Is college what you thought it would be?

<p>I guess I was a little naive to think that college was what I saw in Animal House or in all those other movies. Has anybody expected much more only to be brought to reality, or is it just me? I didn't stop to enjoy the fun my freshman year because I was expecting so much more, and because of that I transferred to a different school. Now at my new school, I can't help but think that I have made a stupid decision, as I am not having as much fun as I did at the old school I transferred from. The regret kills me, as I didn't realize how good my old situation was, because I was expecting so much more. Can anybody else relate...? Or just lie to assuage my regret?</p>

<p>It takes some people a long time to adjust to a school after transferring. It’s much harder when you start out someplace as a non-freshman.</p>

<p>What twisted said. I just essentially transferred to a new school. So far I haven’t met too many people, although I get on pretty well with some folks in my math class (today’s the first day). I’m not too worried about it though; I’m sure I’ll make good pals in ROTC and even then, my girlfriend is about an hour and a half away if the subway and buses are running smoothly (she’d only be 20 minutes away by car…)</p>

<p>^Isn’t that frustrating? Boyfriend is 5 minutes away by car and 45 by bus, but we have no car so bus it is. If he had a car he could come up for lunch but with the travel time by bus we need a good four or five hours to make the trip worth it.</p>

<p>This is my second semester at Michigan having transferred and I am just now starting to meet people here. I have made new friends at other schools but not any here yet. I am starting a student organization though, the first meeting is this wednesday, so hopefully that will help. If nothing else I’ll be busier, if that is humanly possible!</p>

<p>My biggest issue is that the juniors are all lumped into social groups already and it can be tough to crack into them, especially when you don’t party on weekends and need to find other ways to hang out with people regularly, so it is easiest to make friends with freshmen but most of them are way too immature. I live with one and it is hell on earth. I am starting to wonder if I will graduate before ever enjoying the social aspects of college.</p>

<p>^ get a bike, five minute car ride is probably a 20 minute bike ride?</p>

<p>Twisted-Why can’t he just walk/run for 20-30 minutes to get to you?</p>

<p>Because he isn’t going to walk, run, or bike on the expressway? His neighborhood is also really not good, if it didn’t get dark at 4 oclock I’d consider a bike as a viable option worth looking into if he had one, but I don’t want him outside in his city in the dark. But that’s not what this thread is about.</p>

<p>I think in college you really have to venture outside of your comfort zone and try some new things. And when you’re able to do that especially with people in the same boat, you develop some of the best college experiences that will last a life time. Keep your expectations at a moderate level and some of the best times will come when you least expect it. Like a road trip to vegas on a sat afternoon and coming back at 4am…haha.</p>

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<p>I wonder a lot about that as well. </p>

<p>As a commuter student, it is not that I dislike the commute, but it is that the commute itself isolates me socially from the rest of the student population. Given the level of social interaction that I enjoyed with my peers back in high school, coming to college has reduced this level of social interaction by quite a bit.</p>

<p>But, oh well. I am here for an education and a degree; I guess the fun will come later in a non-college context.</p>

<p>Its funny though how I have sort of changed in college. I was a total goof off in high school, I mean I wouldn’t do homework, study for tests or anything. Now I have a 3.8 at a decent university. The thing that stinks for me is that I transferred to a party school and for the most part people don’t take the education aspect as seriously as I would have hoped. I mean I am as immature as the next clown and I party for the most part on the weekends, but I don’t start on a Wednesday like my roommates do.</p>

<p>It sounds like you learned a good lesson. Don’t fix it if it ain’t broke.</p>

<p>As for inflated expectations, welcome to adult life. Nothing is as good as it’s portrayed to be.</p>

<p>College can be a let down for sure. It is so hyped that the expectations way exceed reality. Realistically college is a huge adjustment for most…being away from home for the first time and having to start all over after being with some of the same friends since elementary school can be daunting. Figuring out how to get along in dorm style living, how to organize your time, social pressures, academic pressures, etc. it can be a very overwhelming experience. The problem is that once you have it all down and are in a good place, it’s over, and then you have to start all over again with… (gasp)… the job market!</p>

<p>I haven’t been yet but i will be quite disappointed if there isn’t a white guy rapping about how much he loves college.</p>

<p>I was a horrible “student” in high school. I didn’t try or do any work and somehow managed to graduate with a little over a 3.0 GPA.</p>

<p>I guess(I don’t completely understand what happened) when I entered College I unconsciously urged myself to be a better student. So when I saw all the other students doing all these things that would be counter-productive to my own learning (From Partying to being a couch potato) I guess I just decided to say no and stuck with my decision.</p>

<p>Four years later I look back and don’t feel a single regret for never getting involved in any of this. My mind was never even close to this active in high school and I have a bright future ahead of me in academics or the workplace.</p>

<p>There’s surprisingly a higher level of immaturity that high school has never reached…big disappointment.</p>