College freshman Hannah Holmes discusses the new stresses of college life and offers advice on how to handle pressure:

Anybody who’s in school now will have to agree with me; pressures abounds.

There’s pressure from professors. Do these fifty questions, read this thirty page chapter, and pass this exam, all this week, all in one class. There’s pressure from friends; as a freshman, my first important task was to make friends. Once I had accomplished that, the next task was to keep the friends. Help them out when they need it, because I might need the same, spend time with them, be the kind of person they want to hang out with. There’s pressure from the family; whether they’re tough on you or (like my extremely wonderful parents) supportive, they still want you to succeed at this university that they’re, in all likelihood, at least helping to pay for. And a phone call every night wouldn’t hurt either. There’s the pressure to get involved on campus, to be doing something, separating yourself from the pack; in all your “spare time.” For me and some others, there’s also the pressures of a job; my employers ask occasionally how classes are going, but I’m not sure how fully they recognize that the job is, by far, not the only thing I do… and that I don’t get a day off.

Whether you have more or less than I do going on in your college life, chances are pretty good you’ve felt stressed at one time or another. You’ve probably had a day where you needed to be five different places at once. Or spent three hours on chemistry homework and still didn’t understand a word of it. The question is, how does one stay sane? Here are some things I’ve been doing. They may help you, they may not, but they’ve helped me.

Even though I don’t get a day off, I always make an effort to schedule down time into my day. Even on my craziest days, I have to have some time that’s sacred for relaxation. For example, I don’t think I’ve yet studied through a meal. It may only be fifteen minutes of wolfing down a sandwich, but I always read for fun or hang out with friends while I eat, even when I don’t really have time to. I’m not going to be able to get very far without eating, and the same goes for relaxing. I have to have pressure free times, when I forget about the things I have to do, and all the people I have to please, even myself. For me, taking a walk makes a great study break. The exercise, of course, is good for you, and it’s a time to kind of escape, to spend some alone time (or catch up with a friend) and catch up with you (or someone else). Part of successful studying is knowing when to stop, to walk, watch a T.V. show, or SLEEP! That’s another thing I’ve refused to sacrifice. I know some people who don’t seem to need sleep, but I find I’m at optimal functioning capability if I get a square eight hours. And when I’m awake, I almost always have my iPod in my ears. It helps keep me sane; when life is getting to be a little too much, I jam my headphones into my ears, put on a happy song and blast the volume. Suddenly, it’s a lot easier to have a positive perspective. And a positive perspective makes everyday, no matter how crazy, livable. When you find yourself in a place where you feel like you need to laugh or cry, always choose to laugh. It’s definitely the best alternative.

Well, I’m off to chemistry and biology, where new pressures await me… but then I’m coming back to my room to watch my favorite show for a blissful pressure free hour!

For more stories from students themselves, check out the archives for previous columns in The Freshman Experience.

College freshman Hannah Holmes shares her first impressions of college and gives readers advice on how to avoid getting overwhelmed:

Walking onto my college campus for the first time felt surreal. Since my junior year, I’d been wondering, worrying, and waiting for college. But for all the hours of thought I’d put into it, I really had no idea what to expect. I think that was what had me the most freaked out over the last few weeks before college.

Somehow, it wasn’t nearly as hard as I expected. There was no explosion, no earthquake; my life did not drastically alter in an instant. Well, I guess in a way it did, but there was no pain associated with it. By the time my parents left, I was ready for them to, even though I’d been anxious about that moment for a long time. I was through with all of the lasts I’d been going through at home; last time spending a Monday afternoon with this friend, last time taking my dog on a walk with my dad, last time…. fill in the blank. But once I got on campus, the firsts began. First meal in the cafeteria, first night in my dorm, first time meeting this person, first time walking to class… It was exciting, an adventure. I guess I was pleasantly surprised, but maybe it’s hard to be surprised at all when you don’t know what to expect.

I was worried about making friends. I realized after my first few minutes on campus that that was silly. I was in a place surrounded by thousands of people around my age, with a million different interests. We’re all pretty much trapped here together, more or less, with no one but each other for company. There’s always someone to talk to, and who knows if it will be a friendship that lasts through the hour until my next class or through graduation?

