WELCOME TO PENN STATE Class of 20(something).
Dear Future Penn State Freshie,
I’m sure you just got the largest envelope of your life with a Nittany Lion on it!
Welcome to THE HAPPIEST PLACE ON EARTH (next to Disney World).
Officially, I would like to tell you how proud you should be to have been accepted into this school.
Welcome to the most exciting four years of the first 2.5 decades of your life!
So, I would love to break the news. This experience will be fun. challenging. exciting. new. beautiful. rowdy. loud. quiet. exhilarating. scary. active. social. very social. powerful. awkward. cold. icy. flexible. bold. humbling. inclusive. studious. INDEPENDENT.
I feel as though the last word brings about different feelings for everyone. For you, it might be the hardest part because maybe you’ve never done much for yourself. I promise, you’ll be okay! For me, it was my favorite part of the Fall Semester.
Since it’s the middle of your senior year of high school, don’t let senior-itis kick in too soon. Live up your senior year because it is the last few days with the people that you have grown up with, cried with, laughed with and spent so many hours in high school with. You never know when you’ll see them again or if you’ll see them again.
Next, make sure that Happy Valley is the place for you. While so many of us fall in love with the 814 and call it home, the school may be too big, too far, too loud or too proud for your liking. Even if you’re like me and you’ve been coming to Penn State football games since you were six months old, still go on the tour. Come to Accepted Students Day. Feel it all out. Spend the night here with one of your friends who graduated from your high school. I’m sure one of them must go here. Everyone talks about getting that feeling that everyone feels at one point on a college campus. I seriously toured everywhere except Penn State. I always knew what kind of feeling I get in State College, Pennsylvania. It’s that warm fuzzy feeling…But, I wanted to make sure that I didn’t get it anywhere else. I toured and toured and never felt that special feeling anywhere is. Every other school was too small, too conceited, or too quiet. But, my advice to you is take the tours. I hate having regrets or thinking I should of / would of…I’m so happy that I’m here but you want to be sure before being the excited high school senior who wants their parents to send in the deposit. BUT, it really is easy to absolutely fall in love with Penn State.
Also, ladies…don’t come with a boyfriend unless it IS THE TRUEST and, in the words of Iggy, “the realest” you could ever imagine. There are many fish in the Happy Valley sea. I’ll talk about this topic of high school love and a few other things next week 🙂 Until then…
I love this!! I wish I read this when I was on my way to Happy Valley. I came with a boyfriend and it ended up being a waste of time, he ruined my whole summer semester. Too many times girls drag it out for the label of a long lasting relationship. Great post!
I do like your sentiment about the fall semester. Independence, especially compared to this summer, is something I really enjoy about college. I am interested in how you approach this blog because I think we have a very unique experience relating to our transition into college.
Are you comparing Summer Bridge to the Fall Semester? If not, I feel that you should at least give the Spring semester a feel before you give your final decision. I think this blog will be interesting. Hopefully, the next freshman will take your wonderful advice.