For All Future Freshmen

Future freshmen,

Be prepared for a lot of essays. College writing is exactly how it sounds, a lot of writing. As soon as you finish an essay, you start a new one. It’s a never-ending cycle. You are going to get stressed out at times, but that’s okay, everyone does. Your teacher may be lenient when it comes to due dates, like mine, but other teachers won’t, so do not procrastinate. You will have a lot of work in your other classes too, so you really have to stay focused and look at your work week by week instead of day by day. If you see that you have a lot to do on one specific day of the week, then try doing some of that work earlier in the week on a day that you don’t have as much due.  Trust me, you will be happy you did that. The days where I pushed it off because I didn’t feel like doing it earlier was a nightmare. My stress level skyrocketed.

When it comes to in class assignments and homework, make sure you do them when they are supposed to be done. Your teacher won’t always collect or check your homework but you should still complete it. I know you may not have the motivation to do it, but you will be happy later when your teacher tells you that you are handing in that assignment with your portfolio.

Also, DO NOT SKIP CLASS. Whether you are paying for school or you are fortunate enough to have a family member paying for school for you, it’s a lot of money. Even if you feel like you don’t do anything in a specific class, it still costs money, so just suck it up and go to class.  

I also want to address parties. Yes there are parties at every school, and yes it’s always a good time when you get to take a break from schoolwork and go out with your friends on the weekend. However, remember why you are at school. You are here for an education. I have seen plenty of kids throw that down the drain because they were too caught up with alcohol or drugs. Don’t feel peer pressured to do anything you don’t want to. You will find a group of friends that are similar to yourself. It’s okay to stay in a weekend, or go out but not drink. There are so many alternatives to drinking that are still enjoyable. If you do drink, be smart and know your limits.

The last point I want to address is friends. Please don’t be afraid to be yourself. You are coming to a new school where little to no people know who you are. If you want to change who you are, or if you are not proud of the person you were in high school, this is your opportunity to change that. You will find friends that are just like you that make your college experience even more enjoyable. This is about to be the best four years of your life, so value the time that you get here because it goes by fast.