My Early College Experience

  Since starting college in September my life has changed in many ways, I have acquired more task skills by living on my own and being independent. I worked for a year after high school so that I could have a budget for my college education for things such as textbooks and groceries. I am learning to be much more careful with my money which is very important for a college student. The first couple weeks of school it was very stressful finding all of my classrooms. I’m sure that there wasn’t a day in that week that every student was there on time. The teachers were very understanding and did not get upset at the students because they knew how intimidated we were in a new school. Dealing with deadlines is a very important part of college because unlike high school, there is a penalty for every assignment that is late. To meet these deadlines it is very important to manage your time.  This means that you still make time for your friends, but also be aware of what needs to be done. Assignments are very important because each of them adds up to a final percentage of your overall mark. Missing an assignment is very hard on your final grade and should not be taken lightly, everything counts! Tests are also very important because they cover what you have learned up to a certain point of the course. It is a good idea to study your notes and do any review that the teacher has provided because they are there to help you succeed!

                Since moving away I have been involved in many more social tasks. There is a higher tendency to work in groups for class assignments. This is very beneficial because group members get to share their point of view on the assignment with each other and as a team. Working in groups also introduces the students to people that they haven’t gotten to know yet. Making friends is really easy in the program that I am in because we all have similar personalities and want to help people. When you make new friends at college though sometimes there’s conflict. The best way to deal with conflict among friends is to remember that they are the people who care about you and it’s important not to lose them.  I am getting used to living an hour and a half away from my family and my friends that I have grown up with. Although I have moved away from my old friends I have made plenty of new ones both in my program and that I am living with. My college friends are great when I need someone to talk to about missing my hometown and they make me feel more at home while I’m at school.

            All of these experiences have helped me become more of an independent person in the sense that I am providing for myself. I have learned to budget my money more carefully and appreciate the value of a dollar a lot more. I am very glad that I moved away for school so that I could grow as my own person and do something out of my comfort level.