Jack Mahoney
Mr. Drown
English 122
9/12/19
Some people say that there are similarities to high school and college, and it is safe to say that they are completely different. What should be learned in the 4 years you have of both high school and college are skills that seem impossible to connect. In college there are 3 different aspects in which I think are most important to learn. One of the three aspects is personal growth, then educational growth and finally building a sturdy mental foundation in which propels you for the tough decisions you will have to make in the future after college. It was the summer going into my senior year, when I felt the full weight of the college process drop onto my shoulders. I remember feeling helpless as I looked into the eyes of the college process, not knowing where to start. I felt overwhelmed when looking at schools because I felt as if my grades were not good enough to get in. My advice for those in the school searching process would be to imagine if you were already a student at the school, and try to see if you could find yourself being successful on that campus. Once I finally chose to attend and play football at the University of New England, I have learned that the 3 most important things to learn are personal, educational, and mental growth.
The jump from high school to college personally was not as bad as everyone said it was going to be, but is definitely something to be ready for. For the first time in your life, you are living by yourself without your parents and other family to help, that is why personal development is very important. A professional educator named Alix Cirac states, “College should be about self-discovery and self-improvement, and those that can add this as a priority will experience better job prospects in their field, as well as happier, more well-rounded lives, when they finish their degree.” The writer believes that college is a crucial step to prepare you for a successful career because you will have an organized system in place. Developing relationships with fellow students is definitely important as well. College can be a lonely place if you don’t have a few friends around, so it’s definitely important to get involved with programs on campus to develop those relationships. A professional named Lindy Schneider stated, “Self-improvement is learning and adopting ways to respond better to others and to life situations. This entails practicing professionalism so that you are better in the workplace. It entails being consistently gracious, so you have better personal relationships.” She believes that being a well rounded person will therefore allow a person to push themselves in the classroom and I couldn’t agree more. Along with this, another important thing to master is educational growth. As an incoming freshman, it is up to the student to advocate for his or her self in the classroom while using the study habits developed in high school and taking them to the next level. Along with this, time management is an essential tool to use. Being a college athlete, time management is everything. I have to balance my rigorous academic requirements with practice and workouts. On the academic side of things, my advice to incoming freshmen would be to use every resource that is made available to you. I would recommend getting a tutor for subjects that the student may struggle in and staying after with your professors to develop a relationship with them. Finally, the last thing that is most important to learn before college is achieving mental growth. My advice for this topic hopefully sheds some light on the importance of this important step. My advice would be to be the most mature person you can be. As a freshman, you are living by yourself for the first time, and navigating that may get challenging. In the room, you are sharing a living space with another person and are responsible for your personal belongings at all times. Along with this, you are responsible for doing your own laundry and cleaning your living space. Connecting to the need for maturity, incoming freshman need to make smart and safe social choices. It is important to associate yourselves with others that will always have your back, and that they know will make appropriate decisions when asked to drink or smoke. Acting mature will not only help them in everyday life, but will allow them to be developed students. In conclusion, personal, educational and mental growth are the most important things to learn before graduating from college.
