Are You Prepared for Life as a College Student in the USA

| Posted: 25-02-2008 | Comments: 0 | Views: 10 | Rating: (56)

(?)

College can be some of the "best" years of your life but only if you are ready for it! Now these "Best Years" have to be in context with everything else that one experiences in life. However, the point here is that your years in college can provide you with many great experiences, allow you to make friends for life, often meet your partner for life, enjoy the freedom associated with being away from home, the social and sporting cultures, and combining your studies with the every day pressures of college life. At the end of it all, you will often look back at college with fond memories.

However, not all students are prepared for college life and will tell of less than enjoyable experiences. Most will tell you that they were not prepared for college life and fell into the common pitfalls of many freshmen.

College life constantly evolves and changes and you must learn to also adapt and respond to these changes. These changes could involve relationship problems that affect your studying, conflicts with certain teachers, running into unexpected financial difficulties, family problems, getting injured if you are an athlete, conflicts with fellow students, illness, loneliness and extreme environmental or weather conditions are just to name a few.

Below are just some of the "challenging" issues that you will be confronted with as a student. The list below is not there to scare or shock you, but to merely open your eyes up to the potential issues that may occur during your years at college:

You will have to live in a residence hall for the first time after leaving the comforts of living at home with the full support of your parents. Living in a college dorm can be quite challenging for most freshmen as you will have to deal with all the noise, sharing public bathrooms, hearing people's arguments and following school rules may shock you. Overall it will be a great learning experience that you will soon adjust to and even enjoy.

You will be required to follow school rules and policies with regards to living on campus and following the general rules set fourth by the school. Some of these rules include quiet hours at certain times of the day, not having members of the opposite sex in your room at certain hours, mandatory attendance at meetings and even the occasional fire drill.

You will experience the many social events that occur during the school year such as big sporting events, homecoming, dances, graduations and much more. This is where your calendar will come in handy. You will not want to miss some of these events especially home coming weekend.

There are also the challenges of living with a roommate. College rooms are notoriously small so you will need to respect your roommates space and privacy. This will also include losing the creature comforts of home such as your own personal bathroom or TV. Sharing a TV may come as a shock to you. Once again this will need to be talked about with your roommate. For most guys sport is often the common ground when deciding on what to watch.

You may also experience for the first time some of the not so pleasant life experiences of students dealing with suicides, eating disorders, relationship problems, financial troubles, trouble with drugs and binge drinking, problems with keeping grades and maintaining eligibility.

You will need to maintain a balance between your academic and social life. You will need to establish good study habits right from the start. This involves designating certain times of the day for completing papers or work.

You will need to be more independent. Your parents are no longer around to help you out with every little problem you may encounter. You will need to make the transition from living at home to living with strangers which as discussed can bring about some challenging moments. You should expect there to be more work and commitments.

There will be more stress from both study and personal issues. Once again if you maintain good study habits then you should be able to reduce your stress by staying up with all of your work. You will also be confronted with potentially harmful dangers such as drugs, violence or binge drinking. Now this is often seen in high school so you should have already been confronted with such issues. However, college campuses will often have a life of their own.

You will also establish new friendships while trying to maintain existing relationships with your former high school friends. You will need to create a balance. Your first year in college is all about balance.

Overall, college is a rewarding experience that you will hopefully look back upon with fond memories. A little planning, a little discipline and a lot time management will put you on the right track. All the best with your college career!

Rate this Article:

Current: 0 / 5 stars - 0 vote(s).

Article Tags: College Life, College Financial Aid, College Help Guide, Free Money For College, Life In College

Article Source: http://www.articlesbase.com/college-and-university-articles/are-you-prepared-for-life-as-a-college-student-in-the-usa-341006.html

Print article

Send to friend

Publish this Article

Author feedback

About the Author:

David Horne is co-founder of the College Help Guide. To learn more about planning and going to college in the USA you should visit College Help Guide

Submitting articles has become one of the most popular means of generating quality backlinks and targeted traffic to your website. Join us today - It's Free!

Article Comments

Add new Comment

What Should High School Athletes Look for When Choosing Their College
By: David Horne | 29/02/2008 | College and University
When it comes to choosing your college as a high school athlete you must take some extra time in researching what is on offer to you in the terms of your sport, the quality of coaches, the sporting facilities, avalable scholarships and what type of school it is.

9 Killer Mistakes That Destroy College Scholarship Applications
By: Dale Clifton, The Scholarship Doctor | 24/05/2006 | College and University
Each scholarship application represents one chance to get it right. It makes good financial sense to follow all the directions, get the facts recorded correctly, and use good grammar.

Finding Free Money As A College Student
By: Mark Maiewski | 24/03/2008 | College and University
Why do most college students assume once they have entered the hallowed doors of their universities that their chances for receiving free money are gone. It's just a game on another level. Here's how you can find it.

How Free is the FAFSA?
By: Bill Mccumber | 14/07/2006 | Education
The Free Application for Federal Student Aid is free according to the U.S. Department of Education. It costs you nothing to fill out the form. But it costs families thousands of dollars in lost financial aid if done incorrectly.

Finding Free Money for College
By: Marjorie Salada | 08/07/2008 | Finance
Finding free money for college is not as difficult as it sounds. You just have to know where to look for free money for college. Find out more about applying for free scholarships.

