The first year of college is undoubtedly an exciting time in any person’s life. You’re starting a new journey that will significantly impact the rest of your life. You’ve probably moved away from home which means you’re on the cusp of living on your own and finally getting a taste of adult life.
That said, the first year of college is not without its own unique challenges. Knowing what these challenges are and how to overcome them helps make this formative time in your life a lot smoother than it would otherwise be. Read on to learn about the most common challenges to expect and how to handle them.
Forming new friendships
One of the best things about college is the opportunity to get to know a diverse set of people, some of whom you will befriend for life. College is a great place to meet like-minded people that help you realize your own potential and go on to be a great person, no matter where you go.
That said, the process of meeting new people can be very stressful. In the first week alone you’re likely to interact with nearly a hundred people, and that’s a heavy load for anyone. Just remembering all their names should be hard enough, let alone figuring out who you want to know a little better. Don’t hesitate to ask for a name again if you forgot it already, and take time to interact with people casually. You don’t have to be close friends will all of them.
Assignments
Assignments will be a regular in your life right off the bat. To make the issue worse, college students rank very highly on the procrastination scale, making most of them likely to scramble to do assignments the night before they’re due.
If you’re feeling overwhelmed with multiple essays with clustered due dates, you might want to consider buying college essays from essay writing services. These can help offset some of the burdens while keeping your grades right up there with the best of them.
Budgets
While your needs and wants may seem unlimited as a college student, your finances are verifiably finite. You now have to pay your own rent, buy your own food, and still have some money left over for fun. It’s important not to get carried away and spend your allowance before it’s due to get refreshed.
To help out, consider getting a student account at your bank. These often come with lots of benefits, like lower fees and higher interest rates on savings accounts.
Living with roommates
Unless you’re lucky, you’ll most likely be sharing a dorm room, sorority house or fraternity house with roommates. This comes with its own dynamics and challenges. Who’s going to wash the dishes? How do you make sure no one eats the pizza you stored in the fridge? And so on…
I’m here to tell you that this is normal. Rather than see it as an issue, consider approaching it as an excellent opportunity to learn how to live with people. Host drinks every once in a while, to encourage everyone to get to know each other and lighten up. And don’t sweat the small stuff.
Relationships
While you’re busy trying to get your academic record on track and kickstart your career, your body is also a raging cauldron of hormones, which means you’ll have lots of crushes, flings, and full-fledged relationships.
College relationships are very different from high school ones. You have way more freedom when you’re in college, which means you can do ‘stuff’ with your partner that you couldn’t do before. They can also be more stressful, as is expected of adult relationships, and involve deeper bonds.
The key thing to remember here is to take things one step at a time. Take every relationship as a learning opportunity, where you learn more about yourself and what you need (not necessarily want) in a partner. Don’t profess your undying love for anyone within a couple of days. Take time to know them and have loads of fun. You might find someone for the long-term in college, but it’s not a must.
Finding your passions
Colleges are treasure troves of clubs, sports, and various activities. There’s something for everyone, and it’s easy to get overwhelmed when trying to decide which crowd you want to join.
Don’t shoehorn yourself into any place just to fit in. Spend your first year exploring different clubs and activities. If you find something that sets your soul on fire, dive right in and have fun. If you get bored after a while, move on to the next thing – no one’s forcing you to stay. Eventually, you’ll find something that you don’t mind doing all the time, and that’s probably going to be your crowd. Keep it!
Crazy schedules
There will be so much to do in your first year of college. Attending lectures, hanging out with your new partner or friend, going out to clubs and parties, and doing assignments. To survive this, you’ll need to plan your time well. It’s not too much to keep a calendar and schedule different things. You should also stick to that schedule, or else it will all be for nothing.
Conclusion
The first year of college is going to be a fun time. Despite all the challenges, don’t forget to slow down every once in a while, and just take a minute to breathe. Follow our tips above to make it manageable and you’ll have a smoother time than most.
