Starting College: How to be Successful and Social
- 20slavin5
- Jan 27, 2024
- 4 min read
College Success
"Information is not knowledge. The only source of knowledge is experience. You need experience to gain wisdom." - Albert Einstein
What better place for experience than college? College is all about meeting new people, learning about new opportunities, and creating important relationships. You'll find students with similar interests and be able to network with professors and other professionals.
Generally speaking, a college degree is known for far more beyond wage gains. The job market happens to favor college graduates in more ways as well. Graduates are less likely to be unemployed and more likely to have steady, full-time jobs.
Academics
Most universities within the United States offer 80+ different majors. The school I currently attend offers more than 120 different majors!
What is a major?
A major is an area you would choose to specialize in. For example, there is accounting, criminology, archeology, digital arts, or dance. Majors typically tend to be 30-36 credits in order to be completed. Most classes are 3 credits, so it would take about three to four years in order to gain a bachelors degree.
Typically, most freshmen can either choose a major they are interested in or related to the field they want to go into. Or you could enter college as "undecided" This can be a very daunting word to label yourself as, however this is a great decision in order to take an array of classes from marketing to psychology to art classes to define where your interests lie. If you really don't like business classes within your first year then you wouldn't go into those fields.
Your first year of college is all about taking general education classes from an array of majors offered to find your likes and dislikes. It helps you find your place and what path to choose for your future if you didn't go into college already knowing.
Picking a Major
Picking a major is a very fun experience. You get to put your interests to the test. The best way to pick a major is to read through which programs are offered at your school. Then look into the classes that are required for this degree. If they interest you or help you reach your dream job, then you have found the right major.
You are allowed to change your mind! This college experience is all about growing and learning about who you are. You are allowed to switch majors. Personally speaking, I started college as a Communications major and I am graduating soon as a double major in Communications and Sociology, with a minor in Marketing. Through your time at college, you start to find your interests and what areas you'd like to pursue education wise.
Best Colleges website is a great resource for higher education. They have a page with advice on how to go about deciding on a major:
What is a minor?
A minor is known as a secondary area of specialization of your choosing beyond a major. Students usually complete 16-30 credits in order to earn a minor. It is not required to declare a minor in order to graduate. Students usually decide to use minors in order to complement their current major or explore another area they are interest in.
Social Life
Joining campus events, clubs, teams, or other extracurriculars help balance out a healthy college lifestyle.
How to Meet People in College
When starting your college adventure you may wonder: How long does it take to meet people and make friends? Well, the answer depends on you and your willingness to go out and seek opportunities to meet and interact with others. Attending campus events and getting involved with groups or clubs will help you find possible friends, create new experiences, and learn new about new interests and communities.
Campus Events
Campus events are a great and easy way to approach meeting new people! You can find events happening all the time around campus. From performances to special lectures to parties. Attend anything and everything that sounds like fun to you and you will be able to meet people with similar interests.
Attending sporting events on campus is a great way to branch out, even if sports don't interest you all that much. There is so much school spirit and sporting events and brings the student body for one thing in common: Your team! Whether you go with some people or start a conversation with those sitting around you, you can get to know sport lovers of all kinds. You may even learn about sports clubs offered on campus such as intramurals teams.
Clubs
Discover a club on campus! Most universities have a "Meet Your Clubs" open house event at the start of each semester. You can learn about all the clubs offered which is a great way to meet students with similar interests. If there is a hobby or interest of yours that doesn't already exist as a club, look into starting one! Just check your school's policies on starting up a club, but generally it is a fairly easy process.
More ideas to join student organizations:
Campus Jobs
A job on campus can earn you some extra money while also meeting your peers on campus. Search on your schools website for open positions on campus or visit your school's student success center (or any variation of this) to check what's available. A job on campus can help you make connections that can help you down the line with your career.
I got my first on-campus job a couple years back at The Center for Diversity and Inclusion at my school where I work as a receptionist and peer mentor. This is my third year working there and I have met so many amazing people. I've built impactful connections and made so many friends from that department.
For more ideas on how to put yourself out there, give The Scholarship System's website a visit:
What to expect?
I firmly believe that finding your place on campus and especially finding yourself are such powerful experiences to have when attending college. This blog is to help in anyway possible to help college freshmen, or any college students, reach their full potential. Whether its motivational content, helpful tips, or advice from my personal majors, this blog will strive to help college freshmen have a smooth transition coming from the words of a current college senior.
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