spent it on several hobbies. For instance, I have been building cars for a while. Recently I built a 1949 Plymouth. I always thought I wanted a break from working but I was so wrong. A few weeks after I got to College park I was upset and depressed. I felt like I was just a leech on society. See at home I always was working for or helping people. Here I was just sitting, eating and sleeping. It was the most unproductive I have ever felt. Luckily the university offers several jobs so I decided to apply for one. Now since I was little I have been working on cars and houses so The coordinator at the university reached out to me and offered me a job fixing equipment and vehicles. I also thought about joining several clubs however none of them quite met my interests. See for everything I do I like there to be a reward. For instance, after I help someone, I like seeing the thankfulness in people. Or when I work I get a paycheck. But a more relatable one is when I would work on my cars. In Everyone I built, I had the excitement of pushing myself forward knowing that in the end, I would be able to drive it. So I was thinking about joining the terps racing team. I went to a few meetings and I found it interesting. However, after the third time, I decided I didn't want to go anymore. The terps racing team has around one hundred people on it so it wouldn't really be my project. I also knew I would never get a chance to drive it since they only let a select few people drive it, and it usually ends up being the lightest people. So even with my racing experience, I would not have gotten a chance. For this reason, I found no reason to spend a large amount of my time on it. Other than the racing team I never really found any other clubs that interested me. So my only option was working. I'm also glad that I did not engage in any other activities because as the year went on school became busier and busier. Then I got to buy a bus; figuratively. All the work came piling on. And no it wasn't like I was procrastinating. All the work just came at the same time. In high school, I never thought that I would have as much work as I did. And yes, while I am glad I got eased into college, I really hope it does not stay this busy. Classes definitely took some getting used to. Back In high school, my biggest class had thirty-five people in it. I had always heard about the large lectures in college but I never imagined around 200 people in a lecture. It was a struggle at first to be able to hear and pay attention but eventually, I got used to it. Thankfully many of my lecture classes had discussion classes as well so I was able to learn any missed information in those classes. The biggest thing I didn't expect in school was the amount of self-study. Many people I have talked to have said professors are practically irrelevant and they just learn from the textbook. I'm not sure how I feel about that. In CPSG, I expected to be talking and learning about climate change. However, we covered much more. I had heard about making my own webpage but It was still a shock to me and it was a cool experience that will benefit me in the future. I also did not expect to be going on the trips we did. They were a really neat experience that changed the way I learned about the topic of the trip. It made me want every class to be taught like that. After reading all this, I advise that future students find something to do with their time. Whether it be a job or a club. Definitely read the textbook in all of your classes because for a lot of what you learn is straight from the textbook; Every page counts! Also, you should leave your dorm doors open to engage in the community and have a better college experience. On a final note, I do not advise drinking. This semester I have seen too many people go to the hospital and almost died from drinking. It is not worth it. Good Luck in your first semester.