This article was originally written for FirstGenerationStudent.com, now a part of ImFirst.org.
Over the course of the past month, so much has happened. Students moved in, classes started, clubs began to meet and a new life has begun. In order to make this reflection of the past several weeks as cohesive as possible, I’ll divide this blog to focus, one by one, on several facets of this transition.
Moving In
Your distance from the college you choose to attend will influence how your move-in day will turn out. For me, moving halfway across the country meant that the easiest thing to do was to take a road trip. As a family, we moved my belongings into my new home and at the same time, we were able to bond and enjoy those last few days before dropping me off on campus.
Orientation Week
The first few days of college can be stressful for students as everyone is trying to become accustomed to a new environment and new people. At many of the larger campuses across the country, the opening week of school during orientation often means events left and right. For many, this can bring about something commonly referred to as “FOMO,” or fear of missing out.
At some campuses, this can sometimes continue into the school year. It takes time to adjust. To this day–a month after arriving on campus–I find myself trying to balance an environment that serves as both my home and my social playground as well as my educational institution.
Everyone adjusts at different levels, but what’s important to realize here is that no matter the speed, it has to happen and it will take time. Even though adjustment can be stressful at times, I’ve learned that often, I just have to let it run its course until it settles down.
Classes
The first week of classes on Yale’s campus resulted in several surprises. The first stemmed from the first class I attended: a lecture class titled “Introduction to the Middle East.” If you thought high school lectures were difficult to keep up with, just wait until you get to college! Professors often speed through information in order to cover more ground. Therefore, they leave it up to the students to figure out what’s important and what should be left out. Finding this balance is key in this situation, and again, of course, it takes time to adjust.
Second was homework. The number of science and/or math courses you’re taking can impact your workload. Most of my homework comes in the form of reading: With three seminars (discussion classes) and one lecture course, most of my time is devoted to reading the material necessary to be able to participate in the class discussion instead of working on problem sets.
Oh, and by the way, professors won’t remind you that you have things to read. In fact, they won’t even tell you that you’re supposed to look at their syllabus to know what your homework is. For the most part, they expect you to know that.
Extracurricular Activities
I think it’s well established that most campuses have tons and tons of organizations to join. For the most exclusive ones, you may have to interview for a spot. Having to try out to be a member of a club or a competitive team on campus was new to me.
For the most part, people on campus are only active in two to three organizations. That’s unlike high school where some students find themselves involved in every existing organization. However, students are often active with a relatively small number of clubs because they’re truly passionate and committed about the missions of those clubs. That results in more productive organizations.
There’s no doubt that college is great, but like they say, “With great power comes great responsibility.” With a million other things going on, sometimes it’s easy to forget what our purpose on campus truly is; but, we have to remind ourselves that our purpose here isn’t to socialize and sleep the day away. Our true aspirations revolve around our love for learning and experiencing the world in new ways. That’s what we should all strive to do, not just in our college years but throughout our entire lives.