Adjusting as a Freshman

Coming into Ashland University as a freshman I was met with a lot of first impressions, a lot of questions, and a lot of eye-opening moments. As almost expected, I was certainly faced with freshman anxiety. As many new coming students will be. And while freshman anxiety and student anxiety show up differently depending who the student is, it may all be centered around the same issues. Hopefully these words of wisdom will help an incoming student, prospering student, or current student on campus.

1. You still have an abundance of time to make decisions.

a. It’s perfectly okay to not know. When I came on to campus, I had an idea of how I wanted my life to be after 4 years of college. I almost immediately realized that those ideals may not work. And that is okay!!! College is a time to work through your ideals and your future thoughts and find our which path is best for you.

2. It’s okay to not overly stress yourself out with too many extracurricular activities.

a. At first, I was stressed because I felt like I wasn’t doing enough. I then realized; I still have time for activities later. And I then had extra time for studying and relaxing on down time.

I’ve learned the beginning of college can be as stressful or calm and relaxing as we make it. So in times of anxiety and stress of the future, remind yourself to enjoy the moment, because you still have TIME!!

- Anthony