Your Time To Shine

Your college experience is truly what you make it. It can be intimidating at first, but college is filled with a series of opportunities waiting for you to take advantage of.

It was a delicate process in deciding which university I would attend, but once I felt secure about the faculty and administrative support that would enhance my potential at USC, I knew that I made the right decision. I have always been the ‘overachiever’ – too involved, stressed, but still passionate – and all of that remained the same when I got to college. Unfortunately, I had to learn the hard way that prioritizing yourself is the most important part of your college experience. I’d always signed up for leadership positions and pursued everything I’d ever wanted, so I didn’t see the problem when I took the same approach in college.

This is my first piece of advice for entering freshwomen:

Take Time for Yourself – Your parents, siblings, and friends can’t make those important decisions like what your major will be and what organizations you will join. You are in college for you. This may seem a little bit selfish, but I promise you’ll thank me later. If you can’t go to school to make yourself happy (i.e. choosing a major your parents like), then you won’t be happy later and will most likely end up in a career field that makes you resent those past decisions. College is also a great time to learn yourself because you’re at such a pivotal point in your life. You’re pursuing the things that you enjoy, while understanding how you can apply your interests to your future career. My roommate recently wrote an article about this very topic for the blog version of USC’s first women’s newspaper Helen called Alis Volat Propiis. It put a lot in perspective for me, and I think you’ll find it encouraging as well.

My next piece of advice is about flexibility. College is meant to challenge you. This is most likely the first time you’ll be around people from different places and different backgrounds. I was so used to being around my friends who naturally shared the same core set of values and interests, that a lot of things that my roommates and peers were used to were brand new for me.

Be Open – Have an open mind about things that are different than what you’re used to. It’s not always about seeing things as right and wrong, but accepting people for who they are. For example, most of my friends smoked weed, and although I didn’t, we were still able to relate to each other based on other commonalities between us. And if nothing else, respect the people around you. It doesn’t matter if you don’t agree with them, because you don’t have to be friends with everyone. But you should have a good reputation (it follows you everywhere) and be able to work with others who aren’t just like you. It’s very hard to find another person just like you, especially in college, so be prepared to adjust. Don’t forget the values your family instilled in you, but you can also be open to others’ differences.

In case I haven’t mentioned it already, your grades are your most important priority. You did a lot of work in high school to get this far, and although college may just seem like ‘the next step’, it’s not high school. It’s all about you and how you manage your time. College is like a giant social playground – you live with your friends, eat with your friends, party with your friends, and stay up all night talking to your friends. Some of my smartest classmates have the lowest grades because they couldn’t find the balance. Finding the balance between work and play is crucial to your college success. If you study all of the time, or get caught up in other extracurricular activities without giving yourself a break, you’ll go crazy. You might have good grades, but eventually you’ll crack and then your grades might even suffer as well. On the other side, if you play too much and don’t spend enough time on your work, your grades will also go down. And if you have scholarships, please note that they most likely have academic stipulations like maintaining a certain GPA.

It’s OK to be undeclared or not know exactly what you want to do after college. You’re in college to learn about yourself. Some people have it figured out before they get to college, but the average student changes their major almost 3 times. I started school without a major and with the help of my academic advisor, I took classes that I was interested in, and eventually found a major that allowed me to pursue all of my many interests. Don’t rush yourself, you’ll figure it out when you need to.

And last but not least, have fun! You only get this experience once and speaking as someone who is already half way done, you can’t go back and do it all over again. It’s ok to make mistakes and ask for help because believe it or not, most of your peers don’t have it figured out either.

Stay positive, congratulations and good luck!

--Brittany Allen
Brownstone Intern