I came into college not thinking much of it. I was very successful in high school academic and athletic wise, so I thought college would not be that much different. But it was very much so different.

Although, where I am at right now compared to where I thought I would be are very similar. I hoped for above a 3.5 GPA, getting involved in clubs, and completing most of my pre-requisites for my major. And I can confidently say and look back that I did reach those goals. Along the way came great friends and connections as well.

The way I approached high school would not have kept me alive in college. I soon realized that I am going to have to put more work in, better my time management, and watch after my health. In high school I was able to study for tests or finals the day before and still do relativity well. I didn’t have to do much work at home if any and I enjoyed hanging out with friends and never put much thought into school, only when I needed to. If I didn’t change my work ethic I would not be where I am today. Within the first few weeks of classes, I saw how important finals were for your grade in the course. All courses were also semester length instead of yearly like high school, so I knew the material would seem to fly by. The events and speakers that OSU had available for freshman can be attributed to most of my success. I went to seminars on time management and stress and actually followed what they said to try. I schedule my work at the beginning of each week, understanding what I need to complete and by when. This proved to be the most  helpful thing I did all year.

I also got involved in my Stem Scholars program as the Social Co-Chair and I couldn’t have been happier when I received the role. I look forward to mentoring fellow scholars and creating an organization that follows the honors and scholars G.O.A.L.S. Overall I faced ups and downs but the adversity I faced over the year only made me a better student for myself and my fellow peers. I know that over this summer, I’m going to be counting down the days till I come back.

When asked what’s one thing that changed the most over my first semester of college, my answer is always my work habits. In high school I was able to study the night before big tests or wait to start homework the night before its due, but that has all changed. I couldn’t relay on my old ways and I had to adapt new ways to do my work. I decided that whenever something was due, I would try to start it a week in advance. This would give me an opportunity to look at the material and identify what I needed to go and study or learn in order to complete the assignment. This new method I began doing also gives me the opportunity to use office hours and meet with professors or TA’s. If I was ever stuck in high school, I never would have time to ask questions because I started the assignment to late and I would have to do my best to teach it to myself which sometimes proved to be very stressful. Another resource that I have found very useful is where I live. Living with similar students with similar majors means we are in a lot of the same courses and are able to help each other with the material if we are stuck. This saves time and a hike to wherever the tutoring centers are on campus. My first semester in college drew out the baseline of what I should expect and what I needed to change, and I cannot wait for the challenges to come.