As many of you may have experienced or have been fortunate enough to dodge, college can be a very scary experience. Starting a new aspect in life can be intimidating due to the unknown and starting completely over from a failed or not up to ideal experience can be absolutely terrifying! Whether you are a freshman, transfer student, coming back to school from a gap or even a student who would like to adjust better to the college life, this post’s goal is to help you adjust and feel more comfortable in the college environment.

After moving around a lot in a two-year span while continuing my education, I have actually attended a total of four colleges, crazy right? I would be lying if I didn’t say it was a roller coaster but after a lot of trial and error, I have finally found my niche. Before we get into depth some important steps to make sure everything is settled is to understand what is expected of you and how to make sure you are doing everything you need to. This includes speaking to advisement, financial aid, making sure your credits have transferred over and you understand the campus so you can get to everywhere you need to be. My advice is if you do not know who to speak to about any matter is to go to Laffin, where just about all helpful offices are and someone will know the right direction to point you to. Feel free to look at campus directories along the pathways on campus or even carry around a map. There’s no need to feel stupid, everyone is a new student at one point of their college journey and there is no shame in not knowing where to go. For all those self conscious people out there, looking at the map on the school website on your phone has been a life saver/ writing all my classrooms and times down in my notes app. Another huge helpful spot that you may want to consider is Transfer Services, which can be found in Laffin on the second floor.

Now for the scary part, the social part and feeling like you fit in, if that’s what you are looking for in a college experience. I’m going to channel your mom when you were a freshman in high school and say what my mom told me to do every time I wanted to meet new people and make more friends, “Join clubs, get involved!” This is the simplest of solutions because you can find a club that interests you and if you’re lucky you are bound to meet to people with similar interests as you! If you feel like you rather spend your time making money than being a part of club, you can look into getting a job on campus where you can meet other students working and/or staff. I have made most of my friends in the classrooms, what better way to bond with a stranger than to panic about tests together and to help each other study? If you make at least one friend in each class, you will automatically have a study buddy and that is just an added bonus to a new friendship. I randomly asked one girl sitting next to me if she was waiting for the class I was waiting for because we had a two hour gap between classes and we instantly clicked. We have been great friends and although you may think people are engulfed in their phones or don’t want to talk, many people do. So my advice is to put yourself out there, talk to anyone and everyone you can, what do you have to lose?

It is important to know your limits and what you are capable of every time you start something new in life. Try your best to go at your own pace and ignore what anyone else thinks is best for you because only you know what works for you. Start with a small plate, you can always go back for seconds. If you are unhappy with the way things are going, do everything in you can to change it and you will have the satisfaction of knowing you have tried. Don’t feel alone or that you are all over the place, you are doing great and the effort of trying and fighting for yourself is more important than anything else. Don’t give up on yourself and like you have heard so many times “Just do you.” Others will see your success and efforts and will be drawn to you. Keep doing your thing and good luck with adjusting and thriving at Farmingdale State College!