I hate college

Student Lounge College Life
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<p>Long rambling post, read it and give me your opinions if you've been in a similar situation or have any practical advice. </p>

<p>I applied to a bunch of colleges and didn't get into any but a few. During the whole application process i didn't really put a lot of thought into where i exactly wanted to go. I was denied to the school some of my really close friends all ended up going to so from the start its all been sort of a let down. Anyways i ended up going to a college where i only knew a few people but I'd call them more acquaintances than actual friends. So the main point is that I'm going to a school i really didn't even want to go to in the first place. The whole summer I've been kinda dreading coming here but i thought I'd give it a shot. I would have to say i hate it here but even that would be a serious understatement. I've joined a few clubs, been outgoing, but cannot seem to find anyone with similar interests or anyone i would actually want to become friends with. I try and start up conversations with people in my classes but for the most part go ignored or simply a brief conversation then I'll never see the person again (classes are huge). A majority of the people who come here are local and already have a majority of their high school here so they already know a ton of people and have formed their own cliques. Also everyone in my hall already knows each other and aren't very friendly so that also has been a letdown. Being a freshman a majority of my classes are just your typical general courses and aren't very interesting but i guess that is the case in any college. Since I've been here all i can think about is home and what i miss about home. Combine my experience thus far with slight depression and social anxiety and you have a recipe for disaster. I'm trying the best i can believe me but it just seems that its not working out. Ideally, I'd like to come home either soon or after the semester ends and enroll in the community college in my area. College so far has been pretty overwhelming and when i try to communicate this to my parents they don't really seem to actually understand how miserable i am here. Everyday i just find myself wanting to go home more and more. I have not adjusted at all to college and need to find a way to articulate this to my parents and have them actually understand that i want to have come home and more importantly have them accept that. I grow more miserable by the day, please help!</p>

<p>P.S. I've already talked to my mom about my situation but she said that everyone goes through it and to give it time. This was the first few days of me being on campus and before i tried to be more outgoing. Still almost 3 weeks later i am still extremely miserable, homesick, and pretty depressed.</p>

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<p>Sympathy from a parent here. It is a big adjustment, and hard when you go to a college where a lot of people know each other. Making connections can be really hard. I guess the only advice I would give you is to know that it often takes a while to make meaningful connections in any new situation (college included). Keep trying with your hallmates, clubs, etc. It only takes a couple of friends to start enjoying it more. All else fails – use extra time in the library to get a great GPA this year so you are well positioned to transfer if necessary. But I say give it a full year, and consider transfer applications next fall if it isn’t any better. You will have more choices (beyond CC) if you do this.</p>

<p>I can’t really blame your parents for telling you to keep trying. Assuming they are helping to foot the bill, they want you to give it an earnest effort. And… they might think college is really about classes/what you learn/preparing for a career, not socializing anyway (silly parents!). As long as you can handle the coursework, I say stick it out through the year for sure. Also… your classes probably will get more interesting (and smaller) once you get beyond the intro level. Again, that takes time.</p>

<p>Also… consider your options for housing next year if you don’t like your dorm this year. Is there any special interest housing on campus? Or do you have a co-op system or something like that? Those houses are often good places to find a social group. You might even see if you can transfer to that kind of housing at the semester break if something appeals to you. Some college have a lot of students going abroad in the spring, so housing options can open up that weren’t there in the fall.</p>

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<p>You are wise to want to wait until at least the end of the semester. That will give you time to really make the adjustment. Yes, it can be HARD. Remember, though, that just as you are struggling, there are others out there who are struggling the same way that you are, feeling lonely and as if they don’t fit in. Three weeks is really not that long. You said yourself that you can be depressed and that you have a bit of social anxiety. You can’t expect yourself to jump in and be used to everything in this short time. </p>

<p>Hang in there, sweetie. I want to add, too, that you are just fine the way you are. You don’t have to be a social butterfly to enjoy school. Take it easy on yourself, give yourself a bit of time. Chances are very, very great that you’ll find your niche, and you’ll make your friends. (hughughug)</p>