<p>Right now I'm sitting in Van Pelt, studying for my Astronomy exam, and the urge to check out CC hit me (or rather the urge to procrastinate).</p>
<p>While I'm here though, I'd like to talk about some of the thoughts I've been discussing with one of my friends at Penn.</p>
<p>Your acceptance letter does not signify the end of your career, it merely marks the beginning of the next chapter in your life. The cliche thing is to talk about how you end up happy wherever you go. It is true for most people, but some do end up unhappy or unsatisfied; regardless of what college they go to.</p>
<p>A common theme is attitude, people end up unhappy because they aren't social, they don't study the right way, they don't get involved in organizations. Other times people let themselves be overcome by adversity, a bad test, a rejection from a club or organization becomes the focal point in their life.</p>
<p>I had a friend go to Penn State on a full scholarship, and first semester she had a 4.0 gpa, acing all of her premed classes. Second semester, she had wanted to join a bunch of clubs, singing, sorority, she tried but didn't get in to them. She bombed one of her midterms, freaked out, became a part time student, and is transferring. It sounds stupid, but unless you're very lucky, adversity will happen, and it is up to you to live on your own and see it through.</p>
<p>Honestly, competition only increases in college, especially at Penn, but also at other universities. Whether it's academically or socially most people expect to be on top, and there's only so much room. My friend and I both went to a very tough high school, and while we both felt academically prepared, I can say with certainty that we've worked a lot harder at Penn in order to even come close to the results that we wanted.</p>
<p>In the end college is what you make of it, you're going to change as a person and find out who your friends are. My worldview at the beginning of the first semester was completely different than what I think now, and the people from my town who I still talk to and stay in touch with are not who I thought at the end of senior year.</p>
<p>So head out there, expect the worst, go for the best, and try some new things. Your life will be what you make of it, at Penn or anywhere else.</p>
<p>Cheers.</p>