Disappointment with my freshman year at college

College Majors Engineering Majors
1

<p>Looking back to my freshman year, a lot of it seems like a haze. Nothing that really memorable.</p>

<p>I spent much of my time with engineering organizations (such as SAE Baja and AIAA) during the first semester, though I had to cut back significantly with the increased course load.</p>

<p>I also aggressively attempted to seek an internship or research position... which resulted in no gains.</p>

<p>I had 4 interviews (3 internships, 1 research job), and in the interview for the research position, the manager of the university's hydraulics laboratory was very interested, but couldn't hire me due to the fact that I only had my driver's license for about 1.5 years, and they required 3 years of driving with a license due to their liability insurance policy.</p>

<p>Two other professors informed me that they couldn't hire me because they already hired enough undergraduate research assistants.</p>

<p>Due to my prioritization on involvement with student engineering organizations and job networking, I did not have time to make many friends or participate in social events (such as parties), and I believe it would be more accurate to label my friends as acquaintances considering the fact that they frequently talk about things that I was not part of, thus I can't really participate in the conversations.</p>

<p>Not to mention many of the engineering freshmen on my dorm floor hated due to my desire of getting an internship or research position, always seemly having excuses to avoid social events and hanging out (I don't have the time), and being actively involved with organizations such as SAE Baja or AIAA. I also suspect that they believe that I'm a "nerd".</p>

<p>I learned about their attitude towards me from occasional eavesdropping, since the doors have terrible sound insulation (especially when they're talking loudly).</p>

<p>And there are other freshman engineering students that also seem passive aggressive towards me, though I have no idea why.</p>

<p>I'm starting to question myself if it was even worth seeking an internship or research position as a freshman.</p>

2

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<p>Does it really even matter?..Nope, its in the past. Also, it’s hard for a freshmeat to get an internship. Don’t worry about it, most simply just want to see that you can last longer than a couple semesters in the curriculum before they take a chance on you. </p>

<p>As for listening through walls to hear so a-holes talking about you…
Pick one EC and do it well, instead of a bunch of EC’s that spread you thin. Use the extra time to either hang out with those “acquaintances” and develop a better friendship, or meet people you may have more in common with, maybe people that are in the EC you are involved in. </p>

<p>Otherwise just make sure you have a decent GPA and keep rolling. It’s a marathon. Good luck.</p>

3

<p>I don’t intentionally snoop on them, but when I’m walking down the hallway and I hear someone mention something that pertains to me, I listen in for a short while.</p>

4

<p>I found I made more close friends as I got into more advanced classes. Those were the people I kept running into frequently, and we needed to study together to make it. I had a lot of friends by my junior year, and I’m an introvert. Hang in there! It will get better.</p>

5

<p>Don’t worry about it man. I have done this college thing twice. The first go around I was the life of the party. Went to a top school… spent 5 out of 7 nights at the bar… had every friend in the world… and one horrible GPA. Now during my MS I’m focused. School honestly comes before everything. I am now sitting with a 3.95, two great internships, and one semester left til I graduate. If I would have done this the first time I would have been a lot better off. As fun as the first go was…it was not worth it in the long run.</p>

6

<p>Give it a while and many of the kids that you’re talking about now will either switch majors, drop out of college, or see that you had it right all along. You’re on the right path, and you definitely don’t need to be friends with everybody.</p>

<p>My priorities are school first, extracurriculars second, friends when possible. I’m more of an introvert, so I enjoy spending my free time alone or with my boyfriend. I just eat lunch or dinner with friends every once in a while, study with them, and watch movies when we all have time. It’s definitely easier to find people with the same mindset as you once you go further into your studies.</p>

7

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While these organizations make for good experience, you should remember that quality of experience is better than quantity. If you are going to join an organization, make sure you have a real meaningful role without losing balance with the rest of your college life.</p>

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This should have been your expectation, getting an internship or research position as a freshmen is a rare exception, definitely not the rule. That is why I would not have recommended aggressively seeking one out - after a point, you are just tilting at windmills, which is good for neither you nor the windmill but is definitely worse for you.</p>

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You appear to have cultivated that image.</p>

<p>Look, all you can do is decide where to go from here. What do you want to do? Every year you will gain skills and experiences that will make it easier to get internships and research experience. As sophomore it will still be a reach (so don’t push too hard!) but by junior year you should be able to get something. And if you feel that you are not developing any friendships, then try to make more time for your friends!</p>

<p>You are controlling how you spend your time, and if you spend it all working on academics then you have no excuse for complaining about your lack of social life (and vice versa). Decide your priorities, act accordingly, and get on with it.</p>

8

<p>My impression is that the OP is simply trying too hard and simply needs to pull back a little bit.</p>

9

<p>Don’t beat yourself up for not having a summer position. Neither did my engineering student son after freshman year. He did try… and it made him smarter about the process… but no success. He has gone on to great opportunities (campus and industry) in subsequent summers.</p>

10

<p>First World problems. Just keep trying your best and think about you and your future, who cares about what other people think of you. These people are not paying your bills or they are not going to be there for you after you graduate anyways.</p>

<p>Now that I am more that halfway done with my degree, I realize that a lot of the concerns and all the things I stressed over my first and second semester were really not a big deal after all. </p>

<p>It is nice to have a good GPA and have experience when you graduate but even if you don’t, it is not the end of the world. Stop worrying so much and keep trying your best.</p>

<p>4 years from now, none of these things you are stressing over will matter a bit.</p>