I am proud to say I not only survived my first semester of college, but actually did pretty well. When I say I did “pretty well” that means that I ended the semester with all A’s and a 4.0 GPA—so not half bad.
With that being said, my first semester was not easy—not at all actually. I worked really hard and spent a lot of time studying, reading, writing and just doing all that I possibly could to succeed. I would say that all the time I devoted to school paid off. I have been invited to join three different honor society groups and have gotten a lot of praise from my family and friends. When I look back on my first semester, I am proud of what I accomplished, but there are also some things I plan on doing a little differently this semester.
When I mentioned earlier that all I did last semester was study, read and write, I wasn’t lying. I guess since it was my first time away from home and at college, I wanted to do everything right and to the best of my ability. I can definitely say I accomplished that. However, this semester I want to do some other things besides schoolwork 24/7.
I plan to get more involved in the clubs I have joined and to make more of a point to have some down time either with my friends or just by myself.
Last semester I learned that getting good grades isn’t the only thing that’s important in college. It is also important to eat lunch or dinner with a friend, to play pool with a group of friends, and to call your family and friends to keep in touch with them. I learned you need to balance all aspects of life and not just focus on one or two.
I learned a lot in my first semester of college and am ready to take what I have learned and make my second semester even better.
Coming back to school after being on break for a month felt really strange, and it honestly still feels a little weird to be back. In a way, I feel like I am starting over again but with some more background knowledge than before.
As I said, I plan on being more involved in clubs and organizations this semester. I am a super dedicated person when it comes to academics. I don’t really know why—I just always have been. I literally have to force myself sometimes to stop doing homework or studying and go hang out with a friend for a while. I plan on making that more a priority this semester. I’m going to work really hard on finding a good balance so I can still do well in school but also do some social things as well.
That’s actually why I titled this journey entry “Getting back into the groove.” I want to keep my motivation for school but I also want to figure out some other things out and “find my groove.”
Just like last semester, I am sure I will learn a lot this spring—things I want to do differently next semester. I kind of think that’s what life is all about, making mistakes and trying your best to learn from them and keep bettering yourself day after day—or, in my case, semester after semester.
