Five Things You Realize In Your Sophomore Year of College

By Tamiera Vandegrift on December 4, 2015

It’s that wonderful time of year yet again. As your third semester is coming to a close, it’s time to reflect on some of the things you’ve realized during your sophomore year of college that are probably washing over you like that 4 a.m. ice cold shower after bawling your eyes out because you have an exam in four hours that you haven’t even begun to study for. We know this feeling all too well. Here are five fundamental truths that we’ve all realized at the exact same time.*

1.  You are your own best friend.

This is one of the most important lessons anyone can learn, even outside of college. Everyone in the “squad” you hung out with during freshman year has probably gone their separate ways by now, or at least your squad has decreased in size. Unlike your high school days, friends are no longer made out of convenience. By your sophomore year of college, the friendships you make are formed from shared interests and common career goals, of course, but more often than not, you will find yourself spending a lot more time alone than you’re used to. By all means, this isn’t a bad thing. Being your own best friend is the best thing you can do for yourself. Friends and relationships come and go so it’s important to love the person you are. After all, you and yourself are stuck together.

2. Home has been redefined.

I distinctly remember talking to someone during my Thanksgiving vacation at my parents’ house and catching myself saying, “I’ll be home on Sunday.” This revelation was as shocking for me as I’m sure it is for many of you. Even though your “home” home is with your family away from your college campus, your college campus has become more of a home than ever. Your dorm room or apartment building has become as welcoming and comforting as your daybed and pillow pet back in your hometown. Your dining hall may have become as nourishing and relaxing as the kitchen you’ve grown up in. Your friends and professors become your family in a strange way. Over the course of four years, your college campus will become more and more of a homey location for you, as your childhood home may be where you grew up, but your college campus will become the place where you grew into the person who you were meant to be.

3.  You’ve learned how to “college”… Somewhat

College is a pretty overwhelming time. Twelve years of your life was spent preparing for it and now here you are. “Congratulations, you’ve entered the real world,” people will proclaim. I stand with John Mayer when I say that there’s no such thing as a real world. College only seems like the unholy abyss of darkness when you’re viewing it from the outside, while overhearing the words “finals”, “tuition”, and “professors”. Once you say “Geronimo” and plunge into that abyss, you’ll find that it isn’t actually much of an abyss at all. You’ve gotten into the swing of things. By now, you can navigate your campus, you know where the best places to eat on campus are, and you know when the best time to hit the library is. After all, the leap from high school to college isn’t that huge of a leap. Sure, there’s plenty of differences that you’ve identified over the course of your studies, but college life is most likely not what you imagined in your mind on your first day moving in. The bottom line is that you know what you’re doing now and you’re on your way to doing some pretty amazing things.

4. You’ve discovered the importance of balance

The journey to your bachelor’s degree is an elaborate, complex balancing act. I’m not referring to the type you can find in circus tents that rely on balance, physical strength, and otherwise traits that I don’t have. I’m referring to something far more impressive, no offense to any circus performers. This balancing act requires self-discipline, self-control, and ultimate dedication to academics. Whether you’re a shameless queen (or king) of procrastination, like me, or the studious type that plans everything way ahead of time, you’ve learned how to apply your talents with the upmost skill. As a college student, you know how to balance the impossible: five courses with demanding workloads, extracurricular activities that require weekly interaction, jobs or internships, and the minute tasks that you only take part in because you need to survive (i.e. eating, sleeping, socializing, etc..) After your third term, you’ve no doubt mastered this feat. Congrats, you’re more impressive than that Romanian Olympian who dominated the balance beam. Well, roughly.

5. You don’t have it all figured out and that’s okay!

If you’ve entered your college career with a definite, laminated roadmap without a single detour, I’m sorry to say it, my friend, but you’ve missed the entire point of college. This is the time to take plenty of detours on this little highway to your degree. It’s time to take that random elective based off of the life and times of Beyoncé. It’s the time to go eat the greasiest, guilt-free load of McDonald’s with your friends at 4 a.m. It’s time to snuggle up and watch some random documentary on cuttlefish for God’s sake. Whatever you do, take those detours! Don’t let anyone try to tell you that you’re doing something wrong by not having a concrete plan for the rest of your life. My fellow collegiate friend, you’ve made it this far up the professional mountain already. Now it’s time to relax and enjoy the view.

*This has been a shameless Hamilton reference.

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