College and Affordable Financial Aid
By: Joe Bella | 14/07/2006 | Non-Fiction
When we head off to a University, we hardly have time to ponder the money situation. Unless we've already had a bout with the "real world," many of us don't consider the financial issue.

College Books for the Einstein in You
By: Dave Poon | 28/08/2006 | Careers
Aside from the humongous tuition fees, room and board, food, transportation allowance and other expenses, another thing that you or your parents need to worry when you go to college are books.

Need Help With College Financial Aid?
By: Dave Poon | 05/09/2006 | Non-Fiction
As a parent, you may be thinking of the financial needs your child need once he enters college.

Got a Question? Ask.

Ask the community a question about this article:

Q&A Powered by:

Latest College and University Articles

How to Identify a Diploma Mill
By: Amelia Turner | 07/08/2008
A diploma mill is an organization that offers education certifications, diplomas or degrees which require little or no academic study. The degrees offered by diploma mills are "fake" degrees which are not recognized in the job market. It's not worth to risk your future by getting a degree from diploma mill. You must avoid these diploma mills with your best effort. Here are a few tips to help you identify if an education organization is potentially a diploma mill.

Beginning of Studies at College
By: Brendan Lee | 06/08/2008
The entrance the college is very important event in life of many people.

How to Adapt at Foreign College or University?
By: Brendan Lee | 06/08/2008
In many cases those who get the possibility to go to study abroad are the best students

New Student Flats in Falmouth Use Innovative Construction Techniques
By: Falmouth Student Accommodation | 06/08/2008
Falmouth Student Accommodation in the Maritime Apartment complex. With sea views and everything Cornwall has to offer on your doorstep, this is the ultimate accomodation for students at Falmouth, Tremough, Penryn, and the Combined Universities of Cornwall

Accredited Online Bachelors Degree . A Simple Overview
By: Derek Smiley | 05/08/2008
Obtaining your accredited bachelors degree online will enable you to take advantage of carrying out your business on the Internet.

How to Study Math and Physics Effectively
By: Duncan Kelly | 05/08/2008
I wrote a physical science exam and got 38%. Two months later I was allowed to rewrite the exam and I got 88%. Find out what I did in those two months...

Useful Summer for Students
By: Diego Hernandez | 05/08/2008
When the academic year is over, a lot of students begin to look for summer job or summer internship.

Take Care About Money for College in Advance!
By: Diego Hernandez | 05/08/2008
There are a lot of people who think about education at college for their children

More from David Horne

Promote Your Band or Music Using These Massive Traffic Building Tips
By: David Horne | 25/07/2008 | Music
Let's face it, Band Promotion is difficult. However, to promote your band or music use these massive traffic building tips.

Proven Methods to Sell Your Music Online and Promote Your Band
By: David Horne | 18/07/2008 | Music
The internet has revolutionised the music industry and how music is sold and distributed online. If you are a budding musician or band and are looking for ways to sell your music online then below are some proven methods to get you started.

Wimbledon 2008 Mens Final - How Nadal Really Beat Federer
By: David Horne | 07/07/2008 | Sports and Fitness
Rafael Nadal beat Roger Federer in a classic Wimbledon final that had it all from rain delays, come backs, brilliant shots to the crowning of a new Wimledon champion.

French Open Tennis 2008 Review - The Amazing Story Just Told
By: David Horne | 14/06/2008 | Sports and Fitness
"Ivanovic fulfils grand slam destiny" and "Rafa the undisputed King of Roland Garros." These were headlines that could have been written before the tournament and so the 2008 French Open transpired.

Everything You Need to Know About Soccer at the Beijing Olympics in 2008
By: David Horne | 14/06/2008 | Soccer
Undoubtedly soccer is the world's biggest game. Sure the World Cup, F.A Cup or UEFA cup may draw more interest but for all the teams competing in this year's Beijing Olympics there will be some very determined players who want to win that gold medal

Basketball at the Beijing Olympics in 2008 will be Sure to Dominate as a Crowd Favorite
By: David Horne | 12/06/2008 | Basketball
Basketball is definitely a global sport that has shown continued growth over recent years and the Beijing Olympics will showcase some of the worlds best players outside of the USA.

Why Power Training is Essential to Becoming a Faster Athlete
By: David Horne | 25/02/2008 | Basketball
For many athletes they are just wasting their precious time by doing nothing but sprints when trying to become faster athletes. Add some power training to your workouts and watch your speed take off!

Article Categories

Article Marketing

Article Notepad

Stop Duplicate Content

Term Papers

Follow ArticlesBase at http://twitter.com

Need Help?

Sign up for our email newsletter

Receive updates, enter your email below

Use of this web site constitutes acceptance of the Terms Of Use and Privacy Policy | User published content is licensed under a Creative Commons License.
Copyright © 2005-2008 Free Articles by ArticlesBase.com, All rights reserved. (0.31, 17)

Are You Prepared for Life as a College Student in the USA

Article Comments

Related Articles

Got a Question? Ask.

Latest College and University Articles

More from David Horne

Need Help?

Site Links

Webmasters

Business Info

Sign up for our email newsletter