by Alexa Peyton
In high school, you hear a lot of stories about what college life will be like.
Some of them are true – professors do expect a lot more independent thinking, your time management skills WILL be put to the test, and your mom can’t call you in sick when you’re just over it.
Others are profoundly false. We’re here to do away with a few of the untruths.
1. You Have to Choose a Major Right Away
As soon as you mention that you’ve decided to go to college, people will start asking you the question: What will your major be? If you’re like me, that’s going to make you panic every time. I felt like going to college not knowing what I wanted to do was definitely setting me up for failure.
It wasn’t.
If you know what you want to major in, that’s great. (I genuinely mean that, I promise its not just bitter sarcasm.) Pursue that. But if you don’t, THAT IS OKAY. It took a long time for me to realize that it’s perfectly normal not to know what you want to do with your life. Plus, a lot of people who think they know change their major multiple times. I had already changed my major twice before the first semester even started. So don’t fret if you don’t know what you want to do. You have plenty of time to decide! Evangel offers so many major and minor combinations, you’re bound to find something that suits you just right. Just take the general education courses first and get them out of the way. That’ll give you plenty of time to find what you’re passionate about. That’s what college is all about!
2. You Are Going to Live on Ramen Noodles
For whatever reason, everyone thinks they’ll be too poor to afford “real” food. They think that they’ll have to live on ramen for the next 4 years and be sad and hungry all. the. time. To be honest, the thought of eating ramen noodles all of the time has me feeling like this:
I’m not saying you won’t ever eat ramen noodles, because you will (because, let’s be honest – they’re a guilty pleasure). But you definitely won’t be eating them on a daily basis (gag me) unless you want to. If you’re afraid of living on typical college kid food, choose a higher meal plan for the cafeteria and learn to cook some more creative meals in your dorm room. Will it be more expensive? Yes. Will it taste like your mom’s cooking? Literally no. But our caf serves up some amazing eats (and it’s definitely better than starving). It’s worth it, trust me.
3. The Freshman 15
Unless you’re like Augustus Gloop and consume chocolate and junk food around the clock every day, this shouldn’t be a big worry for you. The freshman 15 is a common fear for most new college students, but research shows that students actually gain, on average, 3-5 pounds. Your body fluctuates roughly around that weight range on a daily basis anyway. But if you’re still afraid of the infamous Freshman 15, you can combat it by eating healthy and going to the gym (gross, I know). Or if you’re like me, you can just run up three flights of stairs every day to your class because you’re running late. Again. Whoops. As long as you’re not just going to binge on junk food like chips and ice cream, you’ll probably be fine. Just be aware of your body, and eating and exercise habits. You’ll be golden.
4. You’ll Be BFFs With Your Roommate
We all dream of having that BFF relationship with our roommate (or suitemates) like any of the characters on Friends do.
Unfortunately, there is no guarantee that you will be best friends with your roommate. Or even enemies. It isn’t an “either-or” situation. When I first moved in, it was super awkward getting to know my roommate. Like, super awkward. She had been on campus with my suitemates a whole week before me. So that made it even more awkward. But eventually everything smoothed out and now we’re all like peas in a pod. Obviously, not every pairing will be a perfect match. If you and your roommate end up best friends, that’s fantastic. But juuust in case you don’t, know that it’s completely normal for that to happen. You can always change roommates for the next semester.
5. You will never, ever sleep. Ever.
Another myth is that all college students walk around as caffeine-addicted, sleep-deprived zombies.
This is soooo wrong. Remember all of those naps you refused to take in Kindergarten? Get ready to take them now. You set your schedule (for the most part) and the time between your classes is your own. Nap, do homework, nap some more. You can do it – we believe in you.
When I was in high school, everyone I knew in college made it sound like they were pulling all-nighters all the time. I don’t know about you, but I love sleep and the thought of pulling multiple all-nighters in a semester was absolutely unappealing. Luckily though, I’ve only pulled one all-nighter and it was actually 100% avoidable. All-nighters are super rare (if you use your time wisely during the day). Even if you pull an all-nighter, you’ll already be super skilled in the art of napping anywhere at any time of day.
Alexa is only here because Hogwarts doesn’t accept FAFSA.