No matter what anyone says, the first week of college is an extremely challenging adjustment for most incoming freshmen. It can be exciting and terrifying at the same time, especially when communal bathrooms are involved. If your first week of college doesn’t come equipped with a solid group of friends and an automatic understanding of your place on campus, don’t worry. Most people aren’t settled either. Acclimating to a new environment can take time, but the growth and emotions you will experience in that first week are both necessary and unparalleled.
Coming from a small high school with a tight-knit group of friends, I’ve definitely found difficulty in my transition. I had the same friends since preschool, who even stuck with me throughout my “awkward phase” in middle school. Friendships take time and effort to form, and you shouldn’t take it personally if it doesn’t happen right away.
“It’s hard because you’re going from somewhere where a lot of people know you and you have all of this history of friends, and then you have to rebrand yourself,” first-year theatre major Evan Penn said about his first week of college.
Friend groups are constantly changing during your first semester of college, but they will form eventually. Transitioning from the top of the food chain in high school to the bottom position in college can be challenging, and its effects on students shouldn’t be minimized.
During the first week of college, I met more people than any other time in my life, and socializing became a workout. I’ve found myself more exhausted after a long day of fraternizing than I do after an intense gym session.
Max Pinheiro, a first-year computer science and cognitive psychology major, explained his process for socializing in college: “I had to force myself to socialize and put myself out there, which was definitely emotionally draining for a while, but I think that that’s a necessary part of the process.”
Remember that everyone is in the same boat and be open to meeting new people. Although keeping the door closed and watching Netflix might seem like a fun time, branch out of your comfort zone. Keeping the door open and hanging out in the common room is a great way to meet people.
College freshmen can underestimate this amazing time in their lives by comparing their experience to others via social media. Freshman year is hard enough without having to stress about whether you’re having a “quintessential college experience” or not. Attending a non-traditional university like Northeastern can be intimidating when all of your friends from back home post “Game Day” photos on Instagram. When I’m feeling major FOMO, I think of all of the amazing opportunities I have at Northeastern and the beautiful city of Boston to explore. Remember that most of the time, social media does not show the full extent of someone’s life, but only what they want others to see.
Moving into college is new, scary, and exhilarating in the best way possible. Like everything in life, there will be ups and downs along the way. Traveling away from home and into the unknown is a huge, life-changing experience, and I promise that you will eventually become a pro at college life … even when it comes to using communal bathrooms.