My study habits have stayed pretty consistent throughout the entire semester so far. I continue to take notes, make flashcards, and do practice questions until I understand the material. I am still doing the best in my English class. I make sure to write in my planner the due dates and material I have to review before class and that has made me stay on top of all of my work. English has always been my best subject because usually there are journal entries, and you can’t really get a bad grade on those because there your thoughts, which means there is no right or wrong response. History was my biggest struggle at first, but I seem to get the hang of it now. It took me a long time to adjust to the amount of work and reading assignments we had to do, but I have come up with a method that works for me. The beginning of the week I go through all of the assignments for that week and write them in my planner to ensure I do not miss an assignment. Before, I was looking at the work I had to do that day, and often missed some of the assignments. This has really helped me achieve a better understanding of the material, and improved my grade. 

My transition to college definitely has become more bearable. I have made time to see my mom mostly every weekend, which has really helped me adjust because I know I will be home in a few days. When I came to college I expected to make a whole bunch of new friends, have time for myself even with being in school, and succeed in all of my classes. Not all of those expectations have happened yet, but I hope with time they will. Making friends is not easy, especially when everyone is just running around trying to be on time for classes, and trying to pay attention in class. I have made it a priority to set aside some time for myself, and I feel like that has made college more enjoyable. Even if it’s just an hour of watching my tv show, it takes all the stress off my shoulders for a little bit. I am not doing as well as I would like in two of my classes, but it will take time and adjustments to find what works best for me. In some sense, college is what I expected. We now have the freedom to make our own choices, but that can add more stress. I expected it to be super stressful, which I think prepared me for the stress I am feeling now because I knew it was coming. One thing that definitely has surprised me so far is the amount of students that do not care about their grades, showing up to class, or college in general. They are paying a hefty amount of money for their education, yet they act like it’s not a big deal. Leaving my mom was the hardest part about college for me, she is my best friend and I did not want to leave her, but we facetime everyday and I see her most weekends. The easiest challenge for me to overcome when moving to college was becoming independent. I have found that I am more capable than I thought I was.

I am still keeping my intended major of nursing, even though lots of people have changed their minds about nursing. I could not see myself doing anything else, and I will work as hard as I have to, to accomplish my goal. I did not know how little of the intended nursing majors got accepted into the program. That definitely scared me, but is also motivating me to work harder. 

One problem I have faced so far is definitely feeling lonely and missing my friends. I could start going to more events, tutor sessions, and get into a club to make more friends. I have made a few good friends so far, including Braylen and Natalie, who is in this class and most of my classes. They have helped me with any assignments that I do not understand, we study together, and do our homework together. This has been a huge help for me, having friends here I can count on for help and talk to about my problems. I have not attended an interest meeting for a club yet, I have been super busy trying to find ways that work for me to get my work done. I do want to get involved in a club, I just want to get in the groove of college life first.