I was worried about being homesick. Of course, I am sometimes. I miss my mom’s cooking, I miss being with my family, I miss little bits and pieces of the life I led for eighteen years. However, at the same time, I’m very much enjoying this new stage of my life. I talk to my parents everyday- most of the other freshman I talk to do, too. Everyone’s a little homesick.  Although, my college kept us too busy during orientation to think about it much. It was a whirlwind of meetings, classes, icebreakers, projects, and introductions to the college lifestyle. It got a little old after the first couple of days, but I would definitely encourage anyone to try and get us much out of their Orientation as they can, whatever it’s like. It’s sure to be a fantastic opportunity to meet people (who may be as sick of orientation stuff as you) and figure out how to get involved on campus, which can be a little overwhelming at first. Remember, everyone either is in the same boat as you or has been in the not too distant past (other than your professors, of course).

For me, getting used to college has been mostly about perspective, the good old glass-half-full vs. glass-half-empty mentality. If you focus on all the difficult things that happen, like how you got lost going to your first class, and you can’t work the code on your mailbox, and you have way more reading to do than is physically possible, you’ll probably lose your mind and everything will very quickly start to seem very overwhelming. But if you focus on the good things, like how you got out of that lab early, or chilled with your suitemates for an hour in their room, or how pleasant the long walk to that class is, you start to see that college life is kind of fun, and you can balance work and having a good time and enjoy this unique new time in your life.  

High school senior Olivia Duell will be blogging all fall about her college admissions experience. In this post, she writes about her summer job as an intern for United Way:

When I got the call from the United Way requesting a time for an interview, I was shocked. I had applied without much hope because I’d been sending resumes and applications to every place of business in the area, with no luck. I’d really been counting on scoring a camp counselor job, until I received a lovely letter of rejection in the mail. Scouring Craigslist every night had made me even more depressed, as I didn’t qualify for the majority of everything posted there. So basically, my plans for a summer job had been reduced to naught.

Then my mom sent me a link for an internship position hosted by the United Way. What was unique about it was that it was tailored for juniors entering their senior year, so I had an advantage. While reading more about the job, I figured out that the United Way would pair up candidates with a local organization. It sounded pretty great, until I read that only three were selected. I applied anyway, with just as many qualms as I’d had about applying to everything else; and now that it was almost July, businesses had already pretty much hired the hands they needed. This was my last shot.

So when I was informed that the United Way wanted to interview me, ME, for not only one position, but TWO positions, I was floored. I was being considered for placement at more than one local organization.  I couldn’t believe it. I was more than excited- that is until I started freaking out. This was my first job interview experience, ever. I really didn’t want to mess this opportunity up.

In the morning, my nerves hadn’t eased a bit. I drove to the United Way in a mad frenzy, worrying I’d be late. Turns out I arrived 20 minutes early, though that didn’t calm me down at all. I waited in the car for what seemed like ages (though really only 5 minutes), thinking through what I’d say, before I finally got out and went inside.

As I walked through the door, my mood changed. Sure, I was still tense when I was called into the interview room and had to shake hands with the three interviewers, but their attitudes put me at ease. They weren’t grilling me, they were smiling, and they didn’t seem like they wanted me to fail. I stopped mumbling incoherently and made eye-contact with these friendly people; it wasn’t so hard. In fact, it was easy. I just had to tell them why I wanted the job, and I already knew the answer to that question. I replied to what they asked the best I could, asked any questions about the job that I had myself, and didn’t forget to hand them my resume. Everybody still seemed happy when it was over; I left the room feeling more than confident. Two hours later they called, congratulating me on getting my first choice internship at the local branch of the Salvation Army.

I am now on my 6th and final week of my internship experience. As I inch closer to my last day, I feel sadder than I thought I’d be. I have learned a copious amount of information in a number of different fields. Since I’m working at a service center, I’ve seen needy people everyday that come in for the free food pantry or for hot meals on the weekends; I’ve worked in the office and made referrals to other local organizations for individuals to receive help; I’ve made photo-copies, taken phone-calls, and updated computer documents; I was even able to teach three young musicians and help out in beginner bands at the Salvation Army’s annual Music Conservatory. I’ve had such a broad amount of experience over these past six weeks and I know what I’ve learned is invaluable. The fact that the internship is paid made it all even sweeter; luckily I’m putting it directly into a college savings account, or I’d probably have spent it already on CDs.