The following piece is an opinion and does not reflect the views of The Eagle and its staff. All opinions are edited for grammar, style and argument structure and fact-checked, but the opinions are the writer’s own.
When transitioning from summer to back to school, I think of myself almost two years ago, sitting at the kitchen table in anticipation of my near future: college move-in. I had just graduated high school from the same small public school I had attended since kindergarten, in the middle of blue-collar Pennsylvania — a vastly different environment from the one I was about to enter. I was nervous about such a large change, but excited for a new life of self-discovery. If I could go back and tell myself anything, I would say that the expectation of enjoying college is somewhat of a figment –– change takes time to enjoy, and not enjoying something at first is okay.
However, I was excited for such a change. My pre-college summer was full of relatives telling me, “You’ll love it there; D.C. is such a planet of its own,” “Seize the day there, kiddo” or “You’re the perfect fit.” Naturally, I believed every comment; after all, I chose American University because it seemed like the perfect fit for what I aspired to do with my life and wanted from a college experience.
The first few weeks of college are universal for almost everyone at AU: night monumenting, Terrace Dining Room extravaganzas and dorm parties with total strangers; some become good friends, and some fade as “first-week friends.” Looking back as a junior, I realize that the first few weeks of college were some of the most fun and enjoyable but also stressful and isolating experiences of my life. We were riding the wave of the unknown, being away from home for the first time. After the first couple weeks, the adrenaline wears off, and the complaints roll in: “AU isn’t what I thought,” “I’m considering transferring,” or “I hate it here.” All things we’ve heard each other say. Despite the initial isolation and following fears of change, the first-semester wave of the unknown includes both the good and the bad. Students are simply figuring it out.
Finding stability in a new setting is a long, hard journey of self-discovery. It is even harder when students push expectations of perfection onto our first semester of college. It’s okay to not enjoy college at first, and if I sound like your mom, I apologize, but she’s right. With so many different variables shoved in our faces during the first weeks, it’s easy to focus on the outwardly bad instead of the subtle good.
Finding comfortable niches, a group of close friends and ease with schoolwork all takes time, and it is unrealistic to expect everything to be resolved in a hasty manner. For some, it may take weeks and for others, months — it could even take semesters. And that’s okay. We all adjust and reflect differently.
I struggled with everything listed above, and AU was my dream school. At first, I found it hard to adjust to a college curriculum, finding friends and where my place was at a school 10 times the size of my high school. Nearly everyone I know has also struggled with the same sentiments; it’s a somewhat unspoken commonality that binds all of us together.
Joining clubs, hanging out on the quad and being added to a study group chat to combat a bad professor are all things that have helped students feel more at home on campus. For many, including myself, my close friends were my first and second-year floormates. You might have to be more proactive than normal to find your place, but rest assured, it will pay off.
For those struggling to adjust to the college experience whether this be new freshmen, transfers or anyone returning — you are not alone. Time settles everything because it’s the only thing we cannot control. Know that the wave eventually settles and when you see yourself in retrospect, you’ll hopefully realize you found a home here at AU.
Mari Santos is a junior in the School of Public Affairs and a columnist for The Eagle.
This piece was edited by Alana Parker, Rebeca Samano Arellano and Abigail Turner. Copy editing done by Luna Jinks and Charlie Mennuti.
