Transitions

The beginning of college is a most tumultuous time. I have 75 new engineering students who are starting this transition and I brought my Liz to college this weekend. I shared this posting with all of them through facebook and thought I would add it here. Perhaps you remember this time in your life:

"The hardest four months of my life were those that comprised the first semester of college. There are so many conflicting emotions and fears.

I think the hardest part was feeling like something was over forever. I knew I was in the right place and that my parents fully supported me, but my life as a child was over and that hurt. This caused me to be homesick.

College is scary. There is so much unkown. Am I good enough? Is everybody else smarter than me? Will I do well in my classes? Will I like my major? Do I have enough money to get to the end of the semester? Will I let down my family if I don't do really well?

I could go on and on. There is just so much.

Well, that first semester was 23 years ago. Since then I have been a friend and teacher to thousands of students who have gone through this same semester. From these experiences, I have some insight I can share with you.

The first is for you to understand that if you are feeling any of the things I listed above, you are perfectly normal and almost everyone around you is feeling the same way.

The second is that from this semester forward everything gets much better. Time will go faster, you will be happier, you will do better in your classes, you will become comfortable with your new life.

Third and finally, I offer up these suggestions for how to make it through this semester:

*Don't ever skip class. Nothing good can come from that bad habit.
*Do your homework as early in the day as possible - in other words, get all of your work done and then go have fun. The other way around just doesn't work well.
*Stay in communication with the important people in your life. These people are the ones who have always given you comfort - get comfort of them now when you need it.
*Learn how to do well in your classes. Don't just go through the motions of studying, but invest yourself in learning the material so that you can take it with you - by doing this you will do better in your classes.
*Find some study friends. Learning with someone else is much more effective and more fun.
*Do all the things your mother would tell you - eat right, get enough sleep, and find time to exercise.

This is the beginning of a wonderful new life. But the transition to getting there will feel like hell sometimes. My life is about helping you through this transition. I am available to talk anytime by facebook, email, or phone."