As the 2024 school year ends, so does a chapter of our lives- especially for OCSA’s graduating class. After the final quarter, the options are endless as you find yourself asking: what’s next? For most, its college, whether they decide to stay in Florida or move elsewhere. However, while the college experience is different for all students, many face the same difficulties while navigating life after high school.
If you’ve already been accepted to a college, it’s all uphill from here! One of the hardest parts of getting into college is the application process. You find yourself stressing over your GPA, test scores, and extracurriculars, but after receiving your acceptance letter, all you have to do is choose your career pathway. While there are limitless options, declaring your major is important; you may want to choose a path that makes money, but it’s also crucial to ensure you’re passionate about your career to enjoy your life in the future. However, there is still some time to plan everything out while you finish your prerequisite classes, like English, Math, Science, History, and Communications. These classes are required for students to give them the knowledge and skills to perform well in their specific programs.
Being a college freshman comes with many responsibilities as you handle school, work, mental health, and possibly bills. Nevertheless, it’s important to keep a balance between every aspect of your life. While you struggle to keep up with the fast college courses, don’t forget to take a breather, and check in with yourself often. Having a planner is important for organization and planning, especially if you’re taking multiple classes. Procrastination proves to be a pain, so watch out for that! For these reasons are studying habits quite effective! Some useful techniques include spaced repetition, which can help improve your memorization of topics with time, and the Pomodoro technique, where you study for 25 minutes, then take a 5- 10-minute break. Remember, consistency is key. Creating good habits not only make you more persistent, but also moves you closer to your ultimate goals.
One of OCSA’s guidance counselors, Ms. Karaki, says “Enjoy the moment and trust the process. College can feel uncertain, it’s a new environment and chapter of your life, but trust in your intuition and know that there are good things on the other end. Enjoy every moment of college, because its only one part of your life, with so much more to come.” College may seem like a roadblock in your life, but remember that you will have much more ahead of you, and this is a small step towards a future of amazing events.
