Trust The Process
I remember thinking that nothing could be more stressful and discouraging than the college admissions process… that was until I got my rejection letter from my dream school.
Senior year I had fallen in love with one university in particular and simply could not imagine myself anywhere. I applied to nine other schools because I simply had to, but I resented each one of them. Well… thankfully I did because my plan did not go as expected as I did not get admitted to my top choice. I so vividly remember the immediate shock (not to sound pretentious), however, with time, my body was filled with stress, resentment, and fear. I did not want any other schools. I was so stubbornly set on my first choice that I ended up having the worst mindset about the next four years of my life in college. I wanted to dorm alone, didn’t make friends for the first two years, was set on transferring even before my first day of classes, studied for a major I was disinterested in, and, essentially, became depressed.
Fast forward two years with the transfer process not working out in my favor AGAIN, I had an absolute shift in my mentality in which I was determined to make the most of my remaining two years in school before I entered the real world. I switched my major, became a research assistant for an amazing professor, lived with three friends, and learned to absolutely love this college I once resented. In hindsight, I am in the place where I am meant to be, and almost wish I ED’ed this place my senior year of high school instead of my “dream school.”
You may be slightly confused why I shared all this information. However, the moral of the story is that having an amazing college experience is about your mindset and effort. Go into your freshman year unbiased, realizing all the amazing things college has to offer, regardless of what college it may be. No matter if your college is close to home or far, located in the frigid cold or in the blazing sun, on a campus or in a metropolitan area, public or private, or your dream school compared to your last choice… it is completely possible and likely that you will receive an amazing education, make lifelong friends, and leave with the best memories of your life so long as you realize it is possible and takes effort. Nothing in college, unfortunately, comes easy but it is all worth it. Put yourself out there and get involved… trust a fellow stubborn introvert that had to go through this firsthand to realize all the good college has to offer.
by Dani Sitzer, Cornell University 2022