College Prep 101:

The Real College Experience

Art by Tania Dowdy | VOX Stafff

By Tania Dowdy| VOX Staff

My summer of anticipation has come down to its final moments. Really, my whole life I have been waiting. It is the night before and I am sitting on my bed in total darkness, staring anxiously at the walls. My things are already in the car, clothes for tomorrow hanging neatly in my closet. My mind is racing: Will the people be nice? Is this place right for me? Will I regret my decision? In the next few hours I will start a new life: college life.

What is college life? Last August, I certainly had no idea, and there wasn’t anyone close to me who could answer that question. My older brother was no help because he had decided to attend an audio engineering school after realizing that traditional college did not suit his needs. So I was stuck reading and hearing about the college experience from people who only talked about the glories of college life.

When I started college last fall, I realized someone had failed to inform me that not only were the professors tougher than my teachers in high school, but that I would have to trade my easy-going attitude for that of a stressed-out and overworked college student. Though I didn’t have anyone to give me the real scoop about college, maybe my story can help you.

Finding New Friends
It is always hard to go to a new place and interact with people who at first you think have nothing in common with you. I thought making friends at college would be easy, but in the beginning I found myself in the mind of a scared elementary school kid who didn’t want mom and dad to leave.

Approaching the campus for the first day of orientation, my heart beat extremely fast. My parents were my security blanket. When they left I was sad. But I knew that I needed to grow within my own surroundings, and their reassurance that I could do it stuck with me at all times.

Although people at college greeted me with friendly smiles and encouraging words, I had convinced myself that staying in isolation was the best thing for me. I let my shy side take over the goofy and outgoing person I am. In high school I always had a group of the same friends, and not seeing those familiar faces was an adjustment.

For the first few months I stuck with the roommates with whom I shared close space. Although we’re from different babackgrounds, we could relate to eachother’s issues. One of my roommates, thankfully, went to high school with me, so that was comforting. I credit her with helping me to break out of my shell: She was a social butterfly, and I was the butterfly that followed. I admired that in her, and by second semester I started to break out of my shell.

Overall, after I let go of my own insecurities and judgments, I realized that in fact I did have something in common with all these students. We all had no idea what college was like, but we eventually learned. Within the process of learning about college, we learned about each other.

Making the Grade
An even bigger adjustment though was having to work harder to make the As and Bs I had made with ease in high school. I was used to acing tests without much studying the night before. Homework counted for something, so I spent long hours working on it; I knew it would boost my grade. And reading every single chapter of my textbook was not a must; all I had to do was listen in class and I would pass.

In college those same principles did not apply. When my professor announced our first psychology exam, I knew I would pass because I listened to her lectures in class and took what I thought were thorough notes. I prepared by glancing through the chapters in the book.
I got an F. Afterward I woke up and realized that it took longer to prepare for an exam than the two hours I set aside. Soon I accepted staying up late and missing out on other things around campus so I could study. I found that procrastinating on assignments only meant more headaches, and that reading well beyond the assigned chapters made me better able to connect to my professor’s lectures. Making good grades were not as easy as it once was, but I learned.

Without a realistic idea of what college life was like, transitioning to college was hard. I made mistakes that I look back on and wonder: Why did I do that? But despite the obstacles and anxieties, I couldn’t have asked for a better start to my college career.

I believe that things happen for a reason—everything you experience in life teaches you something. My first year definitely made me more mature, but I still have a lot to learn. My rough beginning taught me that nothing in life is going to be perfect, and no two people have the same story. Everyone has a different experience, but in the end it is all worth it.

Tania is a sophomore at Oxford College of Emory University.