10 Things You’ll Learn Your Freshman Year In College

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1. Find a quiet place to study right away.

Even if you never studied in high school (because I know I didn’t), you WILL study in college. You need to find a quiet place to study that IS NOT YOUR DORM. As much as you think you can read in bed, you can’t.


2. It’s cool to be an overachiever.

In my first college English class, we were assigned a 20+ page article to read before the first day of class. Due to my high school study habits, I thought it would be fine to skim it. It was not fine. I showed up on the first day being the only one who hadn’t read it, and I looked like an idiot.


3. It’s fine if you don’t make a hundred new best friends.

I feel like everyone goes in to college thinking that within the first week they’re going to make tons of new friends. But it didn’t happen. I didn’t even make one new friend until the third week. AND THAT IS TOTALLY FINE.


4. You don’t need the “College Experience” if you don’t want it.

What do you think of when you think of college? Debt and alcohol. If you don’t want to party, don’t feel obligated to! It’s not a requirement of college that you get drunk every weekend, but if you want to, go for it! You know how many parties I went to freshman year? Zero.


5. It’s also fine if you’re not best friends with your roommate.

I got along with my roommate; we were friends. But were we best friends? No! You’re living together; it will be hard at times. They’re going to do things that annoy you, but guess what? You’re going to do things that annoy them. Communicate and be a nice person and you’ll get along just fine.


6. Drink coffee.

Even if you don’t like coffee, drink it.


7. Make goals for yourself.

College is really the time of your life where you grow up. It’s fine to be that person in high school that just wants to have fun and doesn’t really know what they’re doing with their life. But you’re in college now and the choices you make now will probably impact your entire life, so set some positive goals that you want to achieve.


8. You will probably have mental breakdowns.

I don’t mean this in a “How I cried when Bambi’s mom died” sarcastic way. You’ll probably have times when you feel like you can’t do anything right and the stress of having to balance classes, a job, friends, clubs, family, and anything else is just too much. You will cry, you will want to quit, but you won’t because then you’ll have to start paying back your student loans.


9. It’s okay to skip classes from time to time.

If you’re allowed three absences, obviously be conscientious just in case you have to use one for a legitimate reason, but don’t feel bad about using all three. If your lecturer at 8 AM doesn’t take attendance, don’t feel bad about sleeping in once in a while. Obviously, this isn’t the best way to get good grades, but there will be times that you are tired and need a break, so don’t feel bad about taking one.


10. Be yourself.

This sounds like such a college cliché, but honestly, be yourself. College is the time you will find your people, and you’ll never find them if you’re pretending to be someone you’re not. Also, you will learn very fast that in college, no one really cares if you’re different from them. They’re with their people, and you’re with yours.